Kuzul

Joey Votto is to Cincinnati what Albert Pujols is to St. Louis.  The Cincinnati Reds are trying to negotiate a long-term deal with Votto but so far, nothing has been signed.  They have already signed outfielder Jay Bruce to a long-term deal and Colorado’s Carlos González also signed a seven-year, $80 million deal; so why hasn’t Joey Votto signed? 

After the González signing, GM Walt Jocketty said, “It’s hard to comment without knowing the details, I think each deal is separate and different.  I’m sure it will affect it some down the line.”  Jocketty went on to say, “But we haven’t made a lot of progress the last couple of weeks, a lot of agents kind of shut it down over the holidays.”  Not exactly what you want to hear. 

Reds fans would have loved to hear something like “We are close to a deal and are working very hard,” or “Joey has expressed an interest to stay in Cincinnati and we are working diligently to keep him here.”  But nothing like this has been said. 

The two sides appear far off on a long-term deal.  Why is this?  A glimpse into Joey Votto’s psyche may help us understand.  It is well known that Joey Votto is a very private, low-key person.  In 2008, he suffered an emotional breakdown based on psychological factors of grieving his late father.  Votto has improved and has become more public since 2008 but he still is the same person with the same emotional needs.  One of those needs seems to be privacy or not feeling like he is recognized everywhere he goes. 

In a story by David Pollard of the Winnipeg Sun titled “Votto Wins Inaugral QMI Agency Male Athlete of the Year,” Pollard gives us a unique insight into the possible reason Joey Votto has yet to sign a long-term extension with Cincinnati.  He writes:

“Votto has gotten more exposure north of the border over the last two months than he has in the eight years since the Reds made him a second-round draft pick. In addition to winning the MVP, he was the recipient of the N.L. Hank Aaron Award as the league’s best hitter; won the Tip O’Neill Award handed out annually by the Canadian Baseball Hall of Fame; and copped the Lou Marsh Award as Canada’s athlete of the year, beating out a handful of Olympians.”

He goes on to write, “For a private — and genuinely humble, rare in many professional athletes at the height of fame — guy like Votto, the increased attention that goes along with reaching a new level of stardom might become too much to take.”

Quoting Votto himself, “‘In Cincinnati, I can’t imagine being more recognized,’ Votto explained. ‘I walk around everywhere and people recognize me and that’s a tremendous complement. But if I can handle Cincinnati, I think I can handle the other cities. I live in Florida and I live around senior citizens and no one gives a s*** who I am. And then I go to Toronto and everybody cares about the Leafs and the Raptors, there’s nobody would know who I am. If they do, I know the Canadian fans would be polite and respect my space. There’s some people that really want to be recognized and be known and want the attention. I’m not one of those guys [bold added].’” 

Is this the underlying reason why Joey Votto has not signed a long-term deal yet?  One thing for certain, he is not happy with all the attention.  Cincinnatians would be wise to begin giving Votto his personal space.  Once he feels comfortable, maybe he will sign long term.  Of course, multi-millions of dollars could also help.

On Sunday January 16, Votto signed a three year $38 million deal.  It was an odd contract because the Reds already control him for three years.  It is almost as if Votto is looking to leave after three years.  Reds better keep Yonder Alonso after all.

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For the past several seasons, most people felt the National League Central was the St. Louis Cardinals and “everyone else.” However, since the 2005 season, every team in the division has appeared in the playoffs with the exception of the Pittsburgh Pirates.

The Cincinnati Reds finally broke through in 2010 to win the division after being a dark-horse pick for many years by fans and critics alike. The Reds now become the hunted, quite a big change from being the hunters in previous seasons. 

The Milwaukee Brewers finished a distant third behind the Reds and St. Louis Cardinals in 2010. GM Doug Melvin spent the winter improving one of the worst rotations in baseball by adding Shaun Marcum and 2009 AL Cy Young Award winner, Zack Greinke.

Just as important, Melvin didn’t trade Prince Fielder, which keeps the Brewers offense strong heading into 2011. 

The Reds were quiet to begin the off-season but have recently made noise with the signings of World Series MVP, Edgar Renteria and reserve outfielder Fred Lewis.

Were the moves made by Milwaukee enough to compete with the Reds in 2011, or are the Reds still the class of the division? 

Here is a position-by-position breakdown of the two teams with Spring Training just over a month away:

Pitching Rotation

Statistically, the Reds far outperformed the Brewers last year but Greinke and Marcum make a huge difference going forward.

The Reds rotation features six almost interchangeable parts. Johnny Cueto, Edison Volquez, Bronson Arroyo, Homer Bailey, Travis Wood and Mike Leake provide the Reds with great depth and potential greatness. While I think as a whole they are deeper than Milwaukee’s group of Greinke, Marcum, Yovani Gallardo, Randy Wolf and Chris Narveson, I think the Brewers’ top three surpass any top three the Reds could put together. 

That’s not discounting the talent of the Reds’ hurlers, but Greinke has won a Cy Young and Marcum put up good numbers in the ultra-competitive AL East, while Gallardo has posted back-to-back 200-plus strikeout seasons.

For 2011, I’d pick the Brewers’ rotation, but I think a year or two out that the Reds will prove to have the better group.

Dusty Baker does have the luxury of calling on Aroldis Chapman in case of injury, something that the Brewers can’t do. Manager Ron Roenicke would likely look toward prospect Mark Rogers should anyone go down for any significant amount of time. 

Slight advantage to the Brewers.

Bullpen

Speaking of the hard-throwing Cuban, Chapman will indeed start the season in the bullpen for Cincy. He’ll serve as the primary set-up man for closer Francisco Cordero.

Cordero finished the year with 40 saves and a 3.84 ERA in 75 games. Bill Bray, Nick Masset and Logan Ondrusek all performed well for the Reds last year and will be vital to the team’s success this year. 

John Axford came out of nowhere for the Brewers last year to save 24 of 27 games after Trevor Hoffman faltered. Takashi Saito was signed recently to serve as the eighth inning man, but he won’t be able to pitch in back-to-back games due to age and previous injuries.

LaTroy Hawkins will also serve as a set-up man if he can rebound from injuries and a poor 2010. Zach Braddock, Kameron Loe and Mike McClendon had nice seasons, but will they be able to repeat their successes this year?

The Brewers are hoping a lot of things go right for its bullpen while the Reds have an established pen that will keep most of the leads when entering the eighth inning.

Large advantage to the Reds.

Defense and Bench

With the trades the Brewers made, they traded away some great prospects and young players that were key to the future of the team. Alcides Escobar started the entire season at shortstop, while Lorenzo Cain had a very good September in center field. Many felt Cain would be the starter going forward for the team. 

Yuniesky Betancourt and Carlos Gomez will now serve as the starters at short and center. Chris Dickerson will split time with Gomez in center and Craig Counsell will (again) serve as a super-utility player off the bench. At some point, age will catch up with Counsell but hopefully it won’t be this year.

Defensively, only Gomez would be considered an above-average fielder. 

Signing Edgar Renteria and Fred Lewis give the Reds a very good, deep bench. Renteria, along with Miguel Cairo, give the Reds great versatility and two veteran bats. Lewis can play any outfield spot. Chris Heisey and top prospect Yonder Alonso will also see time off the bench in 2011. 

The Reds had 39 fewer errors than the Brewers in 2010 and were better than Milwaukee in almost any defensive category used. 

Large advantage to the Reds.

Offense

Again, at least statistically, the Reds were better than the Brewers in 2010. They scored 40 more runs and their team batting average was 10 points higher than Milwaukee.

However, all that happened with Prince Fielder having the worst year of his career. Don’t count on him repeating that in 2011.

Joey Votto has a better career batting average than Fielder (also an MVP trophy on his mantle), but I think they are a push offensively. With Fielder in his final year before free agency, most feel he’ll put up MVP-like numbers, which will significantly enhance Milwaukee’s offense.

Brandon Phillips and Rickie Weeks are very similar players as well. They both hit for power and have above average speed. Weeks finally played an entire season and showed he can play at an All-Star level when healthy. 

Betancourt put up career-high power numbers last year in Kansas City but no one should be counting on that type of production for the Brewers. He and Paul Janish are similar players. Each will hit around .260 with single-digit home run totals. 

Scott Rolen had a nice season offensively for the Reds and is still a Gold Glove-level defender. Casey McGehee turned into a very good hitter for the Brewers, coming through time after time when teams pitched around Fielder. Rolen will turn 36 early in the season. Can he continue to put up good numbers at the plate? If he can, the Reds offense will continue to roll. If he begins to show his age, the offense may sputter.

Even with the gap defensively, I’d still take McGehee for the 2011 season; his bat is that good.

Jonny Gomes had a career year for the Reds, finally getting a chance to be a full-time starter. Ryan Braun’s numbers have steadily decreased since he won the NL Rookie of the Year in 2007, but he’s still an All-Star level player. He’s averaged 32 home runs and 105 RBI his first four years in the league. With respect to Gomes, he’s not nearly the player Braun is.

Drew Stubbs had a very nice first year as a starter. Although he hit just .255, he stole 30 bases and hit 22 home runs. The Brewers can only dream of getting that type of production from the Gomez/Dickerson duo. Gomez is still young enough (25) to turn his career around but until he learns some plate discipline, he’ll serve as a black hole for the Brewers’ batting order.

Right field is a great battle between the two teams.

Jay Bruce has hit at least 20 home runs in each of his first three seasons. Corey Hart has accomplished that feat three times as well in his career, along with two seasons of 20-plus stolen bases. Hart has also been an All-Star twice, including last season. Each player has signed a long-term deal with their respective teams within the past six months. 

Jonathan Lucroy was thrown into the fire behind the plate for the Brewers last year after Gregg Zaun was lost for the season. He hit only .253 with four home runs. Entering the year as the entrenched starter should serve his confidence well and his numbers should improve this year.

The combination of Ramon Hernandez and Ryan Hanigan put up very good numbers for the Reds. The duo is effective not only at the plate but handling the pitching staff as well. Behind Yadier Molina of the Cardinals, the Reds probably has the best catching unit in the division.

Small advantage to the Brewers…based mainly on the projected Prince Fielder turnaround.

Managers

Whether you like him or not, Dusty Baker is one of the best managers in the game. He has the reputation for ruining young arms, and if he does that this year in Cincinnati, they could be doomed. However, I think he has a strong enough bullpen that he won’t rely so heavily on his starters. He’s never managed a team to back-to-back first place finishes, but this group definitely has the talent to get the job done.

Ron Roenicke is entering his first season as a big league manager. He’s coming to the Brewers from Mike Scioscia’s staff in Los Angeles. He has a big task in front of him to try and turn the Brewers back into playoff contenders. He has stated he’ll have his team be more aggressive at the plate and on the bases, something many people criticized former manager Ken Macha of not doing. 

Large advantage to the Reds.

Assessment

While the Brewers may have the household names like Braun, Fielder and Greinke, the Reds have the defending MVP (Votto), a great, young pitching staff and most importantly they are the defending division champs. 

The Brewers have done a great job closing the gap on the Reds, but I still see the Reds as the favorites entering the season. The Brewers still need to improve their bench and bullpen (both can be easily done throughout the season) before they can seriously view themselves as a threat to the Reds.

To read more by Jesse Motiff, click here. 

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With a greatly improved starting rotation, the Milwaukee Brewers have become contenders in 2011. But do not mistake that for “division winners.”

In 2010, the Brewers ran out a consistently strong offense, while the pitching kept them in the trenches. This coming season, expect the offense to be more or less the same, but the additions of Shaun Marcum and Zack Grienke may not completely change the Brewers’ recent fortune.

The main issue is not talent, they have plenty, but rather competition. Do not forget that last year’s division winners, the Cincinnati Reds, may not even be the favorites in 2011. In addition, the St. Louis Cardinals, who underperformed in 2010, have many returning pieces that rival the Brewers.

In terms of offense, the Brewers have plenty of power in the middle of the order, but first, they need men to get on base. Carlos Gomez, a speedy center fielder, only had a .298 OBP last season, while new shortstop Yuniesky Betancourt also had an OBP below .300. By comparison, neither the Cardinals nor the Reds had a single starting position player with an OBP below .321. 

The Brewers’ biggest star, Prince Fielder, isn’t even the best first baseman in his division. In fact, he’s the third best behind the Cardinals’ Albert Pujols and Joey Votto of the Reds. With those two sluggers, the division’s best teams in 2010 will be hard to surpass.

In the pitching department, the Brewers made significant upgrades to run out a “big four” in 2011 that includes Marcum, Greinke, Yovani Gallardo and Randy Wolf. In 2010, Marcum’s 3.64 ERA was the best of the bunch, but Greinke’s 1.07 WHIP proves he’s the true ace. It’s hard to figure that the aging Randy Wolf can be included in the “big four” which is really a “big three.”

The St. Louis Cardinals’ top four starters include a former Cy Young winner in Chris Carpenter, whose 3.22 ERA last season was better than any of the starters in Milwaukee. Then you include Adam Wainwright with an ERA of 2.42. 

The Reds’ rotation is solid, but they lack a true top of the rotation starter. With pitchers like Bronson Arroyo, Johnny Cueto and Mike Leake, however, the Reds will run out a quality pitcher every day. 

Overall, the Brewers’ rotation projects to be the second best in the division behind the seemingly forgotten St. Louis Cardinals. Their offense, however, may prove to be the wild card. With established power, they can score runs in bunches, but consistency may be an issue without proven hitters at the top of the order. 

The St. Louis Cardinals are the best team in the NL Central division.  

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Was the Reds success of last season an aberration or a trend?  They were 43-24 against the Astros, Brewers, Cubs and Pirates, and 48-47 against everyone else.

1–Who among the Reds’ young stable of starting pitchers will take it to the next level?

Homer Bailey: 4-3, 4.46 ERA, 19 starts, 109 innings

Johnny Cueto: 12-7, 3.64 ERA, 31 starts, 185 innings

Mike Leake: 8-4, 4.23 ERA, 22 starts, 136 innings

Edinson Volquez:  4-3, 4.31 ERA,  12 Starts, 62 innings

Travis Wood  5-4,  3.61 ERA, 17 starts, 102 innings

Do you see a pattern here?  Cueto was the only one who was in the rotation all year.

 Volquez was out after Tommy John elbow surgery a year.  With his control lapses and mechanics issues, did he come back too soon?   If he can regain his fom of 2008, he may never be worth Josh Hamilton, but has the potential to be a #1 starter on the level of Jose Rijo before his elbow problems.

Wood came up at mid year, and came within two outs of a perfect game, a feat only accomplished by the last successful Reds’ left-handed starter, Tom Browning.  He seems to have the stuff for long-term success.

If Bailey is still around, 2011 may be his last shot at gaining a permanent spot in the rotation. He could fulfill the need for long relief they had[n  Pedro Borbon who kept the Reds in a lot of ball games.  But Bailey takes a while to warm up the clock is ticking…

 After getting off to a fast start that would have made Leake an early Rookie of the year candidate, Leake seemed to have evaporated after Volquez returned.  When he went to the bullpen, he got hammered.  And then he disappeared.

Although Champan is able to throw 105 m.p.h., I am more concerned with his ability to get 27 outs.  He either has to start or finish.  There is no way to justify his money for a set up man. 

If he becomes a closer. where does that put Francisco Cordero?  Cordero gets a huge salary to finish games and probably not be around after next year. To justify Chapman’s salary, he would have to be a Mariano Rivera.

In order to compete with other clubs, the starters have to go deeper into games.   Given the Brewers recent acquirisitions, they will need to get better in order to repeat.

Bullpen.

Cordero, 6-5, 3.84 ERA, 40 saves is in the last year of contract.   With eight blown saves, if half of his blown saves had been converted, the Reds playoff position and maybe results could have been different.  Even when he converted saves, it was rarely easy due to erratic control.

 Behind Cordero is Nick Masset, who was 4-4 with a 3.40 ERA, with two saves.  With Arthur Rhodes departed, Matt Maloney or the possible resurrection of Dontrell Willis filling the void.  Logan Ondrusek, 5-0, 3.68 ERA, in 60 appearances, pitched much better in his second stint with the big club.

Middle and long relief could be a weakness of this team, if a starter, relegated to the bullpen is unable to make the adjustment. 

Catching

Last season’s pickup of Ramon Hernandez (97 games, 7 home runs, 48 RBIs, .297 ave) was, for the short term, along with Scott Rolen, one of the best in recent years.  Coupled with Ryan Hannigan, (70 games, 5, 40, .306) two solid catchers, until last year’s first round draft choice, Yasmani Grandal time to develop.  Last year, Hernandez handled about 60%, to Hannigan’s 40%.  Hannigan always caught Arroyo. and usually an additional start a week.  Barring injury, the Reds seem to be in good shape.

Infield

If the Reds can pony up the dough, they seem to be set for the decade with Joey Votto (150 games, 37, 113, .328, almost unanimous MVP) at first base is the first real difference maker that has come up through the Reds’ system since Barry Larkin, meaning to the Reds what Jeff Bagwell meant to the Astros in the 90’s and Tony Perez to the Big Red Machine. 

With another potential big bat in Yonder Alonzo waiting in the wings, one or the other may have to play out of position, like Perez playing third when Lee May came up.  Votto worked hard on his defense last year, so any move of Votto that would affect his offense would be a  bad idea, and Alonzo may become to Votto what Hal Morris was to Don Mattingly, or Paul Konerko was to Sean Casey.

Brandon Phillips (150 gams, 18, 59, .275) scored a lot of runs, and had a better year than the stats due to a late season hand injury.  His remarks about the Cardinals didn’t set to well in head-to-head encounters, but seemed to set a fire under the other teams in the division,  The Cards were 12-6 against the Reds, but 27-33 against the other four teams, with much of the damage coming after Phillips’ remarks. 

When Willie Stargell wrote his book on the 1979 “We are Familee” Pittsburgh Pirates, he wrote that Dave Parker, a guy who was so talented that he replaced Roberto Clemente, played out of hate.  It doesn’t take much bitterness to shove one into playing out of hate.  They win championships and they are not happy.  Baseball is still a game that pays insane money and most of us can only dream about it.  My best advise to Phillips is to play hard but be happy. 

The 1979 Pirates were their last championship team, sweeping the Reds in the LCS, and beating the Orioles in a seven game World Series.  They haven’t had a winning season since Barry Bonds left them.

Like most Reds good second basemen, Phillips is a converted shortstop, with shortstop range at second base.  Phillips made only three errors and won his second Gold Glove.With Cabrerra out of the picture, it seems that the Reds have put the confidence in Paul Janish (82 games, 5, 25, 260)as an everyday shortstop.  Like Juan Castro, there was never any doubt about Janish’s defense, but had little confidence in his hitting.  But Dave Concepcion was not much of a hitter when he started either.  Put Janish in the eighth slot and leave him there.  They have plenty of 1-7 offense.  Geronimo batted .307 in the eighth slot in 1976, and Sparky Anderson didn’t move him. 

Who’s on third, long term: I dunno.

Last year at this time I speculated what kind of a difference having Scott Rolen (133 games, 20-83, .85) for a whole season would be.  He certainly was enough of a difference to make the Reds a division winner.  But Rolen faded in the second half of the season, and will probably be limited in starts in 2011.   Like several guys in the past, I wish Rolen would have become a Red earlier than when he was acquired.  It is possible that the Reds can have four Gold Gloves this year.

Two guys that were brought up in September, Juan Francisco (36 games, 1-7, .273) and Chris Valiaka (19 games, 1-2, .263) are possiblilties.  Francisco has the offensive pop, and Valaika can back up at second, short, or third, taking Janish’s spot as a backup.  With Miguel Cairo (91 games, 4, 28, .290) returing, it is unlikely that Francisco, Valaika and Alonzo will be with the team on opening day.

Outfield

Johnny Gomes (148 games, 18. 86, .266) was an enigma in left field.  At times he looked like the perfect #5 hitter, driving in runs in droves, and other times he looked all the things Adam Dunn’s agent never brings up in contract negotiations, strikeouts, and although he made only one more error than Jay Bruce, he had 149 less total chances than Bruce.  At 29, he could still have many productive years ahead of him, but 2010 could have been a career year.

Whenever the Reds are approached about trades, Chris Heisey’s (97 games, 8, 21, .254) name probably comes up in discussions.  He appears to be a five tool guy that could be an everyday outfielder for a decade.  When Bruce was injured, and Gomes, Heisey and Stubbs had to play every inning of every game, the team’s play suffered.  Since no one was brought up from Louisville to fill the void, it seems there is little help at AAA. 

The potential great white hope of the Reds is former #1 pick Drew Stubbs (150 games, 22, 77, .255h).  With blazing speed, he appears to be the perfect leadoff hitter.  With Stubbs it is all about contact.  How many times last season was Stubbs 0-2 without taking the bat off his shoulders?  Batting lead off is a lot of pressure, but Baker and the coaching staff are working to make him more aggressive.  If he can become even a decent bunter,he can become a terror to opposing teams.  Short fences in small ballparks are a real tempta tion for guys like Stubbs to look for a perfect pitch to drive.  In the “dead ball” era, guys like Willie Keeler were successful because, as he put it, “I hit ’em where the ain’t.”

With their speed Heisey and Stubbs can cover a lot of ground.  One aspect of the Big Red Machine that is often overlooked was that its defense was as good as its offense.  A great defensive outfield can knock off half a run off the team ERA.

The Reds made a major commitment by signing Jay Bruce (148 games, 25, 70, .281) to a long term contract.  At one point last season Marty Brenamin wondered aloud, “will this kid ever get it?

 One can summarize last season in this statement “as goes Jay Bruce, so goes the Cincinnati Reds.”  As good as Votto is, Votto cannot carry this team alone.  When Bruce is on top of his game, he can hit the first pitch 400 feet to clinch a playoff erth.  When he slumps, the whole team suffers. 

In terms of talent, Bruce is a faster version of Paul O’Neill.  O’Neill “got it” after he left the Reds, and has five World Series rings.  When O’Neill first came up, Pete Rose called him “Jethro.”

Management

When Bob Castelinni bought the team, he got Walt Jockety to be General Manager.  Baseball is different from other sports because baseball is a very long season with the fewest teams making the post season.  A franchise that was an also ran has a bright future.  Jockety sems to be pushing the right buttons like Bob Howsam in the ’70s.  I feel for Bengal fans who are stuck with Mike Brown.

When Dusty Baker was hired as manager, I had my doubts.  Like any. leader, he can only tell his people what to do.  His players have to execute.  Some guys succeed, other do not.  In 1990, people were looking for any reason for hope against the prohibitively favored Oakland A’s.  What they came up with was “the ex Cub factor,” with the Reds having less ex Cubs than the A’s.  After losing the LCS, the win 66 games the next year, Baker gets canned.  His teams weren’t very good his first two years, but found success in the third.

Outlook

Aside from starting pitching, and even then cannot keep up with the big spenders, the Reds are not very deep.  If their regulars stay healthy and continue to improve the decade of 2010 might be like the decade of 1970.  1990 was a great year.  A unique year, being in first place all season.  The rest of the decade was up and down.  I make no predictions.

My Opening Day Lineup:

Stubbs, CF

Phillips, 2B

Votto, 1B

Rolen, 3B

Bruce, RF

Gomes, LF

Hannigan, C (catches Arroyo)

Janish, SS

Arroyo, P  He deserves it.

An irony to end this piece:  only one year have they opened on the road:

 1990

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We should all be so lucky to make the league minimum. Before we go feeling sorry for the (relatively) underpaid workhorses of baseball, it helps to remember how much $400,000 is. That said, there are some players that represent the antithesis of the bloated big league albatross.

For the purposes of this article, I’m not considering first-year players. Many incredible players make a huge splash in their freshman campaigns. Their low pay in the first year is misleading, as just about everyone makes somewhere around $400k their first year. I wanted to focus on a starting nine that has put some work in and still doesn’t take home a heaping pile. Without further ado…

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The New Year is quickly approaching and as baseball fans pour over the latest Hot Stove news, now is as good a time as any to look back at the 2010 season.

From a bevy of great pitching performances, to an unlikely home run king, to the Giants improbable World Series run, the 2010 season was a memorable one.

So here are the top 50 players from the 2010 season, from the subjective view of one sports writer. I welcome you to inform me where you disagree with my rankings, as this is certainly up for debate.

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Congratulations goes out to Joey Votto once again this year.

After being named the NL MVP this year, by compiling a .324 average with 37 home runs and 113 RBI, he has now been crowned the 2010 Canadian Male Athlete of the Year. The pile of accolades continue to increase for the 27-year-old native of Toronto, Ontario Canada and he truly deserves all the praise coming his way.

He beat out fellow Canadians Jonathan Toews, Sidney Crosby, Steve Nash and Georges St. Pierre. That is quite a list to be on top of for the soft-spoken, yet hard-swinging left-hander for the Cincinnati Reds.

The sport that he competes in is not one of Canada’s preferred sporting choices, making his win that much more incredible. But, the dedication and strong work ethic Votto carries with him on a daily basis would have earned him the award no matter what sport he competed in.

Also known as the Lionel Conacher Award, Votto joins a list of names that include Sidney Crosby, Steve Nash, Wayne Gretzky, Mario Lemieux, Phil Esposito, Bobby Orr and the great Gordie Howe. Not a bad list to have your name a part of.

Votto is very quiet when it comes to being in the spotlight, but enjoys letting his work do the talking. He is a very humbled baseball player who will only continue to get better as his career moves along.

From struggling for playing time in the minors to the death of his father that caused him to miss games due to depression and anxiety, Votto has come a long way these last few years. This last season for the Reds opened up everyone’s eyes to the player Votto is and there is a strong possibility that he could repeat as Canada’s male athlete for years to come.

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Let’s get something clear right off the bat—I’m not advocating that the San Francisco Giants trade Matt Cain in the 2010-11 MLB offseason. I’m not even suggesting they should consider doing so.

The Kid has been the Giants’ most consistent pitcher for years, and he’s been one of the best starting pitchers in baseball for the same duration. Though Tim Lincecum is unquestionably the staff ace and justifiably dominates the limelight, his right-handed stablemate is only a nose behind him.

What Cainer lacks in pure filth when compared to the Freak, he compensates for almost completely with mental impregnability.

Despite the sizable public perception gap, the actual difference in team import between the two aces is much narrower. Should anyone still doubt this fact, he or she need only reference the Gents’ 2010 World Championship campaign.

The squad probably doesn’t even make the playoffs without its longest-tenured member thanks to Lincecum’s struggles in May (4.95 ERA, 1.54 WHIP) and August (7.82 ERA, 1.82 WHIP). While the Franchise was wallowing in the misery of decreased velocity and lost command, Cain was at his best—he posted a 1.81 ERA and 0.92 WHIP in May, then followed it up with a 3.00 ERA and 1.10 WHIP in August.

Remember, Los Gigantes needed a win in Game 162 to survive the regular season and San Diego Padres by a razor-thin, two-game edge in the National League West. So the margin for error was equally slim.

Oh, and speaking of the postseason, not even Tim Lincecum was better.

In fact, neither Christy Mathewson nor Carl Hubbell—nor any pitcher in the time-worn history of the Show—can look down upon Big Game Cain’s performance in October (OK, maybe Big Six can). That’s because the youngster from Alabama was virtually perfect—2-0, 21.1 IP, 0.00 ERA, 0.94 WHIP, seven BB, 13 K and only one extra-base hit (the miracle double to Ian Kinsler in Game 2 of the Fall Classic).

Nope, San Francisco has a handful of untouchables as far as trade chips go, and Matt Cain is most certainly one of those.

But therein lies the fun.

Just imagine what the franchise could demand in return for such a priceless commodity—this is a 26-year-old with successful postseason experience under his belt and off his back. Furthermore, he’s shown consistent improvement from each of his five full seasons to the next.

With that in mind, let’s take a look at the hypothetical bounty Matt Cain could fetch.

And note, the acquisition of Miguel Tejada changes none of what follows.

At $6.5 million for one year, I’m intrigued by the Miggy signing. But he’d still take a reserve role to the guys on this list. On with it.

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While baseball is America’s Pastime, the game has extensive roots and deep tradition in the country to its north as well. The first documented evidence of baseball in Canada dates back to 1838 shortly after it became popular in the United States. As has been stereotyped, we Canadians are certainly very proud of our fellow compatriots in the game.

Today, the tradition lives on as in the past five years, two Canadians have won an MVP Award: Justin Morneau in 2006 (AL) and Joey Votto (NL) just recently. Larry Walker won the NL in 1997 and is perhaps the best Canadian batter in major league history, while Ferguson Jenkins is without question the greatest canuck pitcher ever.

Here is my compilation of the Ten Best Canadian Players in Baseball Today.

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Today’s announcement of Josh Hamilton as the American League’s Most Valuable Player means baseball’s annual end-of-season awards series is over.

Few times of year breed as much controversy and debate amongst baseball fans as awards season. Over the last few weeks, we’ve seen countless arguments for who should win what and why, starting with Derek Jeter’s Gold Glove and running nonstop until now.

The Rookies of the Year, Cy Youngs and MVP are voted on by members of the Baseball Writers Association of America; in each league, two writers for each team cast their ballots for the league’s best players.

Now that all is said is done, it’s time to ask: How’d they do?

In this slideshow are my grades for both the BBWAA’s choices and their total votes for each award. What do you think—would they be proud to bring home this report card?

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