Why oh why do people just gush over themselves over Alex Gordon, and Votto barely gets a mention (compared to Gordon). Check out the stat lines, the ages, the leagues, everything..............and they are darn near the same player.
Why oh why do people just gush over themselves over Alex Gordon, and Votto barely gets a mention (compared to Gordon). Check out the stat lines, the ages, the leagues, everything..............and they are darn near the same player.
Possibly because good hitting first basemen can be a dime a dozen, while finding a stud third baseman is a little harder.
Gordon was also a blue-chipper coming out of college while Votto was lesser known. This was expected of Gordon and some are waiting for Votto's bubble to burst.
Well, last year was Gordons first year of professional baseball.... and he put up ridiculous numbers.
Joey Votto came off of a horrible year last year, and despite the reasons and circumstances, it hurt how he was viewed in a lot of peoples eyes.
Votto is extremely underrated right now in my opinion, but Gordon is probably getting all the credit he deserves.
Yep. Even accounting for the Texas League being more offense-friendly, there's just something sick about going straight from college to the relatively advanced pitching of Double-A, using a wood bat for the first time, and putting up a 1.015 OPS. Sky's the limit for Gordon. And, as mentioned, playing a good third base makes him more valuable than a similar-hitting first baseman or corner outfielder. Votto's still someone I think will be a terrific player, but probably not the perennial All-Star Gordon is going to be in all likelihood.
Reading comprehension is not just an ability, it's a choice
Joey Votto had a great 2006 year, and he has potential to be pretty good, but Alex Gordon is an upper echelon talent, that plays a much tougher fielding position.
That was the only reason I could come up, that last year was Gordon's first year with a wooden bat. I'm not buying the 1st vs. 3rd thing.......both are offensive positions.Originally Posted by IslandRed
1st base is typically where a team's worst fielder goes. Hence the Reds trying Dunn out there. They aren't always bad in the field, but for the most part 1Bmen don't have the greatest gloves/range/arms. So a good 1b isn't nearly as hard to come by as a stud 3Bmen who can field to at least league average or above and hit as well.
Third is more of an offensive position than, say, shortstop, but it's not to the extent first base is. There are fewer guys that can play third base than can play first base, and that limits the number of good hitters at the position. Just look at what a typical first baseman hits versus what a typical third baseman hits. Any given level of performance by a first baseman would look better relative to his peers when a third baseman does it.
Reading comprehension is not just an ability, it's a choice
For whatever reason I am having trouble getting on the Votto bandwagon. Everytime I see his numbers all I think is here comes Sean Casey all over again.
I am being serious... Please someone tell me why Votto will be better than Sean.
WHEN DOES IT STOP!?!?
Sean Casey would work as a prime example of what I think Votto could do.... if you take out 1999, 2000 and 2004 as use those as examples. Casey had very good doubles power, but hardly ever struck out. Votto has a lot more HR potential, and still has a 30-40 doubles power bat. Votto also is much more swift on his feet than Sean was/is. Casey clogs up the bases like Cecil Fielder. Votto on the otherhand is actually quite fast comparatively.
Votto can hit for average, although I am not sure he will ever top Caseys .324 mark, but to see him hover around .290-.305 is reasonable. Votto hits for power and has a lot more HR potential than Casey ever showed. Casey topped out at 25 HR, Votto could put up 30 or more HR.
I cringe whenever I hear a 1b compared to Casey. I want a power, run producer in the 1b slot, not a slap hitter.
Would there be a comparison between Gordon and Votto if Votto was a big name draftee? It seems like Gordon has long been the sexy name in the prospect ranks. Gordon was a big time College player who had a short time line to contributing in the majors. Votto was a lesser heard of Canadian which doesn't bode well for recognition. I would be willing to bet had Votto been an all american like Gordon he would be ranked quite a bit higher.
Not just that, if Votto hadnt struggled so much last year in the Florida State League, he surely would have jumped higher. Hypothetically speaking lets say his 2005 was similar to his 2004 and 2006, then his 3 years from MWL-FSL-SL would look like this
Age 20 - .302/.404/.500
Age 21 - .300/.400/.510
Age 22 - .319/.408/.547
Instead there is a big gaping hole in his age 21 season when he went .256/.330/.425. A lot of people dont care that he was forced to take the first pitch every at bat or not. Without that season, Joey Votto would probably be somewhere around #15 in all of baseball and I firmly believe that.
As for Gordon, he deserves his ranking. First professional season, top draft pick, tore apart AA.
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