Votto, born in Toronto and raised in Etobicoke, Ont., was drafted by Cincinnati in 2002 and has played for just one franchise his entire career, compiling 16 seasons with the Reds. But as he prepares for his 17th major-league campaign, management has considered what life could be like without the six-time All-Star.
In speaking with former general manager and current MLB analyst Jim Bowden, Reds GM Nick Krall said he hopes Votto will finish his career in the same place it started. If Cincinnati becomes a seller at the trade deadline, though, Krall could be open to dealing the 2010 NL MVP to his hometown franchise if that’s Votto’s wish.
The 39-year-old Votto is entering the final season of his 10-year, $225-million contract, which includes a full no-trade clause and a $20-million club option for 2024, with a $7-million buyout.
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1. The Duke Posted: March 20, 2023 at 05:43 PM (#6120843)It's of course possible Votto's not done -- even with a poor 2022, over the last 3-5 years he's averaged about a 115 OPS+ bat so he could bounce back to that and be of use to a contender in Aug/Sept. They start the season with a Votto already though in Brandon Belt but injuries or suckituude could open a Votto window. Alas, Belt is not from Cinci. :-)
The last couple of NL Central first baseman the Yankees have picked up have worked out pretty well.
Surprisingly, the Royals have one of the best. Leonard, Splittorff, Busby, Rosado and Ventura. No ace, but solid top to bottom. Would have been really good if not for those ill-considered 4.2 Angel innings from Gubicza.
and that's a team that developed Seaver, Koosman, deGrom - plus Gooden, Matlack, and Darling.
And I would think only Votto's agent thinks he's worth 20+ M at this point.
Yadier molina
Adam wainwright
Gibson
Musial
Pepper Martin
Terry Moore
Tom Pagnozzi
I was going to mention Charlie Keller, just because he's from my home county, but darn, he just had to play a few games with Detroit late in his career.
And Larry Yount, if we count no-team players. :)
But if he wants to finish things out in Toronto or go chase a ring somewhere, I've got no problem with it and I imagine the team will do what it can to accommodate him. Even with a bounceback season, it's not like the Reds would get much for Votto at the deadline anyways (even if he wasn't being paid $20M) so you may as well gift him to the destination of his choosing.
If you're curious what Frank Tanana has to do with this, well, he played many years after he left the Angels.
The Cubs come tantalizingly close -- Hartnett had 165 meaningless PAs at the end, Chance 33 at the end, Sandberg 6 at the beginning, Santo a season with the Sox at the end, Cavarretta with <200 with the Sox at the end, even Charlie Root with 60 innings for the Browns at the start. Still Banks and Hack is a nice start and Kyle Hendricks is pretty good on the mound but not much left after that (unless you want to count that f'ing racist Cap Anson). By WAR, I'm pretty sure it's Addison Russell at 2B. I shudder to think who's in the OF.
EDIT: Oh-oh, with the NeL now major league, is someone like Campy still a single-team player?
2 bad games with the Angels, and his career was over.
so none of the top 50 were Mets-only. goes down to 467 IP at 50th, so not sure if Apodaca's 361 IP is the most by an only-Met. his 5.5 WAR is not exactly HOF ballot material......
- Drafted by the Dodgers in 1995
- Released and signed with the Reds in 2001
- Traded to the Mets in 2002, subsequently waived, picked up by the Tigers, and released in the same year
- Signed back with the Mets prior to the 2003 season
- Became a free agent and resigned with the Mets for 2004
- Contract purchased by the Fukuoka Hawks of Japan in 2005
- Signed back with the Mets in 2006
- Signed by the Yankees in 2011
- Signed back with the Mets in 2013, released, and signed with them again
- Signed with the Cardinals in 2014
- Signed with the Cubs in 2015
In all that time, the only MLB team he ever pitched for was the Mets. He had a shoulder injury with the Yankees and only pitched in the minors. He only made minor league appearances for the other US franchises, as well.
His 383.2 IP and 5.7 bWAR are probably the highest for an only-Met pitcher (assuming he counts) -- at least, they're both higher than Apodaca. His 484 appearances are definitely the most by an only-Met, as they are the second most by any pitcher in team history (behind only John Franco).
Yes, he counts.
damn, he died at age 45.
and yes, I stipulate that his IP counts as No. 1 for "All-Mets" (and he's a reliever !)
the WAR zone with Apodaca looks so close that maybe they each have been No. 1 - or still are, depending on the tweak?
Pedro was a career 0 for 6 batter, but Apodaca managed a .172 AVG in 68 PA with 3 doubles and a 31 OPS+
Bob was 4 for 11 in 1975....
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