Joey Votto Returns to Reds 10 Months After Shoulder Surgery

The first baseman returns to a team just 0.5 games out of first place.

Reds first baseman Joey Votto is set to make his season debut on Monday vs. the Rockies after missing the start of the season while rehabbing from shoulder surgery.

Votto has been out since August 2022, when he needed surgery on his left shoulder to repair his torn rotator cuff and biceps. The injury meant that the 39-year-old missed Opening Day for the first time since '08, as he has been a durable player for most of his career.

In his season debut, Votto will be playing first base and hitting sixth as Cincinnati hosts Colorado.

1️⃣9️⃣

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— Cincinnati Reds (@Reds) June 19, 2023

Cincinnati is one of the hottest teams in the league, currently riding an eight-game winning streak after sweeping the defending champion Astros. Because of the winning—and Cincinnati’s youth movement—Votto said it feels different to return to this team.

“Things are changing for the best,” he said. “It’s a new era of Reds baseball.”

Joey Votto 🧵

“There is nothing like playing winning baseball. I have been with one team since I was 18 years old. And when this team is in a position to compete for championships it makes everything better.”

“Things are changing for the best. It’s a new era of Reds baseball.” pic.twitter.com/JEsVkClnZi

— Charlie Clifford (@char_cliff) June 19, 2023

Last year, the Reds finished in last place in the NL Central with a 62–100 record as one of the worst teams in the league. This year, however, they are currently 37–35 and just 0.5 games out of the first-place Brewers, with a ton of talent coming up in the farm system.

Votto added that making his return feels like when he got called up for the first time in 2007.

“I’m so grateful to be a part of it,” Votto said, via Reds play-by-play announcer John Sadak.

In 2022, Votto had a down year with just 11 home runs and a .689 OPS in 129 games, but he returns to a team that doesn’t need him to do the heavy lifting for the first time in a long time.