D-backs’ Paul Goldschmidt starts NL Wild Card Game with three-run HR

Everyone was aware of it.

Arizona Diamondbacks first baseman Paul Goldschmidt went through a slump in September, hitting .175 and was without a hit in his last 17 at-bats.

He was also 0-for-11 off Colorado starter Jon Gray in his career.

While Goldschmidt is far too good of a player to be counted out, those little tidbits were worth noting before Wednesday’s National League Wild Card Game against the Colorado Rockies kicked off.

Well, so much for the slump.

Goldschmidt and his teammates got three straight hits off Gray to start the game, topped off by his three-run home run.

The MVP candidate took the first pitch he saw, a hanging curveball at the top of the strike zone, to left field and hit it 384 feet to give Arizona a three-run lead.

Gray did not look pleased with the development.

Not the pose you want to see from your pitcher in the 1st inning… pic.twitter.com/8VOgrLCzuh

— CBS Sports (@CBSSports) October 5, 2017

The perfect start for the offense followed a 1-2-3 inning for starting pitcher Zack Greinke in the first, giving Arizona all of the momentum at home in Chase Field.

That momentum continued after Goldschmidt, as both Jake Lamb and A.J. Pollock got great contact off Gray for two more hits. No more runs would come, but the D-backs were in a commanding position in the early stages of the game.

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