MLB History: Top 25 first basemen in MLB History
MLB History Joey Votto
“I’m just going to stick with what got me here—shaving every fourth day.”—Joey Votto
Joey Votto just makes it onto this list at the 25th and final spot. He had plenty of competition and, admittedly, there may be a bias here because he’s still playing and still doing Joey Votto-like things. Votto is still active and will continue to move up this list over the next few years.
The Toronto native was drafted in the second round of the 2002 MLB draft by the Cincinnati Reds. He made his major league debut as a September call-up in 2007, then finished second to Geovany Soto in NL Rookie of the Year voting in 2008.
He and Soto were both worth 3.3 WAR, according to Baseball-Reference. Jair Jurrjens, Edinson Volquez, Jay Bruce, and Kosuke Fukudome were the other NL rookies to receive votes.
Votto had his first .400 OBP season in 2009 and has made it an annual achievement ever since. He’s only finished with an OBP below .400 once in the last nine years and that was when he was limited to 62 games because of an injury in 2014. Even with a slow start this year, his OBP is .417.
Historically speaking, Votto’s career OBP of .428 is third among all first basemen in the history of the game. Only Lou Gehrig (.447) and Jimmie Foxx (.428) are higher.
He also has a 157 wRC+, which means he’s been 57 percent better then average on offense when league and ballpark effects are taken into account. Only four first baseman have a higher wRC+ than Votto (Gehrig, Musial, Foxx, and Mark McGwire).
As good as Votto has been, and this includes five all-star team appearances, a Gold Glove Award and an NL MVP Award, he hasn’t always been appreciated in Cincinnati. In particular, Reds announcer Marty Brennaman has been criticizing Votto for years because of the 10-year, $225 million contract Votto signed before the 2014 season.
In that regard, Votto took over as Brennaman’s whipping boy from a previous Reds player, Adam Dunn. When Votto is no longer in Cincinnati, Brennaman will have to find someone else to complain about.
Unless he’s traded, Votto will be in Cincinnati for at least another five years. His contract runs through the 2023 season, with a team option or buyout in 2024. Until then, Reds fans should enjoy the Votto. He’s the team’s best player and he always seems like he’s having a good time on the field.