Votto takes stock: 'We have to get hot soon'

CINCINNATI -- The third-place Reds entered Thursday with a 39-40 record, a season-high eight games out of first place in the National League Central. That was more concerning for Reds first baseman Joey Votto than anything else, including personal milestones.

“Not good enough,” Votto said on Thursday of the club’s won-loss record. “It’s really important over this next bit to show that we’re going to be a competitive team all the way to the very end. We have to get hot soon. We have to play good ball, for sure.”

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With a leadoff home run that gave Cincinnati a 5-3 lead in the third inning against Padres starter Joe Musgrove, Votto collected his 1,000th career RBI, which ranks fifth on Cincinnati’s all-time list. He did acknowledge the fans at Great American Ball Park with a curtain call and the first-known “dab” of his career.

The Reds went on to lose, 7-5, in a rain-shortened game.

“Just having fun and we were winning. I wouldn’t have done it if we were losing,” Votto said. “Yeah, I’ve always wanted to dab.

“The RBI thing didn’t really do much for me. Not being dismissive -- I have mostly focused on being a tough at-bat, and RBIs come mostly as a product of having hitters on base in front of you. This year is a perfect example. I’ve been so fortunate. I’ve come up to the plate with runners on base, it feels like twice or three times a game.”

Since moving down to fourth or fifth in the daily lineup, the 37-year-old Votto is often batting behind Jesse Winker and Nick Castellanos as both players enjoy career years.

The four players ahead of Votto on the club’s all-time RBI’s list are three Hall of Famers and Pete Rose. At some point, it could be Votto’s turn to enter the Hall of Fame.

But Cooperstown was also far from Votto’s mind when he was asked about it on Wednesday.

“I spend most of my time thinking about -- whether I am making the minimum or a big number, salary-wise -- most of my time thinking about, ‘How can I be competitive as long as I have an opportunity to play?'” Votto said. “I have been very fortunate to see some very clearly excellent players play well to the very ends of their career, where they opted not to play anymore.

“I’m talking about Adrián Beltré. I’m talking about Torii Hunter. I’m talking about David Ortiz, Chipper Jones, Derek Jeter. These are players who decided, ‘You know, I’ve had enough. That’s good.’ Those are the players I admire most.

“I know that one day I won’t be good enough to play baseball anymore. But as long as I have an opportunity to, I want to keep fighting. I look up to those players, among others, and try to emulate that. That’s what gives me the greatest joy, and that is my current challenge.

“I just want to be in the middle of the order, playing solid defense, playing every day, being competitive and earning that my manager, the coaching staff, the front office, my teammates have faith that I’m going to be a helpful teammate. I want to do that until the very end. I feel like I’ve been playing well. I need to continue to get better, but I feel like I’ve been playing well and adjusting on the fly.”

In 50 games this season entering Thursday, Votto had a slash line of .254/.332/.464 with 10 home runs and 34 RBIs. Over his previous eight games, he was batting .344 with two homers.

But it has been a challenging year. Votto battled COVID-19 during Spring Training and missed 28 games from May 7 to June 6 with a left thumb fracture.

“I’ve had a couple of interruptions that I felt like interrupted the momentum of my work,” Votto said. “I’m confident I’m going to play well. The adjustment, I think, is real. As far as hitting well over the last little bit, that’s a by-product of the adjustments and the work. I’m just going to keep moving forward.”