Joey Votto announced his retirement Wednesday, raising a question that won’t be answered for another five years.
A long time Cincinnati Reds Is the first baseman a Hall of Famer?
The 2010 NL MVP finished his 17-year career with a .294 average, .409 OBP, .920 OPS and was one of the most respected players in the game.
Votto made his big league debut in 2007 after the “steroid era” and was a different slugger than the power-hitting first baseman of the generation before him. A Gold Glove winner, Votto topped 30 home runs only three times in his career (2010, 2017, 2021), but was one of the hardest hitters in baseball, leading the NL in on-base percentage seven times over a nine-year span. From 2010-2018.
Votto tried to get back with his hometown Toronto Blue Jays This season, but struggled with injuries and ineffectiveness after signing a minor-league deal, before ultimately announcing the end of his career.
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Check out Votto’s Hall of Fame case:
The case for Joey Votto
Among players with 7,000 career plate appearances, Votto’s .409 on-base percentage is ninth-best in the ERA (since 1947), trailing six Hall of Famers Barry Bonds and Manny Ramirez. Of the top 15 on that list (including Votto), 11 are in the Hall of Fame.
While Votto’s home run numbers haven’t stood out every year, his slugging percentage has generally ranked in the top 10, including an NL-best .600 in his 2010 MVP campaign.
Since 2008, Votto leads all batters in walks (1,360), sixth in hits (2,108) and fifth in games played (2,032).
The case against Joey Votto
Votto’s especially eye-popping stats will be used against him when he hits the Hall of Fame ballot in 2029. His home run total (356) is going to give voters pause, especially considering Votto has spent his entire career in one of the most hitter-friendly parks in the majors.
Another knock on Votto is that he walked “too much” and might have been better served swinging the bat more often. Former manager of Votto Dusty Baker once said “The on-base percentage is good. But the RBI is better.”
In his 17 seasons, Votto topped 80 RBI only eight times — remarkable given his overall talent and ever-present place in the middle of Cincinnati’s order at Great American Ball Park.
Judgment
It might not be on the first ballot, but it has a better chance than Joey Votto getting into the Hall of Fame.
Beloved by all, Votto has an interesting case as a first baseman who doesn’t necessarily put up big power numbers. The barrier to entry into the Hall of Fame has lowered in recent years, with players like Todd Helton, Scott Rolen and Joe Mauer winning induction with fewer stats than required in the past.
Voted in his sixth attempt in 2024, Helton may be the closest in modern comparison to Votto. Helton’s overall stats were excellent – Not much — but Votto had more WAR (64.5 to Helton’s 61.8) and the longtime Colorado first baseman had a similar decline in power as he aged. Against Votto’s numbers, Helton’s early career exploits must be considered in the context of the steroid era.
The next few years of voting should provide some more insight into Votto’s Hall of Fame chances with winners like Ryan Braun (2026) and Buster Posey (2027), as well as Andrew Jones (61.6% of snaps in 2024) and Carlos Beltran (57.1%).
