Votto should be leading the Reds to several more celebrations. (US Presswire)

It's time, once again, to check out the core value of one of baseball's 30 teams. Wednesday is time for the Cincinnati Reds, and -- spoiler alert! -- they are quite impressive.

To see what we're doing here, my esteemed colleague, Dayn Perry, has done a rather excellent job of explaining things already, so hop over to the intro of the Rays' post and you'll understand.

Core Values series
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Cornerstone player: Joey Votto

He's 29 and already has an MVP and two other top-15 finishes in NL MVP voting. With a triple-slash line of .316/.415/.553, Votto is on a career arc that could land him in Cooperstown. Don't believe me? Among players with at least 3,000 plate appearances, Votto ranks 71st in average, 24th in on-base percentage and 26th in slugging percentage in baseball history. His .968 OPS is 15th all-time, and his 155 OPS-plus is 25th in history.

For their part, the Reds have made sure he won't be plying his trade for anyone else -- barring some unforeseen movement. His 10-year, $225 million contract extension doesn't kick in until 2014.

Brandon Phillips and Jay Bruce have also been taken care of with long-term deals, but no one is on level with Votto. He is, as the kids say, the man.

Face of the franchise: Votto

No-brainer choice. When you think of the Reds at present, you think of Joey Votto. Not only is he a top-10 player in all of baseball, but he's wildly popular in Cincinnati.

Face of the future: Votto

Yes, it's a clean sweep. I could see an argument for speedy prospect Billy Hamilton, and the Reds have plenty of other real good players like Phillips, Bruce, Aroldis Chapman, Mat Latos and Johnny Cueto. The Reds are a power, you see. It's just that Votto is both the present and the future anchor in Cincinnati. Think about five years down the road and whom the Reds' best player will be. My answer is rather easily Votto. Everyone else is simply vying to be second banana, which isn't too shabby considering how good Votto is at his job.

Reds' core value: A. With Votto, Phillips, Bruce, Chapman, Latos, Cueto, Hamilton, Shin-Soo Choo, Todd Frazier, Devin Mesoraco, Zack Cozart, Homer Bailey and more, the Reds have star power, role players, depth and potential for improvement in several areas. They are set up to contend every year for the foreseeable future. They went 97-65 last season, winning the NL Central, and there's plenty more where that came from.

In fact, the Reds are so well set up that I don't think it's a stretch to say it would be a failure if they get to 2020 without having won a World Series ring or at the very least an NL pennant.

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