Joey Votto Talks Hitting

Joey Votto is nearing the tip of a profession that ought to land him within the Hall of Fame. Three months shy of his fortieth birthday, the Toronto native has performed 16 seasons, all with the Cincinnati Reds, and has a profession .297/.412/.513 slash line to go along with a 146 wRC+. A six-time All-Star and former NL MVP, he has led the senior circuit in OBP seven instances, and in walks six instances. Moreover — this amid criticism from the phase of the Cincinnati fanbase who feels he’s too passive on the plate — his left-handed stroke has produced 2,093 hits, together with 453 doubles and 342 dwelling runs.

Currently on a rehab task with Triple-A Louisville, Votto is recovering from rotator cuff and biceps surgical procedure and has but to play in a giant league sport this yr. He sat down to speak hitting when the Reds visited Fenway Park final week.

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David Laurila: Is hitting simple, or is it arduous?

Joey Votto: “Well, it’s the only thing I’ve done, so I don’t have much to compare it to. I failed my math exam. High school math may be more difficult than major league hitting.”

Laurila: It is usually stated that hitting is the toughest factor to do in sports, however some gamers — you’re one in all them — have nice careers. Can you obtain a excessive degree of success whereas viewing hitting as arduous?

Votto: “So, a couple of things I’ve noticed about hitting: Hitting gets harder as you get older, and you get older quickly. The most satisfying part about hitting as you get older, or as you age in this game, or with time and experience in this game, is solving the problem, solving the equation. It requires adjustments. It requires a certain level of discipline. In my experience, hitting is very hard. But it’s also the most satisfying thing I’ve done in my life.”

Laurila: You talked about math. With that in thoughts, which of your numbers have you ever cared essentially the most about throughout your profession?

Votto: “I’ve paid the most attention to games played. You don’t make it into the lineup unless you have a certain level of performance.”

Laurila: Lots of people have labeled you an OBP man. Have you ever pushed again on that, viewing it as just one a part of who you might be as a hitter?

Votto: “Have I pushed back? I try not to push back. I mean, I play and I try to let other people provide commentary. That’s… I’m not the fan, I’m the performer. Whatever perception, or however fans and commentators like to label me is, is fine.”

Laurila: Have you ever felt stress to alter who you might be as a hitter?

Votto: “Well, the game pressures you. It pressures you daily. Your competition, each night’s game, each at-bat. That’s plenty of pressure.”

Laurila: How a lot have you ever modified over time?

Votto: “There have been a lot of changes. In my mid-20s, I lost some bat speed and some natural power. I noticed that the ball wasn’t coming off my bat quite as hard, and my bat wasn’t coming through the zone quite as quickly. So I started to change to a more contact-style approach. I got more motivated to get deeper into counts.”

Laurila: That occurred in your mid-20s?

Votto: “Yeah. That’s when I was really swinging well. As I got to my late 20s, early 30s, I started trying to make sure I put the ball in play, and make sure that my walks exceeded my strikeouts. It was more of a line-drive approach, taking less home run chances, and that eventually turned into more or less what I am right now. But in ’21, I was taking more shots, trying to hit the ball harder. I was more reckless at the plate, more willing to strike out, and not so concerned with walks.”

Laurila: Why that change in 2021?

Votto: “I just had to perform better. I wasn’t getting on base and getting as many hits as I was before. So I made that adjustment.”

Laurila: What you stated about shedding some bat velocity and energy in your mid-20s surprises me, as that’s nonetheless pretty younger. What induced that to occur?

Votto: “Getting older.”

Laurila: In that sense, did you bought previous early?

Votto: “No. It’s more that from one year to the next you notice a subtle difference. Or you’ll notice a standout difference. Hitters want to feel things. They want to feel strong. They want to feel whippy. They want to feel accurate with their barrel. They want things to feel slow to them in the batter’s box. As you get older, your bat doesn’t have quite as much speed, or you’re not able to get to pitches you were able to before. In my experience, it happened quickly. Again, I made some adjustments. I started leaning more toward a contact style, line drives, getting deeper into counts, and limiting my strikeouts.”

Laurila: Were the changes primarily psychological in nature?

Votto: “They are in all probability extra psychological. It’s extra about my intention as a hitter. If I can do a number of various things with the identical 0-0 center pitch… after I was youthful, I might take a shot at making an attempt to hit the ball midway up the bleachers. But should you don’t have the arrogance that you’ve an opportunity to hit it midway up the bleachers with out funking up your swing, with out dipping your confidence with one other roll over, or one other flare popup, or one other full swing-through… should you don’t have that very same potential… I made a decision, ‘OK, I can’t do what I used to be capable of do when it comes to taking pictures the ball within the stands.’

“I want control. Hitting is about control for me. I need to feel like I’m predictable each day. I want to feel like I know exactly what I’m going to get each day, each pitch. As you get older, it’s a complex predictable. The change I made was to get back to something that felt more predictable.”

Laurila: Did you begin letting the ball journey extra?

Votto: “I don’t think so. Maybe I did. But that was a strength of mine. Letting the ball travel was something I was focused on every at-bat in my major league career up until a couple years ago.”

Laurila: How a lot have you ever centered on the person pitcher on the mound, mainly his repertoire and assault plan?

Votto: “I’ve never been concerned about that. I’ve noticed a lot of commentary on pitches, on how people are throwing less fastballs, and more this and more that. It’s never crossed my mind, that sort of thing. I’m just entirely trying to control my swing, and be able to handle anything that comes.”

Laurila: Can a hitter really method each pitcher the identical means?

Votto: “At my best, I did.”

Laurila: A variety of hitters would say it’s not potential, or a minimum of not possible.

Votto: “I would punt on at-bats. I would take at-bats making sure that I didn’t funk up my regular approach, my regular swing. I mean, I wouldn’t quit on at-bats. It was more that I was making sure that I didn’t get out of my prime style.”

Laurila: Have you usually hunted fastballs center and adjusted from there, or has there been a selected zone that you just’ve centered on?

Votto: “It depends upon the a part of my profession. Lots of searching, plenty of areas, plenty of all the things. The strike zone was once a smidge wider for a left-handed hitter. Pitchers used to sink the ball. I’d be a idiot to hunt the center pitch when more often than not it was going to be away from me. So, I attempted to strengthen my reverse subject talent. Then because the ball received straighter, paired with a cutter, I’d in all probability be a idiot once more to proceed to attempt to hit the ball the opposite means when that ball must be caught barely additional out entrance. Certainly for energy. So, all types of adjustments.

“The game moves you in a specific direction. Sometimes you can be intentional about it, anticipating it, but I found that… I’ll give you an example. Yovani Gallardo was a pitcher who threw the ball straight and would throw a slider. I remember having a hard time hitting his fastball. He threw 92-94. He’s basically the pitcher of today. Yovani Gallardo, Dave Bush, and then all the other guys were sinker guys, or left-handed arms with balls running away. So, in my head I was like, ‘OK, I’m going to struggle against Gallardo, but I’m going to handle the other guys.’ Now the guys that are more sinker, and balls fading away, are more in the minority, I don’t have a choice but to catch the ball further out for power, because the ball is straighter. The game changes you. The game changes your swing.”

Laurila: Has dealing with elevated fastballs ever been a problem for you?

Votto: “No. I had a youth league coach that said something like, ‘Oh, you’ve got a golf swing.’ I remember him saying that when I was like 12 or 13 years old. It really bothered me. From that point forward, I tried to flatten my swing. I then had a great coach, a gem of coach, in Leon Roberts when I was in the minors. He and I talked all the time about handling that high fastball. Anything high. We worked on being flat to it and lining balls low. We worked on that all the time. That served me well as the game changed. High pitches don’t bother me.”

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Earlier “Talks Hitting” interviews can discovered by these hyperlinks: Jo Adell, Jeff Albert, Greg Allen, Nolan Arenado, Aaron Bates, Alex Bregman, Bo Bichette, Cavan Biggio, JJ Bleday, Bobby Bradley, Jay Bruce, Matt Chapman, Michael Chavis, Gavin Cross, Jacob Cruz, Nelson Cruz, Paul DeJong, Josh Donaldson, Brendan Donovan, Donnie Ecker, Rick Eckstein, Drew Ferguson, Justin Foscue, Michael Fransoso, Ryan Fuller, Joey Gallo, Paul Goldschmidt, Devlin Granberg, Andy Haines, Mitch Haniger, Robert Hassell III, Nico Hoerner, Rhys Hoskins, Eric Hosmer, Tim Hyers, Connor Joe, Josh Jung, Jimmy Kerr, Heston Kjerstad, Steven Kwan, Trevor Larnach, Doug Latta, Evan Longoria, Michael Lorenzen, Gavin Lux, Dave Magadan, Trey Mancini, Edgar Martinez, Don Mattingly, Hunter Mense, Owen Miller, Ryan Mountcastle, Cedric Mullins, Daniel Murphy, Lars Nootbaar, Logan O’Hoppe, Vinnie Pasquantino, Brent Rooker, Drew Saylor, Spencer Steer, Trevor Story, Fernando Tatis Jr., Spencer Torkelson, Mark Trumbo, Justin Turner, Trea Turner, Josh VanMeter, Robert Van Scoyoc, Chris Valaika, Zac Veen, Alex Verdugo, Mark Vientos, Matt Vierling, Luke Voit, Anthony Volpe, Christian Walker, Jared Walsh, Jordan Westburg, Jesse Winker, Mike Yastrzemski, Nick Yorke, Kevin Youkilis