NEW YORK -- Had Joey Votto not embarked on a seven-game streak with a home run that just ended on Saturday, Reds shortstop Kyle Farmer might instead be the talk of the town.

Farmer has been one of baseball’s best hitters since the All-Star break. He entered Sunday with a career-high nine-game hitting streak that includes six multihit games. Over his last 15 games, he was batting .456 (26-for-57) with three home runs and six doubles.

“Everyone is enjoying it. He deserves every bit of the success that he has,” Reds manager David Bell said on Sunday morning. “He’s just a big part of our clubhouse [and] our team, playing in the middle of the field, making all the plays. He works so hard at his hitting. To see him have this kind of success is no surprise. He can play; he’s just a really good player. He’s finally getting an opportunity to play every day and he’s making the most of it. There’s no question about it.”

During Saturday’s 5-4 10-inning loss, Farmer was 3-for-5 and his two-out solo homer to left field in the fifth inning gave Cincinnati a three-run lead.

“It’s been good. I’ve had a lot of fun with it. I’ve been thankful to watch Joey doing it, too. Having him be as hot as he is, it kind of rubs off on me and some of the players on our team,” Farmer said on the field Sunday during batting practice. “It’s just me sticking with the process and what I was working on in the offseason. Two things I can control are hitting the ball hard and swinging at a good pitch or a strike. Those are two things I’ve been focusing on all year, and it’s starting to show right now.”

Farmer entered Sunday's series finale with 10 homers and 34 RBIs -- both career highs. He has been a utility player for the Reds since 2019, but he pushed to get opportunities at shortstop during Spring Training. When Eugenio Suárez struggled there to open the season and moved back to third base after Mike Moustakas was injured in May, Farmer was installed at shortstop and never looked back.

While solidifying the shortstop spot, Farmer has shown he can make all of the routine plays -- and he has shown ability on the difficult ones, as well. And he’s been doing it all while banged up. Not only has he been hit by a pitch 15 times (second most in the National League), he’s been playing with a painful sports hernia.

“It hurts like crap, honestly. But I’m just taking it day by day -- hot tubs and cold tubs every chance I get, and getting off my feet as much as I can,” Farmer said. “It’s just something I have to deal with. I talked to the Mets’ second baseman, [Jeff] McNeil, he had [surgery] done. He’s had two sports hernias done and told me how painful it was for him. But he had the surgery and it’s doing well now. That gave me some confidence going into the offseason and getting surgery for it.”

The Reds explored acquiring a shortstop ahead of Friday’s Trade Deadline, with Colorado’s Trevor Story being a common rumor. Not wanting to part with elite prospects for a rental player, the front office also liked what it’s gotten from Farmer. While prospect José Barrero is a favorite to play short in 2022, Farmer is making the most of his time in '21.

“I didn’t really pay much attention to the trade rumors or anything like that. I just cared about me playing well and keeping it going,” Farmer said. “I can’t thank David and the staff enough for having the confidence in me to go out there and play every day, taking a shot on a guy who was a catcher/utility player who never played shortstop in the big leagues to now being the everyday shortstop. I give them credit for having faith in me and the confidence. Without that, I wouldn’t have been able to do it.”

Off-day for Votto
Votto came just inches from tying a record with eight straight games with a home run when his drive to right field hit off the top of the wall in the eighth inning on Saturday. Once the historic streak ended, however, Bell opted to give Votto the day off from Sunday’s starting lineup ahead of Monday's off-day. Max Schrock started at first base vs. the Mets at Citi Field.

“The decision was made after the game. Not preplanned before that at all,” Bell said. “Just an opportunity for Joey to get two off-days in a row. He has been playing a lot, playing great. I have no idea what it’s like to go through what he did the last week, but I can imagine it’s draining. Big thing for our team is do what I believe is best for Joey for the long haul.”