Is Joey Votto the next "thing" in baseball?

[Defacto]

Every decade has its star. For the 2000's, it was Pujols. For the 2010's, could that star be Joey Votto?

[nmculbreth]

That seems pretty unlikely.

Votto is already 27, which would mean that he'd have to maintain this level of performance through his mid to late 30s in order to even be in the discussion for player of the decade.

If anyone on the Reds current roster has the chance to be that player, it's probably Jay Bruce. He's younger which means that he should be in his prime years for most of the decade, otherwise you're probably looking at similar profiles (Jason Heyward, Justin Upton, Mike Staton, etc).

[Roush's socks]

I don't know about "player of the decade," but Votto might be the best hitter in the NL over the next 5 years. I'd take that.

Even though Votto is awesome, it will be hard to maintain the level he was at last year. If he can he is a superstar.

[MikeThierry]

My bet is on Buster Posey though Carlos Gonzalez looks to be a legit offensive threat. Cargo needs to improve on his road splits but all the tools are there.

It will still be very difficult to match what Pujols did this past decade. Here is an interesting stat I read the other day on Pujols. There have been less than 10 players in baseball HISTORY who have had a single season that equals Albert Pujols career average, stats wise (avg, rbi, hr, slg, obp, etc). I just don't see a lot of players matching that standard.

[Vottomatic]

I think Joey will be a legitimate triple crown contender the next 5 years. If he can stay healthy, he has a chance.

[krm1580]

All things being equal and not knowing much about Bryce Harper besides the hype, the one guy I would bet as being the best player of the next decade would be Jason Heyward.

He OPSd .849 this season and if you throw out his June where he played with a banged up wrist before the DLd him, you are looking at a guy that OPSd .900 as a 20 year old in a neutral to negative offensive ballpark. The guy has light tower power and exceptional plate discipline for his age and see him as having the best skill set right now to consistently be a 1.000 OPS guy.

[New York Red]

I think Joey will be a legitimate triple crown contender the next 5 years. If he can stay healthy, he has a chance.
Man, I hope you're right. It'll be interesting to see if he can repeat his performance from last year. I think he can be even better, but those are still some lofty numbers to put up on a yearly basis.

[lonewolf371]

All things being equal and not knowing much about Bryce Harper besides the hype, the one guy I would bet as being the best player of the next decade would be Jason Heyward.

He OPSd .849 this season and if you throw out his June where he played with a banged up wrist before the DLd him, you are looking at a guy that OPSd .900 as a 20 year old in a neutral to negative offensive ballpark. The guy has light tower power and exceptional plate discipline for his age and see him as having the best skill set right now to consistently be a 1.000 OPS guy.
Yeah, it will be Jason Heyward.

Justin Upton and Bryce Harper are also guys to watch out for. Basically, you need to be younger than 23 and making strides in the majors to be a Pujols or A-Rod type player.

[wlf WV]

For his 10 years,I would choose Votto.I wouldn't trade him for anyone mentioned above,even though he is a first baseman.

[webbbj]

I think he will be in the discussion for best of the decade along w/ Mauer, Hanley, Posey, Cano, cargo, heyward,

[Razzle]

It will still be very difficult to match what Pujols did this past decade. Here is an interesting stat I read the other day on Pujols. There have been less than 10 players in baseball HISTORY who have had a single season that equals Albert Pujols career average, stats wise (avg, rbi, hr, slg, obp, etc). I just don't see a lot of players matching that standard.

To be fair Pujols has only done this himself twice. It's not like it's an easy thing to do to eclipse all your career averages in a single year.

As far as who will be the best player through the end of the decade, I'd go with Posey, Heyward, or Longoria.

[wlf WV]

I'm saying Joey's decade is '08-'17.

[lonewolf371]

To be fair Pujols has only done this himself twice. It's not like it's an easy thing to do to eclipse all your career averages in a single year.

As far as who will be the best player through the end of the decade, I'd go with Posey, Heyward, or Longoria.
Yeah but even a below average season for Pujols is still a career year for many other players. He's one of the best players in baseball history, some would even say the best right-handed hitter. The chances of a player matching his level of play in the next decade are quite small; however, I can still see a player being a "player of the decade" without being as good as Pujols.

[MikeThierry]

I just have a real suspicion it will be a race between Buster Posey and Jason Heyward.

[gilpdawg]

I think we saw Joey's career year last year. I just can't see him duplicating those numbers again. There has to be some regression to the mean. I see something similar to 2009, which isn't chopped liver. It's still a great year. Something to the tune of .415/.570/.985, which is still all-star caliber.

[texasdave]

Yeah, it will be Jason Heyward.

Justin Upton and Bryce Harper are also guys to watch out for. Basically, you need to be younger than 23 and making strides in the majors to be a Pujols or A-Rod type player.

If the last two months of 2010 are anything close to being a preview of coming attractions, you might just throw another Red into the mix - Jay Bruce.

[lonewolf371]

If the last two months of 2010 are anything close to being a preview of coming attractions, you might just throw another Red into the mix - Jay Bruce.
I'd love to see that. Even he's too old to have Pujols or A-Rod status, but he could be a star on the level of Longoria.

[Girevik]

Does it have to be a hitter? I think Chapman has a chance, given all the buzz about him and Strausberg. I think MLB is ready for the next Pedro \ Randy Johnson....a really top flight power pitcher.

[MikeThierry]

If you are going to throw Bruce in there I have to include Colby Rasmus in the conversation.

[MikeThierry]

The only reason why I think you throw Colby Rasmus into the conversation if you are going to throw Bruce in there is because they almost seem like the same player outside of Colby playing Center Field and having more speed than Bruce.

2010 stats:

Bruce

.281 BA, 25 HR, 70 RBI, .353 OBP, .493 SLG, .846 OPS 127 OPS +


Rasmus

.276 BA, 23 HR, 66 RBI, .361 OBP, .498 SLG, .859. OPS, 132 OPS +

They are the same age but Rasmus has only been in the league two years. The huge edge I will give to Bruce is that he doesn't have the knucklehead factor that Rasmus does. Rasmus and TLR butted heads last year and I don't think we are going to see Rasmus's full potential until LaRussa leaves.