Paul Goldschmidt is mashing. Like, really mashing. The St. Louis Cardinals first baseman extended his hitting streak to 25 games as he received the NL Player of the Month Award. He is playing himself well into the MVP conversation so far this season.

After Goldschmidt went yard in a 14-5 win against the Chicago Cubs to extend his streak, Cardinals manager Oliver Marmol chose the word “fun” to describe Goldschmidt's hit streak, according to Andrew Seligman of AP. His preparation, Marmol explained, has allowed him to hit so well.

“It’s fun because of the way he prepares,” manager Oliver Marmol said. “You get rewarded when you’re preparing the way he is — everything that goes into the video work and just his cage routine and just keeping his body fresh.”

On the season, Goldschmidt is putting up just ludicrous numbers for the Cardinals. Each number of his triple-slash line of .349/.427/.630 leads the National League, as does his 67 hits. The 34-year-old also has 12 home runs and is hitting .401 on balls in play, the highest of his career by a decent margin.

Fellow Cardinals star Nolan Arenado called Goldschmidt “unbelievable” and one of the best players he has ever seen. With the six-time All-Star hitting like this, it's not at all a hot take. He is approaching a full calendar month since his last hitless game. After receiving MVP votes in the previous seven seasons, Goldschmidt is setting himself up for a great shot at finally taking home the hardware.