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USATSI

With the 2023 season winding down, so, too, is the contract of Reds great Joey Votto. He hasn't made anything official, but it seems like he might be retiring after the season. He gave an emotional speech to close out the Reds' season at Great American Ball Park, for example.

If the 2023 season is to be Votto's last, Sunday will be his last game. And it ended in the first inning when he was ejected by home plate umpire Shane Livensparger. 

Votto struck out on a foul tip, but his beef seemed to be with the third pitch of the at-bat. Votto believed it to be a ball and it was called a strike to swing the count to 1-2 instead of 2-1. Those are critical misses, as it's the difference between a hitter or pitcher being in control of the matchup, as we all know. 

It appears Votto had a case. No. 3 on the chart here is in nearly the same spot as the first pitch, which was called a ball. Both of them were off the plate. 

Still, Votto was accountable for his ejection. He took to social media shortly after he was shown the door to say as much: 

If this is Votto's final game, he'll retire with a career line of .294/.409/.511, which is good for a 144 OPS+. He's spent 17 years in the league, all with the Reds, who drafted him in the second round out of Toronto's Richview Collegiate Institute in 2002. He's a six-time All-Star, Gold Glover and won the 2010 NL MVP. In his 2,054 career games, he collected 2,135 hits, 459 doubles, 356 home runs, 1,144 RBI and 1,171 runs.

We don't need to breakdown his possible Hall of Fame case just yet. I'll do that when he officially retires and it's still possible he comes back next season for the Reds or even someone else (his hometown Blue Jays?). I do think I'll be voting for him and that there will be plenty of heated arguments on both sides. 

For now, Votto has been tossed from possibly his final game.