Paul Goldschmidt has a strict coffee regimen during the baseball season, but he generally tries to curtail his coffee intake during the offseason.
Thanks to his son Jake, that’s all been thrown out the window.
“Usually in the offseason I would try not to have as much coffee, but last year I tried to go into that, and he was a month old and still waking up in the middle of the night,” the Diamondbacks’ All-Star first baseman said about his first child, who turned one in September.
“I was like, All right, I gotta just have coffee all the time.”
Like all new parents, life has been turned upside-down for the 29-year-old Goldschmidt and his wife Amy since Jake was born -- and with Jake on the verge of taking his first steps, it’s about to become even more so.
But the Scottsdale residents wouldn’t have it any other way, as the amount of joy Jake has brought into their lives has more than made up for the need for increased caffeine consumption.
“Obviously it’s a lot of work, especially for Amy, but we just have so much fun,” Paul said. “I get to play with him all the time. Now, instead of looking for stuff to do, we definitely have everything planned with him keeping us busy.”
With Paul on the road with the D-backs for three of the last six months, Amy had her hands especially full. That’s probably the reason Jake’s first word was “momma” – something Paul is just fine with.
“I wasn’t going to be selfish,” he said. “I’ll steal other stuff, but as much as she takes care of him and loves him, I think him saying ‘momma’ first was good for everyone.”
Amy said Jake is more of a “momma’s boy” right now since Paul has been away so much. But she knows that could soon change, especially now that the D-backs’ season is over.
“I’m just taking full advantage of it because I know (that will change) as soon as he starts getting into sports and whatever he wants to get into,” Amy said.
“(Paul is) already enjoying spending more time with him just in the past couple days. He was lit up this morning when he got to see him and he was like, ‘Wait, what are you still doing here?’ I think he’s going to end up being a daddy’s boy, but I’ll take the momma’s boy for now.”
Fortunately, Amy and Jake were able to travel with Paul during some of the D-backs’ road trips, especially the games closer to Arizona.
“He’s a great traveler,” Amy said. “We get a little more time on the road with him not going to the field until a bit later, so it’s actually really nice.”
Paul would definitely rather be participating in the MLB playoffs right now – but the ability to spend more time at home with Amy and Jake isn’t something he’ll complain about, even if it means constantly refilling the coffee pot.
“I love just playing with him, getting to roll on the ground with him,” Paul said. “He doesn’t really know what’s going on, but just to roll a ball to him or play blocks or whatever it is … It’s been amazing. It’s been such a fun year.”
