Cardinals’ Paul Goldschmidt is Chasing History
Baseball fans have already been treated to countless jaw-dropping moments this season, although they may witness something that hasn’t occurred since 1937.
It’s been 84 seasons since Joe Medwick, who played for the St. Louis Cardinals from 1932-40 and again during 1947-48, won the NL’s last Triple Crown. The Hall of Famer led the league with 31 home runs, 154 RBIs and a .374 average.
Now 85 years later, another Cardinal, Paul Goldschmidt, is in the hunt to win the 2022 NL Triple Crown. The 34-year-old appears primed to make a solid push in an attempt to end the 84-season drought as the home stretch of the regular season nears.
Goldschmidt currently leads all NL hitters in RBIs (105) and AVG (.339), placing second in home runs (33), behind Philadelphia’s Kyle Schwarber (35). He also leads the majors in AVG, ranks second in RBIs and third in home runs.
Strengthening his case, the right-hander has been red-hot in August, hitting .383/.469/.790 with nine round-trippers, 27 RBIs and a 243 wRC+ score across 98 plate appearances – including his two-homer performance during Thursday’s 8-3 victory over the Chicago Cubs.
Winning a Triple Crown isn’t easy, though, as only 10 hitters have done so since RBIs became an official stat in 1920. Detroit’s Miguel Cabrera is the last player who accomplished the feat for either league in 2012, ending a 45-year drought.
In an era flooded with generational talents, finishing a 162-game season atop three major offensive categories has become extremely difficult. It requires plenty of skill, a bit of luck and a healthy track record.
Luckily for Goldschmidt, he possesses all three aspects at this stage of his 12-year big-league career. As someone that’s played 155 games or more in seven of his last nine campaigns, excluding the COVID-shortened 2020 season, he’s been fortunate to avoid any serious injuries in the majors.
That should bode well for the 6-foot-3 first baseman’s chances of achieving something that only three NL players (Medwick, Chuck Klein, Rogers Hornsby) have accomplished since 1920. If successful, the veteran slugger would become the third Cardinal to win a Triple Crown, behind Hornsby (1922) and Medwick (1937).
A challenging road lies ahead for Goldschmidt as he chases history down the stretch, however, he’s been one of baseball’s premier hitters and is currently the front-runner to win the 2022 NL MVP Award.
In addition to leading the NL in AVG and RBIs, Goldschmidt also ranks first in OBP (.420), SLG (.637), ISO (.298) BABIP (.382), wOBA (.448) and wRC+ (195), according to FanGraphs. The eighth-round pick from 2009 has also been worth 6.8 fWAR, good for second in the majors.
If not for New York’s Aaron Judge, who leads the majors with 48 home runs and 106 RBIs, Goldschmidt’s odds of winning the MLB and NL Triple Crowns would be fairly high. But alas, he’s unlikely to out-slug the current AL MVP favourite.
Nevertheless, capturing this season’s NL Triple Crown would undoubtedly earn St. Louis’ first baseman the MVP trophy as well. While no other hitter appears close to catching him, he’d solidify his case as the league’s top performer by finishing with the most home runs, RBIs and highest average.
Catching Schwarber could prove difficult, although the Cardinals feature a slightly easier remaining schedule than the Phillies, which may help Goldschmidt in his quest to surpass the NL’s current home run leader.
Of St. Louis’ 37 remaining games, 24 will come against rebuilding franchises – including the Pittsburgh Pirates (nine), Cincinnati Reds (eight), Chicago Cubs (three) and Washington Nationals (four). None of those clubs have anything to play for at this point.
All four opponents also share a similar weakness: pitching. And that’s allowed Goldschmidt to enjoy plenty of memorable performances this season, resulting in 15 home runs, 40 RBIs, a 223 wRC+ score and a .361/.447/.714 slash line over 37 contests.
Based on his past results, the seven-time All-Star will likely continue to feast off those organization’s pitchers the rest of the way. Though, he might receive some well-earned rest during a few of those matchups if the Cardinals clinch the division early.
Still, with over half of his remaining games versus teams below .500, he’s perfectly positioned to enjoy a productive stretch to conclude the regular season.
Batting average and RBIs aren’t the renowned stats they once were, especially in the age of analytics. Having said that, winning a Triple Crown remains a celebratory achievement, and rightly so. It’s incredibly tough to pull off, and it’s been nearly 10 years since anyone has won one.
Not to mention, executing this feat at 34 would be remarkably impressive. Cabrera, who’s now 39, was 29 when he captured the AL Triple Crown. And he hasn’t exactly aged well beyond his mid-30s.
Baseball has rapidly become a young person’s game over the last few seasons. If Goldschmidt wins the NL Triple Crown and MVP Award during his age-34 season, though, it could be one of the more impressive recent accomplishments we’ve seen.
Doing so could also help punch his eventual ticket to Cooperstown after his playing days conclude as well.
-Thomas Hall
Twitter: @ThomasHall85
Photo: All-Pro Reels. This file is licensed under the Creative Commons Attribution-Share Alike 2.0 Generic license.