The Reds are reinstating Joey Votto from the injured list and he will be in tonight’s starting lineup, per Gordon Wittenmyer of the Cincinnati Enquirer. Since Votto was on the 60-day injured list, corresponding moves will be required, though those have not yet been announced.
Once tonight’s contest begins, Votto will be playing in a major league game for the first time in 10 months. The last time he took the field was August 16 of last year, after which he required surgery on a torn rotator cuff. It was estimated that it would take about six months for him to recuperate from that procedure, though he’s ended up going beyond that. He once seemed on track to be ready for Opening Day or perhaps in April but continually delayed his return until he felt fully ready.
Much has changed for the club since Votto has been gone. The club was firmly in rebuild mode last year, trading away pitchers like Luis Castillo and Tyler Mahle, finishing with a record of 62-100. This year, they have been on the upswing with various younger players coming up to the majors and thriving. They are currently 37-35 and just half a game behind the Brewers in the National League Central.
Votto is a legend in Cincinnati, having debuted back in 2007 and racking up many accolades over the years. However, he’s aware that the club’s return to contention puts him in a position where the past won’t matter too much. “I was just called up. And I’m here to compete for a job,” he tells Wittenmyer. “That’s my mentality. That’s my attitude. Everything’s earned in this game, regardless. Guaranteed-contract guys get released all the time… I recognize that I have to perform well at all times.”
Now 39 years old, Votto struggled last year with a line of .205/.319/.370, though he’s not too far removed from an excellent .266/.375/.563 showing in 2021. In his absence this year, Spencer Steer has been getting the bulk of the playing time at first, responding with a strong showing of .277/.361/.477 and 121 wRC+.
Steer is also capable of moving to third base or left field, but the return of Votto is going to lead to a bit of a squeeze. Jonathan India is the everyday option at second while Matt McLain has been thriving at shortstop. Superstar prospect Elly De La Cruz has only played 11 games but has shown tremendous ability so far while playing both shortstop and third base. Perhaps Steer ends up in the outfield mix but he’ll be jockeying for playing time with Jake Fraley, TJ Friedl and Will Benson. There are also other players to consider such as Nick Senzel, Kevin Newman and Stuart Fairchild.
That busy roster situation only figures to get more crowded as Wil Myers is currently on a rehab assignment and infielder Christian Encarnacion-Strand is demanding a call-up by hitting .348/.421/.687 in Triple-A.
Votto is in the final guaranteed season of the 10-year, $225MM extension he signed back in 2012. The Reds have a $20MM option for 2024 that comes with a $7MM buyout, making it a net $13MM decision.
You have to ask yourself: Will Joey Votto outperform CES over the next 3.5 months? What is better for the team now and also for the future?
Unfortunately, the Reds “loyalty” could cost them if they let the leash on Votto get too long. If he shows to be less than capable of being productive, DFA him and move on to the kids.
Nay. This is his last chance to perform at a playoff level. He’s earned the right to play. He was great as recent as 2021 so give him his due. If he fails than next man up
I tend to agree with both of you. Votto has earned the right to play, but the leash on him must be of medium length.
agree whiff. 100%
Boo this man
At least he’s got a fallback job lined up as a bus driver in case he loses his Reds job.
And I hear his “slugging” percentage on “Tik Tok” is fairly high, so there’s that.
Well said, Ryan. It is a dilemma having an all time favorite possibly weighing your team down. What a pleasant surprise to see the Reds playing meaningful games again. I don’t envy their manager having to sit Votto if he doesn’t produce, but Ive never heard of Votto being anything but a team first guy.
Fortunately, they have the DH they can use, but at the end of the day, they need Votto to be above replacement level, or there’s no point in him being on the roster.
IMO, if this team can add a power bat to RF and 2 innings eaters in the rotation to keep the team in games, they can win this division. As of now, I am concerned about the lack of thump and pitching depth. Bring a guy like Duvall in from Boston, and maybe see if you can get them to send Paxton too – if he’s still alive when it comes to the deadline, and you could add someone like Boyd as well. All would come relatively cheap, and if they catapult this team into October, great. If not, not much lost and your fans see that you tried when the opportunity presented itself. The fans also know that this young core offers a lot to be excited about in the years ahead, so no need to give up anything of significant value to win now.
or take this year seriously…..Kopech? Edwin arroyo?
They will add the power bat to RF- CES. Let CES get some additional OF reps and get comfortable in the OF then bring him up to play RF.
Reds lineup is right-handed heavy. They can definitely use Votto’s lefty bat in the lineup or off the bench if it’s productive.
Hopefully, Votto will make a meaningful contribution to the Reds, and they will be the surprise winner of the NL Central.
“Future Hall of Famer”
I’m not sold just yet, what do you think? Explain why or why not?
Man gets on baseeeee
The back of his baseball card reads “really good career” to me. Not so much easy future HOFer. But, similar to Todd Helton, who might make it into the hall.
This discussion has more to do with today, this current roster which is winning. Save HOF debates for the hot stove season
What did he do last week?
Mvp winner and 7 time obp leader in mlb. Easy first ballot.
He’ll definitely be in, maybe not 1st ballot, but he’ll be in. Currently he has a career OPS higher than Hall of Famers such as Mike Piazza, Mike Schmidt, Ken Griffey Jr., Willie McCovey, Fred McGriff, George Brett, Eddie Murray, and Eddie Mathews. He’s been top 10 in MVP voting 6 times, Top 5 3 times, and won once. He’s just not a huge homer guy, but he can hit you 30+, even as recently as 2021. Dude’s just a quality bat with really good stats who just played for a smaller market team that didn’t have a ton of success while he played. There are a ton of Hall of Famers who haven’t accomplished as much as he has. It would be a crime for him to not be elected.
No, no, no, no, no! I don’t care analytics anyone uses, Votto (and I like him) is nowhere in the same class as Schmidt, Griffey Jr. or Brett. If Votto gets in one day, fine. I just wish the media would realize that there are some years where it’s OK not to vote anyone in.
LOL at OPS being “analytics”
LMAO. OPS is not an analytic that gets normalized like OPS+ or WRC+ or SIERA or VORP. It’s literally just on base Percentage plus slugging percentage. What makes Votto less of a player than anyone I listed there? Some of them were on better teams so they got to play in World Series? Some sort of mysticism around those players because they played in the 60s, 70s, 80s, and 90s? So therefore they must be better?
Who said Schmidt, Griffey and Brett were the bar? That’s similar to those who used to argue Ruth, Mays and Aaron were the bar.
Right. That’s why Ohtani will never measure up to Griffey, Schmidt, Aaron, Cobb, Mathewson, etc. Because of that, he’ll never reach the HOF. And Vorp? Bapip? You have a great grasp of Klingon.
@avenger Why does Ohtani have to measure up to any of those HOF’ers? He’s a unique player in his own category and will set the standard for a true two-way player. You can shun analytics all you want but all voters take them into account for their HOF ballots.
Dude has an OPS+ of at least 125 for his first 11 seasons as a starter, and OPS of over 1.000 (4) times, lead the league in OBP (7) times, batted over .300 (8) times as a starter. A six time all star, an MVP, and his career WAR and peak WAR are right in line with an average HOF first baseman. Was the clear leader and star of a storied franchise for the entirety of the 2010s, and the second best Canadian born hitter in MLB history. Will he get in on the first ballot? No. But how can he not get in eventually?
He makes it, but maybe not on the first ballot. A .297/.412/.513 career line and a 145 OPS+ is Hall worthy, especially factoring in he’s one of the best OBP players in the past 50 years. His B-R page is filled with black ink. He’s a league MVP and finished in the top three two other times. I get why some think he might be a little short when compared across the history of 1B’man, which has a high offensive bar, but he is recognized as one of the elite hitters of the current generation.
Easily the best OBP threat for a whole decade with strong SLG production as well? He’s a pretty clear HoFer in my book.
In a few years nobody will be getting into the Hall Of Fame. Between the nonstop injuries in baseball the past several years and players being babied they can’t stay on the field. Lower the standards I guess.
I mean, once this era of players come up for hall of fame voting, the bar will move on its own a bit as the players will be compared to their contemporaries, not necessarily just against other hall of fame players.
JAWS has him ranked 12th among the current 24 Hall of Fame Primary 1B with slightly above average scores in Career WAR, 7-yr-peak WAR, and WAR/162. While Pujols will bump those average 1B scores up a fair amount once he gets in, Votto still easily meets the JAWS standards.
On the other hand, the Hall of Fame Monitor has him currently with only 89 points, whereas 100 signifies a likely Hall of Famer..
Part of it depends on what he does this year, but I think he’ll probably get in eventually by the BBWAA but probably not on his first ballot.
Here’s another way to think about it:
Joey Votto*: 342 HRs, 2093 H, 817 XBH, 3616 TB, .412 OBP, 145 OPS+,
*Votto’s counting numbers will go up a little over the rest of this season.
Joe DiMaggio: 361 HRs, 2214 H, 881 XBH, 3948 TB, .398 OBP, 155 OPS+
Now there is some cherry-picking involved here, and it only covers offensive stats, but it is interesting how close Votto is to a first ballot Hall of Famer in many important stats.
It also shows that DiMaggio is somewhat overrated compared to other first ballot Hall of Famers due to his Streak and playing for the Yankees.
I used to think DiMaggio was overrated until I dug more into his numbers. He only played 13 seasons, while losing three straight years during his prime, but still was basically an 80 rWAR player. He played in the most punishing ballpark for HRs for a righty batter. His reputation for greatness is deserved.
DiMaggio wasn’t a first ballot Hall of Famer.
I’m not sold either. I’d put him behind Miggy and Pujols as far as first basemen of that generation goes. Yes he gets on base but overall they were better. And now we have Freeman and Goldschmidt who will probably end with better careers.
Why should there be a limit on Hall of Famers per position per era? Just because those other guys were/are better doesn’t mean Votto isn’t still worthy on his own merits.
Who would have imagined that reinstating Votto would be a net negative for the Reds offense?
Why mess with the momentum just because Votto says he’s ready. Sorry his ego is feeling left out. He’s showing up to a busy restaurant and Red’s management is leading him to the head table instead of putting him on a wait list. The dude is hitting a buck and a half during sporadic rehab. And don’t say he’s earned the right, this young, exciting team is winning. Take a number Joey and we will buzz you when we are ready for you.
I believe his rehab assignment is done. If so, activate him or cut him are the options.
I would hope the Reds use him off the bench and not as a starter. I doubt they would want to change anything the way the team is playing right now.
His stats are a long way from saying he is ready.
I wouldn’t put much faith in the stats of veterans on rehab assignments as they’re working on a variety of things. Word was his swing looked locked in the last few games. He returned with a bang. On base three times, 2-3 and a walk, a HR and three RBIs in a 5-4 one-run win. Good thing they started him.
Homerun, 2 rbi single and a walk say hes ready.
He should just stick to TikTok and going to senior homes to entertain the elderly. His career has been over for 5 years
He hit 36 homers in 2021. Cry
Any homer at GAB should only count as a single
He was a strong bat as recently as 2 years ago. Whatever you’re smoking, pass it down. He is limited to DH/1B and the only guy he might take time from is CES which isn’t even up yet. Let him play some games before you deem him cooked.
You were saying?
Don’t fix it if it isn’t broken
He has earned nothing the other 25 guys have earned what they deserve. Did we forget the last four out of five seasons and how much of a cuckoo bird this guy is? No leader ship poor fielder, and now all I see is a guy that’s concerned about himself coming back and playing. I’ve had plenty of this guy.
No leadership? Lol, article even states he wants to compete for a starting job and has everything is “earned in this league”
Well, reading is a skill, I always say!
Reds have an abundance of batters/fielders what they might need to do is trade for a starter.
Also for those at traderumors your left click to go to “hockey rumors” sends you back to MLB same thing happens in NBA Hoops too. looks like a template issue with the links.
Just retire for chrissake, Pinch hitter at best
Dude smashed in 21. Chill out
3 homeruns in 3 games.
25 million reasons why Votto is playing and not CES. None of those reasons have anything to do with winning.
Totally agree. Votto playing has absolutely nothing to do with the Reds goal of rebuilding. Just eat (no choice there) what remains on his contract and go with the youngsters. As good as Votto has been in the past, he is just in the way currently. I would use the roster spot to evaluate several of the young players..
Totally disagree. Yes, you are in a rebuild, but what does it say to the younger players if the team doesn’t respect the face of the organization for the past 15 plus seasons? And why would any veteran come play for the Reds if they disrespect a Joey Votto?
This isn’t fantasy baseball. It’s about building a team, and there is plenty of room in the lineup for a future Hall of Famer like Joey V.
if Votto cannot hit .190 in AAA how is the team being disrespectful? That’s on him. He had his glorious day back on the team hitting a HR and driving in 3 runs. Maybe he can have a nice run, but the past 2 months in AAA sure look like a player way over the hill.
Correct. His $25 million and lack of production is dragging the team down when he takes a spot on the roster and plays with all the young talent available that needs to be in the lineup. It is the other way around because he hasn’t retired and they can’t trade him because of the no trade clause he has.. That is called being selfish and greedy.
Forget about last year’s numbers cause Votto played hurt until he shut it down. You could say the same thing about India last year and look how he rebounded. You stat boys kill me. It’s not always about numbers that you cherry pick.
To think a guy coming off that kind of injury would play every day for a while is foolish. He’ll perform better than the last guy on the roster most likely and more veteran leadership in a race couldn’t hurt.
I’ll give it to him, he waited until he felt he was ready to help the team than rush back and do the opposite like some would have.
If CES was ready, he would be in the big leagues before now. He never played AAA before this year. They have him playing corner outfield now at Louisville so you can see where their ideas for him are going, and I hope he takes to it well. That being said, I figure he’ll be in Cincinnati in July when guys like Myers and Newman are traded off or in Myers case maybe outright released.
His time has already passed, just a loyalty roster spot by the organization. I seriously doubt he’ll be able to outperform Steer with the bat and at 1B.
Excellent post. You are on target.
He doesn’t have to, Steer can play LF or Votto can DH when Steer is playing 1B.
Probably this conversation is mute, but when did Votto have the likes of EDLC, Steer, Fraley, Stephenson, possibly CES to surround and protect his bat. He will see fastballs Possibly more than he has seen in some time. Can he turn on them?
Probably not since the days of Jay Bruce and Todd Frazier most likely.
IMHO a tremendous add for a young Reds squad and I’m a Mets fan.
Casali should be the odd man out with Stephenson returning to Catching (at least against right handers) and Votto as the DH. Leave the rest of the Infield alone as they have been clicking well together.
In reality though Benson probably gets sent down with Fraley, Friedl, Fairchild, Senzel and even Newman manning the OF
Great so now he can hit 210 with a hr in the next 2 months just retire already
You were saying?
This man is up there with the greatest players in the history of the Reds franchise, and everyone bashing him should be embarrassed and ashamed of themselves. I get it, though, most of you bitchin are probably from the “everyone gets a trophy” generation of so called fans. You know nothing of loyalty and being rewarded for your efforts, because effort was something you were never required to give. Hell, most of you are probably 20-30 pounds overweight, sprawled out on the couch instead of doing something productive. I hope he Rips the cover off the ball and leads this team deep into the playoffs. Each and every one of you habitual bitchers should come back on here and deliver him a sincere aid he does. But you won’t, you have no integrity and haven’t the first clue what it means to be a real Reds fan!
Apology..
Major league baseball is a business which should be about winning and success. Maybe we should bring back Johnny Bench. We have too many young prospects who need to be playing for Votto to clog up a roster spot because of loyalty.
The Reds should have extended Castillo instead of trading him. Their young infield talent is so deep that it almost makes Marte and Arroyo excessive. The one thing they really need this season is a true ace. But hindsight is always 20/20.
I agree about the ace. They sure haven’t seemed to be able to develop one for quite some time. They had one in Castillo whom they traded for. I think he extended his contract for around 21 million a year. Not unreasonable by today’s standards..
I wonder how many of these keyboard warriors trashing Votto are the same ones asking for his autograph, a picture, a conversation, reply on social media, etc.
Who wouldn’t want his autograph back in the day, but his time has come and gone. Like I mentioned earlier, maybe we should bring Bench back and play him as well. If he won’t fade away silently, I would just cut bait and release him like they did with Moose. No knowledgeable baseball person would play him over all the young talent the Reds have on hand in a rebuild mode. People are letting their heart and emotions override their brains.
Another big red machine developing.
I bet a lot of trash talkers are eating crow after Votto’s debut performance tonight.
They can’t eat the crow because their head is stuck too far up their backside to have a clue what is going on. They like to parrot talking heads and regurgitate negative claims against Votto that for the most part aren’t true. When fans sit through many years of losing reality gets blurred to them and most are clueless as to what they are talking about.
Joe it All… And trade him. Don’t forget the ones who always want to trade him. How many times has it been repeated on here that he has a full No Trade stipulation in his contract? Jeeesus..
Nah they’ve all already moved on to trashing someone else and deciding when they need to retire.
Will the front office please just cut the check for Myers and be done with him? Please.
There’s no way Myers isn’t DFA’d.
This post aged well
Joey Votto still bangs.
3 homeruns in his first week back. 1400+ ops. Any more crybabies?