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Ernie Lombardi
Catcher
Born: (1908-04-06)April 6, 1908 Oakland, California
Died: September 26, 1977(1977-09-26) (aged 69) Santa Cruz, California
Batted: Right	Threw: Right
MLB debut
April 15, 1931 for the Brooklyn Robins
Last MLB appearance
September 17, 1947 for the New York Giants
Career statistics
Batting average	.306
Home runs	190
Runs batted in	990
Teams
Brooklyn Robins (1931) Cincinnati Reds (1932–1942) Boston Braves (1942) New York Giants (1943–1947)
Career highlights and awards
8× All-Star (1936, 1937, 1938, 1939, 1940, 1942, 1943, 1945) World Series champion (1940) 1938 NL MVP
Member of the National
Baseball Hall of Fame
Induction	1986
Election Method	Veteran's Committee

Ernesto Natali "Ernie" Lombardi (April 6, 1908 – September 26, 1977), was a Major League Baseball catcher for the Brooklyn Robins, the Cincinnati Reds, the Boston Braves and the New York Giants during a Hall of Fame career that spanned 17 years, from 1931 to 1947. He had several nicknames, including "Schnozz", "Lumbago", "Bocci", "The Cyrano of the Iron Mask" and "Lom". Bill James called him "the slowest man to ever play major league baseball well." [1] He is listed at 6'3" and 230 lbs, but he probably approached 300 lbs towards the end of his career. He was also known as a gentle giant and this made him hugely popular among Cincinnati fans.

Baseball career[link]

Ernie Lombardi started his professional baseball career for his hometown Oakland Oaks of the Pacific Coast League. He hit well (over .350 with power in 1929 and 1930) and had a strong arm. His talents were soon noticed by the Brooklyn Dodgers who purchased his contract for $50,000. Lombardi played his rookie season for the Robins in 1931 and played well (batting .297). Brooklyn had too many quality catchers at the time and Robins manager Wilbert Robinson contemplated using the strong-armed Lombardi as a pitcher. He was traded to the Cincinnati Reds shortly before the start of spring training for the 1932 season. Lombardi flourished his first year in Cincinnati, batting .303 with 11 home runs and 68 runs batted in. He became a national star in 1938 when he hit a league-leading .342 with 19 home runs, drove in 95 runs, and won the National League's MVP award. Ernie Lombardi became one of the Reds' most productive and popular players. He also has the distinction of catching both of Reds left-hander Johnny Vander Meer's back-to-back no-hitters, accomplished on June 11 and June 15, 1938. Vander Meer's feat has never been matched. Lombardi's hitting skills and leadership helped the Reds to the National League pennant in 1939 and 1940, and the World Series title in 1940.

In 1942, the Boston Braves purchased Lombardi's contract, despite his leading the league in hitting that season with a .330 batting average (albeit, in only 309 at-bats); the next batting title to be won by a catcher came more than 60 years later when Joe Mauer won the AL batting title in 2006, a testament to how difficult it is for a catcher to win the title. Lombardi remains only one of two NL catchers ever to win a batting title. Boston opted to trade him to the New York Giants after the season. He enjoyed three productive if unspectacular seasons with the Giants before seeing his playing time diminish over the next two seasons. He retired after the 1947 season, having compiled a .306 career batting average, 190 home runs, 990 RBI, 601 runs and 430 walks.

The six foot, three inch, 230-pound Ernie Lombardi was legendarily slow-footed, and during the course of his career he grounded into 261 double plays. Aside from being the yearly leader in grounding into double plays on 4 occasions, he holds the record for grounding into one every 25.3 plate appearances. An opposing manager once jokingly said that Lombardi was so slow, he ran like he was carrying a piano — and the man who was tuning it. Defenses would often position all four infielders in the outfield when Lombardi came to the plate. Despite this, he became an outstanding catcher on the basis of his strong, accurate arm and his ability to "call" a game.

"Lombardi's Big Snooze"[link]

During the fourth game of the 1939 World Series, in the tenth inning, with the score tied, Joe DiMaggio singled and Reds outfielder Ival Goodman fumbled the ball. Yankees right fielder Charlie "King Kong" Keller, well known for his sturdy physique, beat the throw to catcher Lombardi and the resulting collision knocked "The Schnozz" flat on his back. DiMaggio raced around the bases and scored while Lombardi was unconscious, the ball a few feet away on the ground. The press was hugely critical of the sensitive catcher because of this and it came to be known as "Lombardi's Big Snooze". Bill James, in his Historical Baseball Abstract, says that "Lombardi was now the Bill Buckner of the 1930s, even more innocent than Buckner, and Buckner has plenty of people who should be holding up their hands to share his disgrace."

Honors[link]

Ernie Lombardi was inducted into the Cincinnati Reds Hall of Fame in 1958, and posthumously into the Bay Area Sports Hall of Fame in 1982 and the National Baseball Hall of Fame in 1986. In 1981, Lawrence Ritter and Donald Honig included him in their book The 100 Greatest Baseball Players of All Time.

In 2004, The Cincinnati Reds dedicated a bronze statue of Lombardi at the entrance of Great American Ball Park. He was honored along with three other Crosley Field Era Reds: Joe Nuxhall, Ted Kluszewski and Frank Robinson.

The The Cincinnati Chapter of the BBWAA annually award the Ernie Lombardi Award to the Reds' team MVP.

Controversy[link]

While Lombardi played for the Reds as the starting catcher, teammate and backup catcher Willard Hershberger became the only major league player to commit suicide during a season. Hershberger oddly enough told manager Bill McKechnie that "my father killed himself, and I'm going to do it, too!" After failing to appear at the stadium the next day the Reds checked Hershberger's room at the hotel only to find that he had slit his throat and wrist.

A sad footnote to the Hershberger suicide was Lombardi's eerily similar suicide attempt in 1953. Lombardi had been battling depression for some time and agreed to go to a sanitorium at his wife's urging. While staying overnight at a relative en route to the facility, Ernie slit his throat from ear to ear with a razor and begged not to be saved. Papers described him as "clinging to life" but he made a full recovery.

See also[link]

• List of Major League Baseball batting champions
• Bay Area Sports Hall of Fame

External links[link]

• Ernie Lombardi's career statistics
• Ernie Lombardi at the Baseball Hall of Fame
• Ernie Lombardi's page at the Bay Area Sports Hall of Fame website
• Ernie Lombardi at Find a Grave

Joey Votto
Votto in Spring Training, 2011
Cincinnati Reds – No. 19
First baseman
Born: (1983-09-10) September 10, 1983 (age 28) Etobicoke, Ontario, Canada
Bats: Left	Throws: Right
MLB debut
September 4, 2007 for the Cincinnati Reds
Career statistics (through May 17, 2012)
Batting average	.313
Home runs	125
Hits	736
Runs batted in	426
Stolen bases	38
Games played	654
Teams
Cincinnati Reds (2007–present)
Career highlights and awards
Lou Marsh Trophy Winner (2010) Tip O'Neill Award Winner (2010, 2011) 2× All-Star (2010, 2011) Gold Glove Award winner (2011) NL Most Valuable Player Award (2010) NL USA Today MVP (2010) NL Hank Aaron Award (2010)

Joseph Daniel "Joey" Votto, (born September 10, 1983) is a Canadian Major League Baseball first baseman for the Cincinnati Reds. In 2010, he won the National League MVP Award, the National League Hank Aaron Award, and the Lou Marsh Trophy as Canada's athlete of the year.^[1]

Early life[link]

Votto was born on September 10, 1983 in Toronto, Ontario and grew up in Etobicoke, the western part of Toronto. His mother was a sommelier and restaurant manager. His late father, Joseph, was a chef and a baseball fan. Votto enrolled at Richview Collegiate Institute in 1997. At his high school, Votto was also interested in basketball, but he was not interested in hockey. Votto and his father were fans of the Toronto Blue Jays.

Early career[link]

Votto was drafted out of high school in the second round of the 2002 MLB amateur draft by the Reds (44th overall), Votto's first few professional seasons with the Reds' rookie-level affiliates were quiet. However, Votto burst onto the scene in 2004, when he hit 26 doubles, 14 home runs, and sported a batting average of .302 with the Class A Dayton Dragons. He was promoted to Class A Advanced Potomac, and hit five more home runs in 20 games to end the season with 19.

Votto's consistency declined during 2005 campaign with Sarasota. While he still hit 19 home runs, Votto struck out 122 times and his batting average dropped nearly 50 points to .256.

Votto rebounded in 2006 with the best of his minor league career. Playing with Class AA Chattanooga, he improved his batting average to .319 and hit 46 doubles and 22 home runs. He led the Southern League in batting average and total bases and was third in the league in home runs and RBI. Votto was selected to play in the 2006 Futures Game on the World Team. He also played on both the Mid-Season and Post-Season Northern League All-Star teams, and was voted a minor league all-star by Baseball America. Votto culminated his season by winning the Northern League MVP award.

Major leagues (2007–present)[link]

Votto in Spring Training, 2008

2007–08 seasons[link]

Votto started off the 2007 season playing in Triple-A for the Louisville Bats. He was called up on September 1, 2007. He made his Major League debut on September 4, 2007, striking out against Guillermo Mota of the New York Mets. In his second major league at bat Votto hit his first career home run. He went 3 for 5 and scored 2 runs. The Reds won the game, 7–0. On September 8, Votto went 1 for 3 with a home run and 3 runs batted in. His 3 RBIs were the only runs the Reds got as they lost to the Milwaukee Brewers, 4–3. In his next game, he went 2 for 4. On September 14, Votto stole his first career base against the Brewers. Votto ended the season on a good note, going 2-for-4 with a home run and 5 RBIs in the Cincinnati Reds' final game of the 2007 season.^[2] Votto would finish the season batting .321 with 4 home runs and 17 runs batted in.

Beginning the 2008 season, Votto shared time platooning at first base with Scott Hatteberg, until Manager Dusty Baker began playing Votto as the Reds' starting first baseman in early April. On April 15, Votto hit his first home run of the season off of Michael Wuertz. Votto drove in a career high 5 runs against the Cubs 2 games later. Votto also had a nice defensive play in the game. In the 7th inning, Votto stretched and made a fine play when he robbed Mike Fontenot of a base hit and ended the Cubs threat with runners on second and third. “I’m glad I came through in that situation early in the game,” Votto said. “I think that leaving here without getting swept is really important.”

On May 7, 2008, Votto hit three home runs in a game against the Chicago Cubs. “I’m like a kid,” said Votto, a second-year player who had never hit more than one in a game. “I thought it was cool. It’s not a big part of my game.”

Votto hit his first career pinch hit home run against Cleveland' Cliff Lee, who would go on to win the AL Cy Young Award. He broke the Reds' record for the most runs batted in by a rookie in a single season. The previous record was held by National Baseball Hall of Fame outfielder Frank Robinson with 83 RBI set in 1956. Votto drove in 84 runs during the 2008 season. On August 31, Votto had his first career 4-hit game against the San Francisco Giants. He knocked in 4 runs in a 9–3 Reds victory. On September 18, Votto and teammate Jay Bruce each homered 2 times. They became the fifth rookie teammates to in divisional player era to hit 20 home runs in the same season. Votto also drove in 4 runs in the game. Votto then ended the season by going 2 for 2 with a home run, 2 runs batted in, and a base on ball.

He finished second in National League Rookie of the Year voting to the Chicago Cubs' Geovany Soto.^[3] Votto led all NL rookies in hitting (.297), hits (156), HR (24), total bases (266), multi-hit games (42), on-base percentage (.368) and slugging percentage (.506).

2009 season[link]

Votto played for Canada in the 2009 World Baseball Classic. In Canada's first game against the United States, Votto had 4 hits in 5 at-bats, one of which was a home run.^[4]

Votto began the 2009 season strong as the outright starter at first base. In the second game of the season, Votto went 3 for 5 with a homer and 3 RBI in a loss to the New York Mets. In the next game against the Mets, Votto had another homer and 4 RBI. He had a 6-game hitting streak from April 12 through April 18. Votto's short hitting streak ended when he went 0 for 4 against the Houston Astros. On April 23, Votto went 4 for 5 with a home run and 2 runs batted in against the Cubs. Votto ended out with a .346 batting average, 3 home runs, and 20 runs batted in in the month of April.

Votto opened May with a 5-game hitting streak. In a May matchup against the St. Louis Cardinals, Votto had two homers for 4 RBI. He finished out the month with 5 home runs and a .378 batting average. However, Votto was placed on the DL to open June after missing time in May due to personal issues. Prior to his return game during the 2009 season he indicated he had been suffering from depression and anxiety issues as a result of the death of his father in August 2008, and had sought treatment for them.^[5] He had previously missed time because of dizziness related to an inner ear infection.

Votto made his return against the Toronto Blue Jays on June 23. Joey went 1 for 4 but struck out 2 times. In his third game back, Votto went 4 for 5 with a home run and 4 RBIs. After going hitless in his fourth game back, Votto had a 14-game hitting streak. During that stretch, Votto bated .389 with 3 home runs and 14 runs batted in. His hitting streak ended against the Mets on July 12 when he went 0 for 2.

Votto was named the National League Player of the Week for September 21–27, 2009, after hitting 10 doubles in a five-game span, a concentrated display not seen in 77 years. Hall of Fame outfielder Paul Waner did it for the Pittsburgh Pirates in 1932.^[6] Votto went 2 for 3 with a home run, 3 RBIs, and 2 base on balls against the Pirates on October 3. In the last game of the season, he went 3 for 4 with a base on balls and raised his average over the .320 mark.

Despite missing 31 games overall, Votto finished the 2009 season among the National League leaders in batting average (.322), on-base percentage (.414), slugging percentage (.567), and hit 25 home runs.

2010 season[link]

Votto started the 2010 season by going 3 for 5 with a home run and a run batted in. By the end of April, Votto had 4 home runs and 12 runs batted in. His average was only at .275 but his on base percentage was at an even .400 due to 18 base on balls.

Votto played better in the month of May. He batted .344 with 6 home runs and 21 runs batted in. However, he missed the last 6 games that month due to a sore neck injury. Votto would be back on June 1 in a game against the Cardinals. He went 4 for 5 with a home run and a run batted in. The Reds won the game to regain the NL Central lead. "I wouldn't use the word nerve-wracking, but I think this year we've proven to other people and proven to ourselves that no lead is safe," Votto said. "We have to respect the opposition and play hard all the way through nine innings.

Votto was not initially voted to the 2010 All-Star game in Anaheim, California, but made the roster via online fan voting through the National League's Final Vote. Votto was named on 13.7 million of the 26 million ballots submitted.^[7] Though, after the game, despite a National League victory, Votto refused to congratulate fellow N.L. All-star Marlon Byrd who made a game saving play by throwing out David Ortiz. Votto stated "I don't like the Cubs," Byrd's current team and a divisional rival. Votto also added "And I'm not going to pat anybody with a Cubs uniform on the back. We are Cincinnati Reds. We're taught to hate everything in the Central Division. That's just how it is." Votto went 0–2.

On August 25, Votto went 4 for 7 with 2 home runs and 4 runs batted in. Votto also drove in the tiebreaking single off of Giants pitcher Barry Zito. "We had such a comfortable lead for most of the game," Votto said. "For them to come back like that, it could have been difficult to recover. Momentum plays a big role in a game like this. We just showed some resiliency to come back ourselves. "Votto made the cover of Sports Illustrated on the August 30, 2010 edition.

On September 11, Votto hit his first career walk-off home run of his career off of Pirates relief pitcher, Justin Thomas. "Thank God for Joey Votto," manager Dusty Baker said. "That was MVP stuff right there. That's what people come to see. That's what we've come to expect."

On the season Votto hit .324 with 113 RBIs, 106 runs scored, and 37 homers, including a grand slam off of Tommy Hanson of the Atlanta Braves on May 20. He finished the season leading the Major Leagues in On Base Percentage (.424), and led the National League in Slugging Percentage (.600), and On-Base Plus Slugging (1.024). The Reds would make the postseason but would lose to the Phillies in the National League Divisional Series, 3 games to 0. Votto struggled in the series, batting .091 with no home runs and only an RBI.

Votto won the 2010 Hank Aaron Award in the National League.^[8]

He was announced as the 2010 NL MVP, coming within one vote of winning unanimously (Albert Pujols received the other first-place vote).^[9] He was only the third Canadian to win the MVP award, after Larry Walker and Justin Morneau. He became the first Reds player to win the National League MVP since Barry Larkin won it in 1995. "After the season, when I looked at my numbers and at Albert's numbers, I thought: 'Holy cow! He's beaten me in a lot of them," Votto said. "He beat me in runs, he beat me in RBIs, home runs, I think a couple others. I beat him in a few of the qualitative stats.

"I don't know -- I think it was a tossup. I think that it was as close as it can get. I'm not going to go on a limb and say, 'Oh, yeah, I played a heck of a lot better than him because I beat him in batting average, but we all know that batting average is kind of an overrated statistic."

2011 season[link]

Votto in 2011

On January 16, it was announced that the Reds and Votto agreed to a 3-year, $38 million deal. ^[10]

Votto homered in the Reds first game of the 2011 season, a solo homer off of Yovani Gallarado of the Brewers. He also reached base two more times by bases on balls. Votto recorded his first 4-hit game of the season against the Arizona Diamondbacks and raised his average to .455. On April 13, he had 3 hits but the Reds lost the game against the San Diego Padres, 3–2. By the end of April, Votto had a .370 batting average, 4 home runs, and 14 runs batted in. He continued to get on base and posted a .500 on-base percentage. Votto began the season by reaching base in 27 consecutive games dating back to last season. The club record was by Dave Collins with 34 in 1981.

On June 25, Votto hit his 100th career home run against Brian Matusz of the Orioles. He later add another home run in the game. That was also his first mult-homer game of the season. He also drove in 5 runs, the most he drove in a game during the entire season. "That was a big night. Hit his 100th home run," Reds manager Dusty Baker said. "Boy, we need him badly."

On July 3, Votto was voted in by the players for the 2011 All Star Game as a reserve. Votto went 0 for 2 with a strikeout. During the second half, Votto was still hitting for great average and getting on base. However, his power numbers were down from last season. On August 28, Votto hit a walk-off home run against the Nationals in the 14th inning.

On September 24, Votto drove in 2 runs against the Pirates for his 100th and 101st of the season and becoming the first Reds player to drive in 100 runs in back-to-back seasons since Dave Parker did it from 1985 to 1986. Reds Manager Dusty Baker was happy for Votto but he still felt it was more important for the Reds to win games. “You always want to see your players achieve goals, but the main thing is to win and we haven’t won nearly enough this year,”Baker said.Votto had a chance to hit 30 home runs for the second straight season but went 0 for 3 in the last game of the season. Nevertheless, he led the Reds in runs batted in (103), and batting average (.309) and was second on the Reds in homers(29).

Votto finished with a .309 batting average, 29 home runs, and 103 runs batted in. He also led the NL in doubles (40), base on balls (110), and on-base percentage (.416).

On November 1, Votto won his first Gold Glove Award. Votto would finish 6th in the NL MVP voting.

2012 Season[link]

On April 2, 2012, Votto signed a 10-year, $225 million contract extension with the Cincinnati Reds, running through the 2024 season. ^[11] The deal includes the two years that remained on Votto's previous contract and pushes the total worth of the contract to 12 years, $251.5 Million, officially becoming the longest active deal in baseball. ^[12] The deal (including the one-year team option), is the fourth-largest deal in Major League Baseball history, behind only Alex Rodriguez's contracts with the New York Yankees (10 years, $275 Million) and Texas Rangers (10 years, $252 Million) and Albert Pujols' deal with the Los Angeles Angels (10 years, $240 Million), and is the longest guaranteed contract in MLB history.^[13]

On May 13, Votto went 4 for 5, hit 3 home runs, 6 RBI, including a walk-off grand slam against the Washington Nationals to win 9-6. It was the first time in Major League history that a player hit 3 home runs including a walk-off grand slam in a single game.

Player Profile[link]

Through the end of the 2011 season, Votto had a career .313 batting average, 119 home runs, and 401 runs batted in.

Votto has been known to show great patience at the plate. He led the NL in base on balls with 110 in 2011. His career on-base percentage is at .405. He led the NL in that category in 2010 and 2011.

Votto has also been known as being a clutch hitter. Through the end of 2011, Votto had a career .348 batting average with 28 home runs and 270 runs batted in with runners in scoring position.

Votto is also considered a very good defensive first basemen. He led the NL in assists for first basemen(173) and putouts as first basemen (1,341). He was also third in fielding percentage for first basemen with a .996 fielding percentage in 2011. He won his first Gold Glove Award in 2011.

Personal life[link]

During the baseball season, Votto lives in Mount Adams, Cincinnati.^[14] In the off season he lives in Sarasota, Florida.^{[citation needed]}

Career awards and honors[link]

Major League:

Minor League:

See also[link]

	Biography portal
	Baseball portal

• List of Major League Baseball players from Canada

References[link]

External links[link]

Wikimedia Commons has media related to: Joey Votto

• Career statistics and player information from MLB, or ESPN, or Baseball-Reference, or Fangraphs, or The Baseball Cube, or Baseball-Reference (Minors)
• Joey Votto career statistics from MILB.com
• Feature on 1B Joey Votto from MILB.com
• Joey Votto News