Cincinnati's Joey Votto doubles to right field off Los Angeles Dodgers knuckleballer Charlie Haeger in the third inning at Great American Ballpark August 29th.
Votto leads off from third base. He had a double, a single and a walk and scored a run but the Reds fell to the Dodgers 11-4.
The 26 year-old Votto has done nothing but hit since beginning his major league career with the Reds in 2007. A product of Richview College Institue in Toronto, Votto was selected by the Reds in the second round of the 2002 amateur draft. His first .300 season came in 2004 when he batted .301 at the Single-A level between Dayton and Potomac where he hit a combined 19 home runs with 92 runs batted in.
After batting just .256 at Single A-Sarasota in 2005, Votto really hit his stride in 2006. That's when he put together a batting line of .319/.408/.547 at Double-A Chattanooga with 46 doubles, two triples, 24 homers and 77 RBI as well as 24 stolen bases. The 6-foot-3, 235-pound left-handed hitter won the Southern League's Most Valuable Player Award and was named to Baseball America's Minor League and Double-A All-Star teams. He was also a participant in the 2006 Future Stars game.
Votto followed up 2006 with another strong campaign in 2007. He hit .294 with 22 homers and 92 RBI at Triple-A Louisville and reached base in 42 straight games. Votto went on to win the International League's Rookie of the Year Award. He also took part in his second consecutive Future Stars game and belted a home run against Boston's Clay Buchholz. Votto got his first taste of the bigs when Cincinnati called him up in early September and it took him just two at-bats to collect his first major league hit as he homered off the New York Mets John Maine September 5th. He ended his major league trial by hitting .321 with four homers and 17 RBI in 24 contests.
Votto's first full season in the bigs was a success as he made the transition from the outfield to first base where he replaced Scott Hatteberg. He hit 32 doubles, three triples, 24 homers and 84 RBI while hitting .297 and slugging .506. That led to a second place finish in the race for National League Rookie of the Year where he lost out to Chicago Cubs catcher Geovany Soto. His 84 RBI broke Frank Robinson's club record for a rookie and he was named the Reds MVP. However, the 2008 season was a bittersweet one for Votto as his father died in August.
Votto did his best to keep his personal demons at bay by hitting .556 for Canada at the World Baseball Classic at the Rogers Centre in March. He batted well over .300 with the Reds for the first two months of the season but he left the diamond in June to deal with his personal problems. He revealed he was suffering from depression in the wake of his father's death. Votto would return to action to face the Blue Jays in late June and enjoyed his first big game at the Rogers Centre. He collected four hits, including a home run off Shawn Camp, as the Reds salvaged the finale of the three game series. The performance also helped Votto atone for his previous effort in Toronto in 2008 when he went 1-for-11 at the plate. He ended 2009 by finishing in the National League's top five in average (.322-5th), on-base percentage (.414-4th), slugging (.567-5th) and on-base plus slugging percentage (.981-3rd). He set career highs in doubles with 38 and homers with 25 while matching a career-best 84 runs batted in.
A .310 hitter so far in his young career, the Reds will be counting on Votto for a big 2010 as they try to reach the playoffs for the first time since 1995.
