Joey Votto, First Base, Cincinnati Reds, #19


Date of Birth: 9/10/1983
Birthplace: Toronto, Canada
Nickname: Votto-matic

Joey Votto, the power hitting first baseman for the Cincinnati Reds, was first drafted by the team straight out of high school in 2002. However, Votto spent almost six years in the minor leagues before finally getting a chance to play with the Reds in September of 2007. He played in only 24 games in 2007 but the following year, his rookie year, Votto played in 151 games. That year, he broke the Reds' record for most RBIs by a rookie with 84.

In 2013, Votto batted .305 with 177 hits, 30 doubles, 24 home runs, and 73 RBIs in a career high 162 games. He spent much of the 2014 season on the DL, playing in just 62 games. He finished the season with 56 hits and a .255 batting average.

Votto had a strong 2015 season, finishing with a .314 batting average, 171 hits, 33 doubles, 29 home runs, and 80 RBIs in 158 games. On June 9th, he hit three home runs in one game. He had the most walks of any major league player in 2015 with 143 (to 135 strikeouts). He had 19 more walks than his closest competitor (Bryce Harper of the Washington Nationals with 124 walks to 131 strikeouts).

Votto had another strong season in 2016, finishing with a .326 batting average. In 158 games, he had 181 hits, 34 doubles, 29 home runs, and 97 RBIs. He was fourth on the walks list with 108 walks to 120 strikeouts. As the Reds' first baseman, he made 107 assists, 124 double plays, 1,168 putouts, and 8 errors in 154 games. He had a .994 fielding percentage.

Votto had another outstanding season in 2017. He led all of major league baseball in on-base-percentage with .454 and walks with 134. He struck out only 83 times. He was sixth in batting average with .320, fifteenth in home runs with 36, twenty-third in RBIs with an even 100, tenth in slugging percentage with .578, third in OPS with 1.032, and thirteenth in hits with 179. He played in all 162 games of the season. Defensively, as the Reds' first baseman in every game, he made 165 assists, 109 double plays, 1,227 putouts, and just 4 errors.

No matter how badly the Reds play as a team, Votto always manages to have a better than average season. This was true again in 2018, when he finished with 143 hits, 28 doubles, 67 RBIs, and a .284 batting average in 145 games. He again had more walks (108) than strikeouts (101). Defensively, as the Reds' first baseman in 139 games, he made 142 assists, 101 double plays, 1,047 putouts, and 5 errors for a .996 fielding percentage.

Votto batted .261 with 137 hits, 32 doubles, 15 home runs, 47 RBIs, and 123 strikeouts to 76 walks in 144 games in 2019. Defensively, as the Reds' first baseman in 133 games, he made 118 assists, 93 double plays, 944 putouts, and 7 errors, and he had a .993 fielding percentage.

Votto played in 54 games in 2020. He finished the season with 42 hits, 8 doubles, 11 home runs, 22 RBIs, 43 strikeouts to 37 walks, and a .226 batting average. Defensively, he played 50 games at first base.

Votto finished the 2021 season with 119 hits, 23 doubles, 36 home runs, 99 RBIs, 127 strikeouts to 77 walks, and a .266 batting average in 129 games. Defensively, at first base, he had 99 assists, 91 double plays, 853 putouts, and 7 errors in 123 games.

In his fifteen seasons with the Reds, Votto has set impressive numbers with:

  • 9 seasons with a batting average over .300, with a high of .337 in 2012
  • 9 seasons with over 20 home runs, with a high of 37 in 2010
  • 11 seasons with 30 or more doubles, with a high of 44 in 2012
  • 8 seasons with 150 or more hits, with a high of 185 in 2011

Votto's accomplishments have included the NL MVP and the Hank Aaron awards in 2010. The following year, he won the NL Gold Glove award.

Career batting statistics for Votto through 2021 include:

  • 1,900 games played
  • 2,027 hits
  • 435 doubles
  • 331 home runs
  • 1,065 RBIs
  • 1,481 strikeouts to 1,294 walks
  • .302 batting average

Career fielding statistics for Votto at first base through 2021 include:

  • 1,847 games played
  • 1,692 assists
  • 1,358 double plays
  • 13,934 putouts
  • 104 errors
  • .993 fielding percentage

Sources for Information
Wikipedia - Joey Votto
ESPN Sports - Joey Votto