The “professional” label follows Paul Goldschmidt around for good reason.
In nearly every aspect of baseball that requires finesse — such as the essentials of playing at first base or understanding the timing to steal a base without being particularly fast — the 37-year-old truly shines.
It follows, then, that he owns a master’s in the finer art of hitting with two strikes.
Entering play Sunday, 171 hitters had tallied at least 100 plate appearances in which they reached two strikes.
Goldschmidt’s .278 average in such situations ranked third.
Down to his last strike, the Yankees first baseman does what has become significantly less common around the game: He slides his hands up on the bat.
“I definitely choke up,” Goldschmidt said before finishing a series with the Red Sox in The Bronx. “Just try to simplify mechanics.
“When players inquire about handling two-strike situations, I often suggest that they shouldn’t burden themselves with too much pressure, like thinking, ‘I must make contact’ … because that’s when they tend to become too cautious.”
Goldschmidt developed his skill for hitting with a two-strike mindset during his time at Texas State and as he rose through the ranks of the Diamondbacks’ organization after being drafted in 2009.
He went through two-strike drills in the batting cage, the situational hitting a “high priority” for him, he said.
Different approaches for different counts certainly still exist in 2025, though not many hitters these days inch up on the handle to have a better chance at making contact.
Many hitters will still swing with authority, accepting strikeouts because doubles and home runs are appealing.
Before he reaches two strikes, Goldschmidt entered play with a .589 slugging percentage.
That number sunk to .365 when he encountered a two-strike count.
In gaining a bit more bat control and swinging a bit softer — his zero- or one-strike swing averaged 73.2 mph, while his two-strike swing ticked down to 72.1 mph — he is aware of and OK with the trade-off he is making.
“Maybe you’re giving up a little bit of power for hopefully a little bit of control,” Goldschmidt said. “For a guy who’s got a little bit higher swing-and-miss rate, I feel like it gives me a better opportunity with two strikes. Guys that probably have a higher contact rate, a lower swing-and-miss rate, they maybe won’t need to choke up. So it’s just kind of finding what you’re comfortable with.”
More than most, Goldschmidt is comfortable with having his back against the wall.
It is part of being a 15th-year major leaguer who has seen everything in the game and is probably headed to the Hall of Fame.
It is also part of being a slugger who entered with 369 career home runs and swings hard.
Taking healthy cuts early in the count will lead to whiffs and lead to plenty of two-strike at-bats.
“The mental part is just being OK getting two strikes and being OK knowing that I can still get a hit with two strikes, even though knowing overall the numbers [for any hitter] are not great,” said Goldschmidt, whose numbers are excellent even though he entered play in an 0-for-13 slump when reaching two strikes. “So I think still keeping that confidence even knowing it’s somewhat of a tougher situation.”
