Joey Votto
Fangraphs End of 2015 Fantasy Ranking: #33
If you were to look up “consistent” in the dictionary you would likely find a picture of Joey Votto. Since 2007 he’s produced at least a 124 wRC+, and in 2015 he had the second or third best offensive season of his career (172 wRC+). The quad injury that plagued him during the 2014 season appeared to be squarely behind him. Fantasy owners had very few reasons to expect anything but a great season out of the Cincinnati slugger.
This spring training gave owners even more reason for optimism. Votto hit .455/.529/.636 this spring, and he looked primed for a vintage Votto season. However, the regular season has been anything but vintage Votto. He currently boasts an unthinkable 27 wRC+. His .172/.258/.241 line looks unrecognizable when compared to his career stats. He’s walking less, striking out more, and he’s only driven one ball out of the ballpark.
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It’s been said a lot, but there’s no reason to assume that Votto won’t right the ship soon. Like Abreu an out of place BABIP is partly to blame. His .205 BABIP is well below his career average of .332. It’s not time for owners to panic, but up to this point they’ve received very little of the production they expected out of Votto.