I become more impressed with Joey Votto every day. So, it seems, does Dave Cameron:
As a result, his walks are way up and his strikeout rate is half of what it was last year, and he’s now putting balls in play at levels you normally expect from slap-hitting middle infielders. Rather than sacrificing power to make better contact, he’s just sacrificed swinging and missing at pitches out of the strike zone, and the result is a guy who is essentially impossible to get out right now. He won’t be able to sustain this kind of performance, of course, but the fact that he could so quickly adapt to pitchers changing their approach in how they pitch him is a good sign.
The other “flaw†that Votto had last year was his relative struggles against left-handers. He put up a .468 wOBA against RHPs, but “just†a .382 mark against LHPs. So far in 2011, in the 10 plate appearances he’s had against same-handed pitchers, he’s 7 for 9 with a walk and, of course, no strikeouts.
Yeah. Good luck, National League managers – I have no idea how you’re supposed to get this guy out.
You gotta go read the entire piece. Joey Votto is not human. Is it really possible that he’s getting better?