One, Two, Three....Joey Votto slammed three home runs against the Cubs on Wednesday. It was beautiful. It's surprising that Dusty Baker has had the sense to start Votto over veteran Scott Hatteberg. I am thankful. It is out of character for him, though. Normally he'll stick to the struggling veteran regardless of how promising or productive the rookie is. This was Votto's best game as a pro. On top of the three homers, he also had a walk and his first stolen base of the season. I have to admit, that is one of the things that excites me most about Votto. He's huge. He plays first. However, he's got decent speed. He could end up being like Derrek Lee or like Jeff Bagwell in his prime. He's not going to steal 50 bags or anything, but if he chooses his spots well, he has the ability to nab 20.
The Reds hit seven home runs in all. In the second inning, Votto, Adam Dunn and Paul Bako each had solo shots and Jerry Hairston, Jr. added a 2-run blast. In the fifth, Brandon Phillips and Votto went back-to-back with solo homers. Votto hit his third shot in the sixth.
What went greatly overlooked during the home run derby was another outstanding performance by Edinson Volquez. He's allowed 1 or fewer earned runs in every start this season. His ERA is a paltry 1.06. That leads the NL and is second only to Cliff Lee in the majors. He also struck out 10 batters.....he is now leading the majors in strikeouts with 52. The only complaint that one can reasonably make against him is his walk rate. He's walked 24 batters in 42.1 innings. That is too high. However, they're not coming around to score. It does cause his pitch count to rise and prohibits him from pitching as deep into games as I would like to see. That said, in his last four starts he has gone 7 innings three times and the other he lasted six.
Best quote of the day and the most telling reason for Volquez's success so far this season: “The last two years, I haven’t thrown the ball like I’m throwing right now,” Volquez said. “Every pitch I throw, I’ve got a reason for throwing. Before, I’d just throw a pitch.”
