Canadian slugger Joey Votto, the most renowned star on the Cincinnati Reds, is getting ready to return in time to face the Toronto Blue Jays in his native country.
Votto has been activated from the COVID-19 list, where he spent several weeks.
He is eager to get back on the field.
“Over four hours before game time, Joey Votto is the first and only player on the field. He’s running sprints heading into his first game back,” Charlie Goldsmith of the Enquirer tweeted on Friday.
Over four hours before game time, Joey Votto is the first and only player on the field. He’s running sprints heading into his first game back. pic.twitter.com/9O0ryWVdIA
— Charlie Goldsmith (@CharlieG__) May 20, 2022
Votto’s Reds are 11-26 and own the worst record in baseball.
He was a part of that lousy start, as his current 2022 stats indicate.
In 22 games and 90 plate appearances, Votto has no home runs, four runs, and three RBI, with a .122/.278/.135 slash line.
Can He Turn Around His Season?
Those numbers are much, much worse than the ones he had last season.
In 2021, Votto hit .266/.375/.563 with 36 home runs, 73 runs, and 99 RBI, a bounce-back season for the ages after mostly struggling in 2019 and 2020.
The first baseman is getting up there in age, as he is 38 years old.
He is one of the oldest players in baseball.
But he seems determined to show a much better image than the one he left in his pre-COVID list placement.
He has built a reputation as a tinkerer, a hitting specialist that identifies patterns, trends, and mechanical flaws and is willing to experiment new things to overcome any slumps.
Let’s see if he has another surge in him.
He returns to the worst team in the NL Central division and probably the whole league.
NEXT: Reds Set A New MLB Mark Heading Into Toronto