By: Brian Frank
Joey Votto’s journey to return to the major leagues has taken a circuitous route, but continues to move forward. The Toronto native signed with the Blue Jays organization during spring training this year after spending 22 years in the Cincinnati Reds’ organization, 17 of which were with the big league club. The 2010 National League MVP, six-time All-Star, and likely future Hall of Famer’s comeback was paused during his first spring training game, when he injured his ankle stepping on a bat in the dugout. He didn’t return to action until mid-June, when he played for the Rookie League FCL Blue Jays before being promoted to Low-A Dunedin.
Votto at Sahlen Field. Photo Credit: Brian Frank, The Herd Chronicles
After 16 games in Florida, Votto was promoted to Triple-A Buffalo on July 19 and was schedule to be in the Bisons lineup that night in their game against Scranton/Wilkes-Barre. However, he reaggravated his ankle injury during pregame infield practice and was scratched from the lineup. He then spent the next two weeks rehabbing his ankle.
“That’s part of it sometimes,” Votto said while meeting with the media Tuesday afternoon. “You know, you have hiccups along the way. I've had great support from several members of the Jays’ health and performance staff, and the language we use are speed bumps and blips and just keep stacking days. So, I wasn't happy about it, but I wasn't distraught.”
During the Bisons series at Worcester last week, Votto finally made his Bisons debut when he entered Friday night’s game as a pinch-hitter in the ninth inning with one out, a runner at first base, and Buffalo trailing by a score of 3-2. In his much-anticipated first at-bat as a Bison, Votto lined a 2-and-1 slider off reliever Luis Guerrero into right-center field for a single. The next batter, Phil Clarke drilled a ball over the right-field wall to give the Bisons a 5-3 lead, which ended up being the final score.
“Yeah, it felt good,” Votto said. “It felt good to be back and it felt good to be healthy enough to compete. I was happy about that.”
Votto pinch-hit again on Saturday night and drew a walk against WooSox reliever Chase Shugart. He was the designated hitter for Sunday’s game and lined a two-run home run to right field and drew a walk in five plate appearances.
“A little bit to go,” Votto said of how he feels about getting into a rhythm at the plate. “I mean, yesterday was my first game, and I was taking middle fastballs for strikes. I shouldn't be doing that. I shouldn’t be taking a lot of strikes, doesn't matter which pitch. But I was taking pitches for strikes, and I shouldn't be doing that.”
Taking BP in downtown Buffalo. Photo Credit: Brian Frank, The Herd Chronicles
Votto was scheduled to play first base for the Herd on Tuesday night against Rochester, but his home debut was once again delayed when the contest was rained out. Even though he he hasn’t played a home game for the Bisons yet, the affable slugger has enjoyed his time in the Queen City.
“I've had a great time,” he said. “I’ve been going for walks in the neighborhood. I feel like I'll probably never be a politician, but I feel like you have to connect with the communities and going out for walks and interacting with the neighborhood. I'm going on a bit of a tangent here, but I feel like there's real value in actually exploring the neighborhood you're in and meeting new people. Buffalo has lots of great neighborhoods.”
He's also enjoyed his time being a member of the Bisons team over the last two weeks.
“I get along great with the guys,” he said. “They play hard and they all have ambitions and major-league dreams. You can sense that. You can see the work. You can see the passion. It's fun being in an environment where there's that hunger. It's like that scene when Rocky goes back to that gym, I think it's Apollo Creed's gym, and talks about the eye of the tiger. So, yeah, you can feel it. I can see everybody working.”
“I'm content to work and I love what I do for a living,” he continued. “I like taking on the challenge and I'm just grateful to have the opportunity. I'm going to use that gratitude as fuel to not cut corners, make sure that I push forward and do the very best I can. And again, being amongst guys who are hungry, that reminds you each and every moment of the day – everyone else is working and everybody else is locked in, everybody else is passionate, and it's almost contagious.”
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