Albert Pujols' magical finish to his storied career almost never happened.

Mired in a serious slump that saw him go without a home run in the month of June, the St. Louis Cardinals slugger considered walking away from the team rather than completing his final season.

"No, I did, I swear I did," Pujols told John Denton of MLB.com on Thursday when asked if he'd considered early retirement. "There were some times when I (asked) myself that, many times."