Votto: Reds need to come out swinging

Joey Votto likes the Cincinnati Reds’ chances this year. He likes the team around him. But with only a 60-game season, he knows the sense of urgency has to start with Opening Day.

“The first 15 games are going to be really important,” Votto said. “I don’t think it’s make-or-break, but it’s very important for us to start off well.”

For the Reds to get off to a good start, Votto has to get off to a good start — at least much better than he has the past two seasons.

In 2018, Votto batted .244 with one home run and eight RBI in his first 22 games. The Reds went 4-18 in those games, and manager Bryan Price was fired.

Last year, Votto’s skid lasted even longer — he batted .208 with four home runs and eight RBI in his first 46 games. He finished with a .261 average, a career worst for a full season.

Votto usually is a little coy when talking about personal expectations, and he was Tuesday when asked how he feels heading into the 2020 season.

“Every day is useful at this time when you have an abbreviated window of preparation,” he said. “Every single rep, every day is an opportunity to build toward being ready. How do I feel? I feel like I have to use the next three days properly.”

Manager David Bell said Votto has looked good.

“He’s in a great spot, physically, mentally, and he’s in a really good place,” Bell said. “The results have been excellent during summer camp.”

Votto is 36 years old, so there’s speculation that age led to last year’s struggles. But Bell believes a down year probably was inevitable, and that the interruption because of the coronavirus may actually help Votto.

“This guy has been such a great player for so many years,” Bell said. “It takes a lot to be that good. I think doing it for that long, that consistently, the way he works, the way he plays the game with intensity, this little break we’ve had, I think there is some benefit to that. …

“Mentally, this game can be such a grind. I think that little break might have benefited him more than anyone. He definitely came into camp fresh, physically and mentally.”

Votto expects this to be the oddest of his 13 big-league seasons, in part because of empty seats and piped-in crowd noise. Regarding the latter, Votto is not a fan.

“Am I comfortable with the crowd noise?” he said. “I’m guessing somebody not in uniform decided to put crowd noise up. I’d be astounded if somebody that is currently playing thinks that’s a good idea.”

However, he doesn’t think having no fans in the park will be a challenge or affect the level of play.

“I promise you, once the games start and our competition is the field, and we’ve got something to play for, you’re going to get the very best of everybody.”

That is not to say Votto discounts the importance of fans.

“We miss them,” he said. “No question about it, it’s going to be a different feeling. The fans are the lifeblood of this sport. …

“Of course, we play (for) our childhood dreams, our adult careers, our paychecks and everything like that. But there is very, very addictive playing in front of fans and getting the immediate validation and being challenged immediately from the fans. They’ll be missed for sure, and we look forward to them coming back.”