Do we really have to microanalyze every single thing Votto does as if it's proof of some inner conflict or issue? Is it bad that he lost track of the number of outs? It's certainly not good. But let's not pretend he's the first star to ever do so, nor will he be the last.
RedEye (08-26-2013)
Everything that can be counted does not necessarily count; everything that counts cannot necessarily be counted.
All the dishes rattle in the cupboards when the elephants arrive
Go Gators!
We're all Joey Votto fans here, and that lapse did NOT cost them the game, but it's time to ask, really, why Votto is daydreaming out there on the field and the base paths. It's been all year long. I watch nearly every single game.
I'm sure I will catch hell here. Votto did not give up 8 runs tonight. I'm not a Votto hater, by any means. He's the best player the Reds have. But he's been off this year, in the field and on the base paths.
sorry we're boring
Billy_Bearcat (08-26-2013),mth123 (08-27-2013),Norm Chortleton (08-26-2013),OnBaseMachine (08-26-2013),redsfaninbsg (08-26-2013)
Games are won on run differential -- scoring more than your opponent. Runs are runs, scored or prevented they all count the same. Worry about scoring more and allowing fewer, not which positions contribute to which side of the equation or how "consistent" you are at your current level of performance.
Everyone makes mistakes in even bigger games and bigger situations than tonight. No one is perfect. If I didn't know any better, I would've thought Fred Merkle was playing 1st base tonight.
Tom Servo (08-27-2013)
I'm not unhappy with Votto's performance this year, and I'm not sure we need an explanation for it other than "sometimes players don't play as well as they have in the past."
That said, if I were to wildly speculate about psychological reasons, I would say that Joey is pressing because he's a perfectionist and it kills him not produce like he thinks he should. I still remember that press conference when he signed the big contract. Most guys would have been all smiles, but Votto was pretty serious and said something like "I'm just going to try my best. I can't guarantee anything." I think we can all be pretty sure that no one is as upset about this season as the guy himself.
All of this goes to show, of course, my other theory -- that Joey Votto, in addition to being the best current Reds player by far, is also an existentialist hero for the 21st century.
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