http://tinyurl.com/3mmcnr6 Paul Goldschmidt has no illusions about his golfing ability. He and wife Amy have been married for 10 months. They met as freshmen at Texas State, where Amy was on the golf team. "I try to play with her, but I've got no chance," Goldschmidt says. "I'm not very good. She tries to help, but I can be stubborn at times. So, I'll bring her out with some of my friends and use her as a ringer and try to take some money from the guys." But those around him say Goldschmidt could probably become a decent golfer if he put his mind to it. "He made himself into the baseball player he is," says Trip Couch, who scouted Gold- schmidt heavily in high school and college. "I think that's what always drew me to him. … I'll be more shocked if Paul doesn't make it than I would be if he does because of who he is and how he'll handle things." This season, Goldschmidt has cut down on his strikeouts while still eliciting oohs and aahs with prodigious blasts playing for the Class AA Mobile (Ala.) BayBears. The 23-year-old first baseman was leading all minor leaguers with 30 home runs and 94 RBI when the Arizona Diamondbacks promoted him to the big leagues Aug. 1. Proving that performance no fluke, he singled against the San Francisco Giants' Matt Cain in his first big-league at-bat. He homered the next day against Tim Lincecum, then delivered a game-tying, ninth-inning homer against the Houston Astros and homered against another Cy Young Award winner, Cliff Lee— all in the heat of a pennant race and in his first 17 days in the majors. For his work this season, Goldschmidt has been named the 2011 USA TODAY Minor League Player of the Year. The Diamondbacks can only imagine what Goldschmidt might accomplish from this point. But the progress he has made to get here is a reflection of his knack for turning skeptics into believers. "He's like a sponge in that he wants to soak up anything that can make him a better baseball player," says Alan Zinter, his minor league hitting coach the last two years. "He's doing things the right way. He's always looking for consistency and how he can work on the mental side of the game. He's learned how to handle his failures. Early last year, he'd go 0-for-4, and it might bother him. But he's learned, 'That doesn't define who I am.' The next game, he'll bounce back with a couple of doubles. He just keeps moving forward. "I am surprised that someone like this dropped to the eighth round, and we were lucky enough to get him." The one guy Couch was always a believer. He was a Diamondbacks' Houston-area scout when Goldschmidt starred at The Woodlands High School. Couch also witnessed his career at Texas State, where Goldschmidt mashed a school record 36 home runs in three seasons, lobbying hard for D'backs scouting director Tom Allison to draft him. Now an assistant coach at the University of Houston, Couch was afraid Arizona wouldn't get Goldschmidt if it waited as long as the eighth round, where it took him in 2009. For Couch, it was as much about Goldschmidt's demeanor as the power he displayed with shots such as his 410-foot home run in the high school 5A championship game back in 2006. "Over the years, there are always a handful of guys you want to see your team get," Couch says. "Then there's the one guy you'd feel really disappointed about if you don't. Paul was that guy for me." That type of thinking eventually reached the rest of the organization. "His makeup is as good as any kid I've ever been around in 20 years of college and pro baseball," says Jerry Dipoto, the Diamondbacks' senior vice president of scouting and player development. "He never wants to talk about himself. He'll tell people it's about the team. That's who he is — and not because someone told him that's how you should talk." Goldschmidt first caught Couch's eye playing in a 10th-grade summer elite program. He helped The Woodlands to the state title in 2006 but was overshadowed by pitcher and teammate Kyle Drabek, who went 38-1 during his high school career. Drabek became a first-round draft pick of the Phillies. Gold- schmidt, a 49th-round pick of the Dodgers that spring, was passed over by big colleges and opted for Texas State. Dipoto says that coming out of a smaller college conference known for offensive numbers, Goldschmidt failed to produce much buzz on draft day. "I think people undervalued how well he could hit," Couch says. "He was a big kid who sometimes looked a little bit stiff playing third base. It didn't always look easy over there for him." Some weren't convinced even after Goldschmidt powered through rookie-level Missoula (Mont.) by hitting .334 with 18 homers and 62 RBI in 74 games in 2009 and hit 35 homers and was named 2010 MVP of the Class A California League. Goldschmidt has always hit for power. Dipoto says the Diamondbacks were curious to see how he would transition to the Southern League, which traditionally is more favorable to pitchers than the Cal League. "All he did was go out and out-perform anything he'd done to date," Dipoto says. 'Leaner, livlier body' Standing 6-3, Goldschmidt's first step in 2011 was slimming down from 245 pounds to 233, making him more nimble in spring training. "He came in having shed some body weight and considerable body fat," Dipoto says. "He'd always been in great shape, but now he was put together like an animal. He came in with just a leaner and livelier body." As Zinter puts it, he went from being a "big, strong kid to being a big lean kid." That has helped around first base, where he has played in the minors. "In the past, I was kind of just playing over there, not taking a lot of pride in it," Goldschmidt says. "But I knew if I wanted to make the big-league club, I had to be able to play defense. It's something I've put a lot of work into." At Mobile, Goldschmidt also reduced his strikeouts from one every 3.26 at-bats for Class A Visalia (Calif.) in 2010 to one every four at-bats. While maintaining his power numbers, his on-base percentage (helped by 82 walks in 103 games) improved from .384 to .435. Zinter sees a maturity level and understanding that most young hitters lack. "He knows his swing. He knows his mechanics," Zinter says. "He has a wide stance with a setup of a (Albert) Pujols or (Jeff) Bagwell. He gets a lot of torque from his back side. He keeps his head still, so he's able to read the ball, and his bat path is in the zone for a long time." Goldschmidt got his first big-league chance when Arizona dealt another young first baseman, Brandon Allen, to the Oakland Athletics at the July 31 trading deadline. He was thrust into a regular role, and he had five homers and 13 RBI through 24 games. In that span, he had a two-out, ninth-inning home run against Mark Melancon in a 10-inning win against Houston. Diamondbacks hitting coach Don Baylor isn't planning a massive overhaul. The 1979 American League MVP isn't big on changing hitters as much as using what works for them. "He was leading the minor leagues in home runs. The way he grinds out at-bats, I think he's on his way to being a good young power hitter and an RBI guy," Baylor says. Baylor says Goldschmidt needs to make consistent contact to be successful in Arizona. Although Mark Reynolds hit 44 home runs for them in 2009 and 32 in 2010, the Diamondbacks determined they could do without another season with more than 200 strikeouts and traded him to the Baltimore Orioles this offseason. "I've been around a lot of all-or-nothing guys who had potential — guys like Roger Freed, Jim Fuller," Baylor says. "Reggie Jackson and I always used to talk about it. He said, 'You have to have a manager willing to write your name in there every day, so you'd better hit 40 home runs.' (Goldschmidt) might be in that category." Baylor thinks Goldschmidt will adjust to the big leagues. The young hitter constantly peppers the hitting coach and manager Kirk Gibson with questions about what they see in pitchers. "He's inquisitive more than most young hitters I've been around," Baylor says. Goldschmidt is aware of his skill set and what he must do to continue his progression. "I realized if I wanted to play baseball as a career, I needed to outwork everyone else," he says. "That (means) not just with hard work but by working smart and being able to pick the brains of our coaching staff." Intimidating stature Goldschmidt was eating breakfast with Amy in Mobile when BayBears manager Turner Ward phoned to tell him he'd been called up to the big leagues. "I wish I could have seen his face," Ward says. The news provided affirmation for a player who can be equally impressive and deceiving at first glance. "The first thing you notice is his size. He's an intimidating guy in terms of stature," says Mike Bell, the Diamondbacks' director of player development. "Then you watch him take BP, and it's impressive. The ball sounds different off his bat. "You think, 'This guy has a lot of power, but he's a big guy, probably not going to be able to play first base.' It doesn't take long watching him to realize this guy is a pretty good first baseman, too." Mark Grace, a former Diamondbacks first baseman who is a broadcaster for the team, has noticed that Goldschmidt has picked multiple throws out of the dirt at the big-league level. Grace sees raw power in the right-handed hitter, as well as a player who isn't overwhelmed. "There are a lot of expectations for him," Grace says. "Everyone expects him to come up and be the next 45-to 50-home run guy. But I think he understands that against major league pitching, that might be a little more difficult to do that." Gibson says his new first baseman is "getting humbled fairly regularly" but acknowledges. "He's also pounded the ball and has some big hits for us." Goldschmidt hasn't changed his approach. "I'm still trying to learn," he says. "If it's a day where I have three or four strikeouts or a day I have none, I try to figure out what I did right or did wrong." These days, it seems, the believers are outnumbering the skeptics. Zinter, his minor league hitting coach, is convinced Goldschmidt will continue making the adjustments necessary to succeed as a major leaguer. That's what he's been doing all along. "No one is exempt from failure in this game," Zinter says. "But like a steamroller, he'll keep moving forward, and you'll get rolled over if you don't get out of his way." --

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