Joey Votto has turned the extraordinary into the expected with the way he’s been hitting for the past two-plus months.
He will turn 38 years old in three weeks and he’s arguably been the best player in baseball since the All-Star break. He’s showing power that he hasn’t flashed since the 2017 season. He’s transformed from a player who was benched for three games last year into a potential MVP candidate.
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After the Cincinnati Reds had totaled two runs in their previous 21 innings, Votto woke up the offense with that loud, unmistakable crack of the bat. He clobbered a three-run homer into center field in the fourth inning Thursday to lift the Reds to a 6-1 victory over the Miami Marlins at Great American Ball Park.
Add a solid start from Luis Castillo, who was facing the team that traded him ahead of the 2017 season, and the Reds have pulled within one game of the San Diego Padres for the second Wild Card spot.
All the momentum started moving in the Reds’ direction in the fourth inning when Jonathan India hit a leadoff single to left field. It was the first time the Reds put the leadoff man on base in their last 14 innings. Nick Castellanos added a one-out single to set the stage for Votto’s big blast.
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In a five-pitch at-bat against Marlins starter Nick Neidert, Votto saw a 91-mph fastball over the middle of the plate and drove it 428 feet. It was a no-doubter in a stretch where no one doubts his talent anymore.
Votto has 27 homers this year, which matches his total from 1,028 combined at-bats during the 2018 and ’19 seasons. Sixteen of those homers came in his last 28 games. He celebrated like he was Jamie Tartt from the “Ted Lasso” TV show, pointing to the name on the back of his jersey with his back to the crowd.
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