Blue Jays – Joey Votto is chasing Canadian records this season

On Friday, the Toronto Blue Jays made headlines when it was reported that veteran slugger and Etobicoke, Ontario product Joey Votto would be joining the squad on a MiLB deal as a non-roster invitee to big league camp. The club confirmed the move after Votto completed his physical yesterday and the left-handed batter is now in Dunedin ready to compete for a spot on the big league roster.

Should he make the big league club out of camp or potentially find his way to the MLB later in the year, there are some Canadian-born MLB records that the future Hall of Famer could knock off with enough at-bats under his belt by the time October rolls around.

Before the accolades come into focus, Votto will have to earn a spot on the roster, which will be an uphill battle for the former Cincinnati Reds star to make the Opening Day squad given his delayed start to the campaign. As per C. Trent Rosecrans and Kaitlyn McGrath at The Athletic, Votto expects to start the year in the Minor Leagues and work his way back to the big leagues this season.

“I am grateful that I am in tryout mode right now… This reminds me of when I was 18, flying down to Sarasota, Florida, to showcase and develop my skills as a new Cincinnati Red,” said Votto.

For Votto, his road back to the big leagues with the Blue Jays will likely see him in a different role than what he is used to with Vladimir Guerrero Jr. entrenched at first base for at least the next two seasons. The Jays also brought in Justin Turner on a one-year deal this past winter to be the team’s designated hitter while the club also has numerous internal candidates fighting for what appears to be one spot on the bench. The former 2010 NL MVP will have to compete with Daniel Vogelbach and Spencer Horwitz to fulfill the “left-handed bat off the bench” role this season but with the Blue Jays in win-now mode, it is likely whoever is performing the best out of the group who will be given the spot regardless of the outside narratives.

Should the 40-year-old find himself in Toronto at some point this year, there are numerous records that Votto could break should he find enough plate appearances and stay healthy at the big league level.

Amongst Canadian-born players, many of the offensive records are held by Larry Walker, one of the two Canucks from a player perspective to have their name in Cooperstown (the other being pitcher Fergie Jenkins). Votto owns a few of these records already, such as games played (2056), at-bats (7252), walks (1365), OBP (.409), and strikeouts (1640) but trails Walker in a few others entering the new campaign.

In comparison, Votto needs the following tallies to pass Walker and be ranked #1 amongst Canadian-born players (bold denotes Walker’s stats):

Slash line wise, Votto sits behind Walker in average (.313 vs. .294), SLG (.565 vs. .511), and OPS (.965 vs. .920) but it is unlikely the former Reds star will gain enough at-bats over this season to contend in these categories barring an MVP like campaign. Should Votto struggle at the plate, he could also drop below Walker in terms of OBP, as he sits just .09 points above the Maple Ridge, B.C. product. This would take a monumental collapse given the amount of years Votto has in the big leagues but something to monitor.

If Votto was to have between 100-200 at-bats this season (meaning at least a May/June call-up with some considerable time in the 1B/DH spot), he has a chance to surpass Walker in the hits category at a minimum. He would need to find some considerable power to pass the Rockies legend in terms of doubles and home runs although Votto has proven in the past he can hit 30+ doubles and 20+ home runs when healthy (although also younger).

To surpass these two accolades, Votto will easily need more than 200+ at-bats to even be in the same ballpark of the 17 doubles and 27 home runs required, especially since he has only hit 27+ knocks just five times in his career with at least 450 at-bats in each campaign. For the RBI total, this is a safe bet to say Walker’s spot at #1 isn’t going anywhere unless Votto has another two to three years left in the tank. Should he suit up for three more campaigns, he would also surpass Jenkins and Saint John, New Brunswick product Matt Stairs in terms of years played by a position player, as Votto enters the 2024 campaign in year #18 while Jenkins and Stairs both sit at #19.

Looking ahead, there are some Canadian-inspired records that Votto could surpass this season but to do so, he needs to secure a spot on the big league roster first and foremost. That will be his first test out of the gate but if he can find a way to go back to his form pre-2022, the seven-time Tip O’Neill Award winner stands a good chance of donning a Blue Jays jersey at some point this season and on the right track to continue adding impressive accolades to an already stellar career.