BALLER MOVE: Target ~8th Round
ANALYSIS: In 2014, perennial All-Star Joey Votto watched his entire game sink to career lows as he battled through a left quadriceps strain, which would end up costing him 100 games. All reports out of Reds camp so far this spring suggest that the injury is behind the former MVP.
“I’m really pleased with how he’s moving around, how he looked in the cage, how he looked at first base,” shared manager Bryan Price to MLB.com. “He was throwing the ball well, looked spry. I was happy to see that for sure.”
“I’ve been swinging, throwing,” echoed Votto. “I’m taking ground balls and running. It feels like a big contrast to where I was during the season and at the end of the season.”
Votto is among the most polished hitters in major league baseball and can be an utter force of nature when healthy. He’ll be 31 years old next season, and has played at least 150 games in three of the last five seasons. Prior to last year, he was a career .314 hitter averaging roughly 22 HR each year. I don’t think you can do much better than Votto in the eighth.
Check out RotoBaller's entire fantasy baseball waiver wire pickups and sleepers list, updated daily!