It’s not quite an MVP award or a World Series championship, but Cardinals first baseman Albert Pujols is now an American Citizen. Pujols is a native of the Dominican Republic. He gained American citizenship Wednesday after a yearlong process.

Pujols was sworn in by U.S. District Court Judge Richard E. Webber during a ceremony attended by about 20 family members and friends. The 2005 National League MVP earned a perfect score on the oral and written exams, according to Chester Moyer, officer in charge of the U.S. Citizen and Immigration Service’s St. Louis Branch.

Pujols graduated from an American high school, Independence High School in 1998, before the Cardinals drafted him in the 13 th round of the 1999 draft.