Cincinnati Reds: Reviewing Joey Votto’s 2018 season

We all know that Joey Votto was not satisfied with his performance in 2018, but the Cincinnati Reds All-Star first baseman still had some great moments last season.

Joey Votto has been one of the best and most well-liked players on the Cincinnati Reds since he made his debut in 2007. He has always been glad to put on the Cincinnati uniform and take the field at Great American Ball Park. While 2018 wasn’t his best, he still had a very productive season.

Votto finished 2018 slashing .284/.417/.419, admittedly a low batting average for him. But only Votto would say that leading the National League in on-base percentage for the third consecutive year, and the seventh time overall is a disappointment.

Joey Votto managed 143 hits in 145 games. Including 28 doubles, 2 triples, 12 home runs, and 67 RBIs. Votto was also the one to hit the 5th and 11th of the club-record for grand slams in a season. He also drew a walk 108 times. Believe it or not that number is actually down from 2017 as well. Some fans complain that Votto doesn’t swing the bat anymore, but his on-base percentage speaks for itself. Votto may be better at pitch discernment than almost anyone.

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His fielding numbers include 1047 putouts, unsurprising considering he plays first base. He also had 142 assists, 101 double plays, and a .996 fielding percentage. These are great numbers by almost anyone’s standards, but by comparison Votto did have an unusually slow season.

One big moment of the season was Votto’s 13-day stint on the disabled list in mid-August which came after Votto was hit on the knee by a 96 MPH fastball courtesy of Ryan Madson. His injury left a gaping hole at first base and forced a hard-working Joey Votto to take several days off; something he tries very hard to avoid. Probably the lowest point of his season.

His best moment of last year for Votto had to be making his 6th All-Star game alongside teammates Scooter Gennett and Eugenio Suarez. Votto hit his first home run in an All-Star game in the 10th inning, after Gennett tied the game with a two run home run in the bottom of the ninth. The National League may not have won the game, but Votto and his fellow Reds made a great showing at the All-Star game.

When the Cincinnati Reds were playing in Pittsburgh, Votto was on the field before the game signing autographs for some young fans when he saw a man wearing a t-shirt reading “Votto for President”. Votto actually traded his jersey, he went back to the dugout and changed, for the fan’s shirt. Joey also autographed his jersey with the message “more like Prime Minister” since he is of course from Canada. Votto has always been a fan favorite because of these great interactions with Reds fans.

While 2018 may have been a rare season for Joey Votto in terms of production, he definitely had some incredible moments as well. We already know he is working hard to be at 100% going into the 2019 season because he wants to be at his best with this team ready to win. I doubt there is a Reds fan out there who hasn’t enjoyed seeing Joey Votto as a part of this ball club. I know I can’t wait to see him blow us away in 2019!