D'backs' Paul Goldschmidt has huge bat, tiny ego

Bob Nightengale | USA TODAY Sports

PHOENIX -- It is the pickup sitting in the Arizona Diamondbacks player parking lot, surrounded by a Ferrari Italia, Mercedes-Benz sedans, Range Rovers and BMWs.

Paul Goldschmidt gets out of the Ford F-150, wearing a T-shirt and jeans, proud he can finally afford to buy a new car, getting rid of his in-laws' hand-me-down SUV with more than 200,000 miles on it and no longer needing to fit his 6-3, 235-pound frame into his old Hyundai.

Oh, sure, he still prefers to carpool and would rather cook a few burgers in the backyard than dine at a five-star restaurant.

So imagine the look of horror on Goldschmidt's face when he finds out the Diamondbacks have a surprise awaiting him in two weeks.

They have arranged a private plane to take him and his wife, Amy, for the trip of a lifetime to New York City, and he might even have a couple teammates tag along.

Yes, it's called the All-Star Game, and not only is Goldschmidt a lock to receive an invitation, it's also possible he might be returning to New York during the winter to pick up the National League MVP Award.

Just don't tell Goldschmidt, 25, who blushed at the sight of his teammates' recent gesture of printing T-shirts that featured a picture of him with the words, "America's First Baseman."

Goldschmidt quickly put the T-shirt in his locker and begged his teammates to promise they'd never wear them in public.

"I'm not going to get mad at guys having fun," Goldschmidt says, "but I'm sure not going to wear it."

That's Goldschmidt, having the finest offensive season of any player in the NL and carrying the Diamondbacks to first place in the NL West with his 19 homers — second in the NL — and league-leading 65 RBI.

He just so happens to have the ego of a grounds-crew worker.

He refuses to look up at the TV when there are highlights of him. He grimaces when news reporters bring up his statistical ranking and had no idea he was even leading the league in RBI until last weekend.

"Humble, humble, humble," says Arizona pitcher Wade Miley, who has known Goldschmidt since 2006. "He's the greatest teammate I've ever had. Everyone loves him in here. This couldn't happen to a better guy."

Goldschmidt spent last weekend hoping he could just talk with Cincinnati Reds former MVP Joey Votto. He walked away speechless when Votto told him he hoped the two of them could represent the NL All-Star team together.

"I know he deserves it," Votto says. "What he's doing right now just isn't fair. I mean, I had no idea that he was that big, and he's so unbelievably strong. He wants to talk hitting with me? Hey, I want to learn from him."

Raising Arizona

Goldschmidt's pregame routine is, to say the least, extensive and meticulous.

He arrives at 1 p.m., 51/2 hours before game time. He works out. Studies video. Swings in the cage. Takes batting practice. Soaks in the hot tub. Drinks coffee. And even studies for school; he is just two classes shy of completing the bachelor's degree he started at Texas State.

"He reminds me a lot of Chipper Jones," says Arizona third baseman Martin Prado, who spent seven years with Jones on the Atlanta Braves. "It's the way his mind is always ahead. He's so unbelievably smart, like Chipper, and that separates him."

This is the kind of effect Goldschmidt is having on folks these days, putting up the greatest offensive first-base numbers this side of the Baltimore Orioles' Chris Davis. He has hit the most go-ahead homers in baseball with 12, ranks second to Davis in slugging percentage and RBI and is third in homers behind Davis and Edwin Encarnacion of the Toronto Blue Jays.

"He's pretty much carried us, honestly," D'backs veteran Eric Hinske says. "I don't know where we'd be without him.

"He's just a cool customer with an old soul. I call him Ivan Drago from Rocky IV. He'll hit a grand slam, come back to the dugout and be more excited for the guy who got a walk to get on base."

All from a man with less than two full years in the big leagues. So some trappings of stardom — such as the All-Star Game — give him pause.

His wife notes his family back home has reserved flights — albeit on Southwest, ensuring the tickets are fully refundable.

"Everybody knows Paul doesn't want to talk about it," says Amy, who married Goldschmidt in 2010 after they met in study hall during freshman year at Texas State, where she played on the golf team. "When it comes up with the family, he just politely skirts the issue. But we know we can't just wait until the last minute to make plans.

"So the family is booking tickets. We're just not telling him about it."

Dogged by doubters

Despite his size and obvious power potential, Goldschmidt could not elicit interest from a single college after his junior year in high school. His traveling coach, Mike Rutledge, used his influence to persuade Texas State to take him.

He was the Southland Conference hitter of the year in 2008 and '09 and led all Division I players with 87 RBI in 2009, but only two scouts bothered to watch him in the conference tournament. Teams passed on him until the eighth round, when Trip Couch, Arizona's area scout at the time, persuaded his bosses to take him.

"You couldn't draw up a finer model citizen for a baseball player," Couch said, "but people just didn't believe in him and tried to find reasons he wouldn't succeed. They saw a bulky body, a right-handed power bat that was going to play first base, where people thought he'd be a liability.

"What people didn't see is that makeup."

Goldschmidt was the MVP of the high-Class A California League in 2010 with 35 homers, but still there were skeptics — this time in his organization.

The Diamondbacks were so unsure of Goldschmidt that they offered a three-year, $30 million free agent contract to first baseman Paul Konerko in 2010, before he decided to return to the Chicago White Sox.

Goldschmidt was having another fabulous season in 2011 with Class AA Mobile (Ala.), hitting 30 homers in 103 games, but the Diamondbacks tried to get Konerko again, claiming him off waivers in August. They had 72 hours to work out a trade with the White Sox, who demanded Goldschmidt in return. The Diamondbacks stuck with the kid.

That astute decision was followed by another one: signing Goldschmidt in March to a five-year, $32 million extension. The deal so heavily favors the Diamondbacks, they now are open to talking about another extension in a few years, making sure he stays with the organization for life.

"When you do long-term contracts," general manager Kevin Towers says, "you look at their skill sets, their ability to get better, their age, their work ethic, how they handle themselves. Everything was a 'yes' on this kid. He embodies everything we preach.

"I feel really good about setting this kid up for life. Some guys are driven by just making the most money. That's not who he is. I imagine we'll go back to him, even before this contract is over, and if he's still the type of player we think he is, make sure he's here the rest of his career."

Even in an era when nine-figure contracts are increasingly doled out to those patient enough, Goldschmidt says he has no regrets about signing the deal.

He purchased a home in Scottsdale, Ariz., and he and Amy moved in three weeks ago, ecstatic they have a permanent home for their golden retriever, Brinkley.

And some three years after their wedding, they're unwrapping some of the gifts now that they have more space.

"It wasn't like we had to get the deal done," Goldschmidt says, "but for me it was the right decision. I don't have to worry about arbitration now. I just get to go play baseball and get paid to do it.

"How can you beat that?"

The only inconvenience these days is added media attention.

"I was talking to my mom one night," Amy says, "and she said, 'Have you told Paul congratulations about his grand slam?' I had totally forgotten about it. He never brought it up. I still haven't even talked to him about that ('America's First Baseman') T-shirt. But that's Paul, he's probably so embarrassed by it.

"There's no Eddie Haskell fakeness to him. He hates the attention, and he hates crowds, which is kind of funny, but he's just so gentle."

Well, except for standing in the batter's box, swinging that 34-inch, 32-ounce Old Hickory bat, keeping his front foot down and driving the ball to every inch of the park. He's a pitcher's nightmare because of his notable power to the opposite field.

"He doesn't have to change a thing the way he works, the way he takes care of himself," says hitting coach Don Baylor, who thinks Goldschmidt will be a consistent 30-homer hitter.

"He's just an old school ballplayer who happens to be one of the nicest guys you'll meet."

Follow Bob Nightengale on Twitter: @BNightengale