The first man to clear the roof of a stadium
In short: Paul Goldschmidt is a powerhouse of modern baseball, but his most historic feat might be a literal one. Beyond his MVP trophies and record-breaking power, he achieved a feat of physics that left fans stunned: hitting a ball so far it actually left the stadium.
Goldschmidt's journey to the elite tier of baseball was anything but a straight line. A lightly recruited player from Texas, he was selected by the Los Angeles Dodgers in the 49th round of the 2006 draft—a long shot that didn't pan out. He eventually signed with the Arizona Diamondbacks in 2009, where he spent the bulk of his early career. During this tenure, he became a perennial All-Star and a defensive anchor, eventually winning the National League MVP in 2022. He also holds a unique distinction as the first first baseman to earn five Silver Slugger Awards.
His transition to the St. Louis Cardinals in 2019 marked a new chapter of historic production. In his second game with the club, he hit three home runs, a feat that had never been accomplished by any player in their first or second game with a new team. He continued to push the boundaries of the sport's physics; in 2021, he launched a 465-foot home run against the Mets, which stood as the longest ever recorded at Busch Stadium during the Statcast era. He also became the first player to hit a foul ball that cleared the upper deck and exited the stadium entirely at that venue.
Beyond the statistics, Goldschmidt's career is defined by resilience and heritage. He grew up in a household that balanced Catholic and Jewish identities, with a family history of escaping Nazi Germany in 1938. This background of survival and transition mirrors his own professional path—from a 49th-round underdog to a record-breaking slugger who tied franchise marks for consecutive home runs and set new standards for first-base fielding percentages.
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- Summary by Intellect · source: Paul Goldschmidt
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