It's starting to become an age-old debate: Should Joey Votto swing more? Longtime Reds broadcaster and Hall of Famer Marty Brennaman ruffled some feathers on Thursday when he said, "If this guy (Votto) comes back and is content to lead the league in OBP again, then this team is in deep trouble."
Votto is an on-base machine, leading the league in four of the last five seasons in OBP. His 2010 MVP season was one for the ages when Votto posted a .324/.424/.600 slash line with 37 homeruns and 113 RBI.
Votto has seen a concerning drop in power over the last five seasons. In his defense he has battled some injuries over that time.
| Year | HR/AB |
| 2010 | 14.8 |
| 2011 | 20.7 |
| 2012 | 26.8 |
| 2013 | 24.7 |
| 2014 | 36.7 |
The Reds knew what they were getting when right before the start of 2012 season they gave Votto a 10-year, $225 million extension. That contract didn't actually start though until 2014, Votto's age-30 season. Votto hasn't changed -- he is who he is -- but as his power comes down, that might be a problem for the Reds.
You will hear some hitters talk about expanding the zone, especially in RBI situations. The idea is to take some chances out of the strike zone in order to attempt to drive in a run. This is a not a good idea for all hitters, but certainly ones with good bat control and run-driving ability. Smart pitchers who do their homework are aware of such hitters and their tendencies in these situations. Votto is not one of them, he has a plan and sticks with it.
This is one of my favorite at-bats from the 2014 season. Trailing by four runs with the bases loaded, Mike Trout swings at a Chris Sale 3-2 pitch out of the zone:
Trout hits the game-tying grand slam. Joey Votto doesn't swing at that pitch. He takes the walk, his team trails 5-2 and he passes the baton to the next hitter. At $225 million over 10 years, that bothers some people. It's situations like this that Marty is talking about, and fairly so.
You can argue all day long about what the right move for Votto is in that situation. The problem is that he is the Reds' highest-paid hitter, by far, and some prefer to see him take a swing instead of a walk, myslef included. All the time? No, but at times like those, yes.
With that being said, asking big leaguers to make big changes in the middle of their careers is really not fair. David Ortiz is not going to become a bunting machine against the shift and Joey Votto is not going to start expanding the zone. The Reds knew that when they gave him that deal and nothing is changing anytime soon.
