Arizona’s Goldschmidt: ‘America’s 1st Baseman’

PHOENIX - Paul Goldschmidt’s teammates have taken to calling him “America’s first baseman,” a heady title for an exceedingly humble young man.

Arizona’s Willie Bloomquist says if you were to make a mold for a young player with the right attitude, work ethic and skills, Goldschmidt would be the guy. His manager, Kirk Gibson, has repeatedly lauded Goldschmidt’s attitude and work ethic.

Goldschmidt, 25, has emerged as one of the game’s best players in just his second full season in the major leagues. Entering Monday night’s play, he led the National League with 58 RBI, hitting .322 with 15 home runs.

Four of those were go-ahead home runs in the eighth inning or later, the most in the majors. Most recently, his three-run, opposite-field shot off Jeremy Affeldt in the eighth rallied Arizona to a 3-1 victory over San Francisco. The home run came in a brief home stand after a road trip that saw Goldschmidt hit two grand slams.

That five-year, $32 million contract Goldschmidt signed before this season looks like a huge bargain.

“Before this even happened, when he first got called up, I said he reminded me of a young Paul Konerko,” Diamondbacks closer J.J. Putz said, “just his studying of the game and the way he handles himself. He’s going to be pretty special for a long time, I think.”

Goldschmidt finds himself in the conversation as a potential MVP, but he said he tries to ignore the inevitable, growing national attention.

“The attitude I have is whether you’re going good or bad, I just stay away,” he said, “Don’t read it, don’t listen. I change the channel sometimes on TV. Obviously, if it’s on in the locker room you don’t have that opportunity. Like I said, good or bad, that stuff for me, it can distract you. There are enough distractions in this game. You just try to take away the ones you can control.”

Goldschmidt, born in raised in suburban Houston, was no big-name prospect as a youngster. He went to Texas State, where he led NCAA Division I in RBI in 2009, and Arizona chose himin the eighth round of that year’s draft.

Goldschmidt rose quickly through the Arizona minor-league system. In 2011, he hit .306 with 30 home runs and 94 RBI in 103 games for Class AA Mobile and was called up by the Diamondbacks for the final two months of the season. Last year, playing regularly in the big leagues for the first time, he started off slowly but finished strong for a .286 average with 20 home runs, 43 doubles and 82 RBI.

There was concern about his defense, but he has become one of the better players at his position in the majors. The error he committed against the Giants on Sunday was his third of the season.

The Diamondbacks’ front office had seen enough and approached him and his agent about a long-term deal. Goldschmidt might have been better served by holding off, but he has no regrets.

“I can’t complain,” he said. “I’m extremely excited, happy about it, glad we got it done. I’m excited to be here, love it here. Now I just get to go play.”

Goldschmidt is not a stereotypical power hitter. He is a very good hitter who has power. Goldschmidt said he simply works at making good contact at the plate.

“I just try to hit the ball hard,” he said. “If it gets in the air, I know I’m strong enough if I hit it good with backspin, it can get out of there. But I don’t know how to get in there and try to hit a homer. When I do that I usually strike out or roll over. So everything I’m trying to do is just keep it simple and just hit the ball hard, try to hit a line drive and if you get under it a little bit, hopefully it gets out.”

Always, Goldschmidt tries to deflect praise.

“It’s a team game. That’s why we’re here,” he said. “I wouldn’t be here if it wasn’t for a lot of other people, so I’m very fortunate that I’ve been surrounded by great guys, not just this clubhouse, but coming up through the minor leagues, college, all the way back. There’s a lot of people that put in a lot of time to help you.”