Tyler Stephenson on Reds; loss vs. Dodgers in NL playoffs
Reds catcher Tyler Stephenson talks about Reds’ loss to Dodgers
Longtime Cincinnati Reds first baseman Joey Votto is emerging as one of the top TV analyst prospects for MLB’s expanded lineup of partners, which now includes ESPN, Fox, TBS, NBC and Netflix, according to a report Nov. 21 from Front Office Sports’ Michael McCarthy.
Votto joined John Sadak and Barry Larkin in the broadcast booth for several Reds’ games late in the 2022 season. Votto had a season-ending surgery in August of that season.
Votto announced his retirement in Aug. 2024 during the Reds’ series finale against the Blue Jays in Votto’s hometown of Toronto.
Votto hit .294 with 356 home runs in 17 seasons with Cincinnati, leading the league in on-base percentage in seven of those seasons.
In Sept. 2022 during the second game of the Reds-Pirates doubleheader at Great American Ball Park, Abe Hils of Fort Thomas, who had caught a Votto home run ball years earlier, got to talk during the broadcast about making an impressive catch of a ball lined foul of the first-base line toward the crowd when he was serving as ball boy/fielder.
Hils celebrated by doing what Jamie Tartt – a character from “Ted Lasso” on Apple TV+ – would do after scoring a goal, just as Votto did in celebrating home runs the previous season. Votto joked during the broadcast that Hils should replace Jim Day as reporter.
The same month, Votto joked about his “dad bod” during a broadcast and made his way through the crowd wearing a Larkin jersey during a game to visit with fans and pose for photos.
