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Toronto Blue Jays first baseman Joey Votto has officially retired from Major League Baseball after 17 seasons. The longtime Cincinnati Reds infielder made the announcement on Wednesday through an Instagram video, stating, “That's it. I'm done. I am officially retired from baseball.”
Votto’s announcement marks the end of a remarkable career for one of the generation's top hitters, a player who earned six All-Star selections and an MVP award.
The 17-year veteran expressed that while he had “zero regrets” about his decision to retire, he was “genuinely saddened” that he never had the opportunity to play for the Blue Jays, the team he supported as a child growing up in Toronto’s west end.
Joey Votto's regrets wearing the Toronto Blue Jays uniform
Joey Votto drove to Rogers Centre from Buffalo and arrived to visit with the Reds before they left. He said he "desperately wanted to participate in games here" but wasn't up to the level he needed to be at. pic.twitter.com/GGAp1dAlGm
— Shi Davidi (@ShiDavidi) August 22, 2024
“I'm really saddened that I wasn't able to make it happen, that I wasn't able to arrive and perform, at the Rogers Centre in a Blue Jays uniform representing the city that I grew up in, the country that I grew up in and my people. I'm saddened by that,” Votto said via Sportsnet’s Shi Davidi.
Joey Votto’s long-awaited debut with the Blue Jays in March brought excitement to Toronto fans, who were thrilled to see one of Canada’s top baseball talents potentially joining their team.
However, after hitting a home run in his first Grapefruit League at-bat on March 17, Votto suffered an ankle injury in the dugout. What was initially expected to be a short-term issue turned into a lengthy setback, keeping him out for months.
“But … this isn't my organization. So how can I show up and make it my day, my moment, here's an at-bat, here's a game, here's a stretch of time. To me, it's disrespectful to the game. I also think it's disrespectful to the paying fans that want to see a high-end performance and I would have given them an awful performance,” he said.
“The feeling of playing in front of the fans here would have meant a lot to a lot of people that I'm close to. But I've taken pride in playing well. I want to play well and I wasn't doing that. And so I don't think I would have given them a satisfying experience,” Votto continued.
An end to a legendary career
Votto started his professional journey as a second-round pick by the Cincinnati Reds in the 2002 MLB Draft. Though it took some time for him to rise through the ranks, he hit his stride in the minors by 2006 and made his Major League debut in 2007.
Joey Votto quickly established himself as a formidable hitter, combining patience and precision at the plate. He narrowly missed out on the 2008 MLB Rookie of the Year award but captured the MVP title in 2010. After that, he consistently challenged pitchers, leading the National League in on-base percentage in seven of the following nine seasons.
The Toronto native compiled a .294 batting average, 356 home runs, and 1,444 RBIs across 2,056 games. He retires with a career OPS of .920. His MVP season saw a career-high 37 home runs, and he also hit 36 homers in both 2017 and 2021.
“I am so humbled by where this game has taken me. I've done my part, of course, but the majority of it has been I've been carried by this sport, the fans, the staff, everyone involved,” Votto remarked.
