C. Trent Rosecrans

crosecrans@enquirer.com

PITTSBURGH — Joey Votto’s April was so bad that he said he’d rather walk away from the game and give up the remaining years on his contract than play that way.

“It’s not something I’m OK with. I’d rather quit and leave all the money on the table than play at a poor level,” Votto said before Sunday’s game against the Pirates. “I’m here to play and be part of setting a standard. It’s something I’ve always taken pride in. I love to play at a really high level. So far this year, it’s not been that. I will not be a very satisfied, happy person if I don’t perform at the level that I expect.”

Going by the quick-and-easy statistic of OPS (on-base percentage plus slugging percentage), Votto’s .640 this past April was the worst full month of his career. (It was .481 in July of 2012, but he played in just four games before missing the rest of that season with a knee injury.) His three extra-base hits in the month were fewer than speedy center fielder Billy Hamilton amassed in the first month.

Votto went 0-for-19 at one point, his longest-ever hitless streak. He’s finished the month hitting .325 (9 for 25) through Saturday’s loss, but still hit just .229/.327/.313 with two home runs and a double for the month. He did have an RBI single that tied Sunday's game in Pittsburgh.

“(I) was just prepping my swing for what I view as the long haul approach,” Votto said. “There’s growing pains. But I won’t accept competing at that level, this level, I just won’t.”

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That’s when Votto mentioned he would prefer to walk away than not live up to the level of play that earned him the 2010 MVP and four other top 10 MVP finishes, including a third-place finish in 2015. Including this season, the 32-year-old Votto has eight years and $199 million remaining on his contract. To walk away from that… well, that’d be unprecedented. And at this point, Votto admits it’s likely just frustration talking.

“In the frame of mind I’m in right now, I don’t know… I just… All I’ve known is playing at a certain level. The way I played in April is unacceptable and embarrassing to me,” he said. “It’s not something that I would look forward to coming to the ballpark, coming to spring training to do, year-in and year-out, it just would leave me too unhappy, too unsatisfied. I’m probably speaking in… I don’t know if (the word would) be abstract, hypotheticals, but I’d have a really hard time — and maybe I’m full of (it), but I just don’t feel I’m at that point in my career where I can accept mediocrity.”

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Nobody, at this point, seems to expect mediocrity from Votto, who is a career .309/.421/.529 hitter since coming up at the end of the 2007 season.

“The inevitability of great players is they’re going to come back and be great,” Reds manager Bryan Price said. “He’s a very pure hitter and he’s an extremely hard worker. Nobody’s been working harder than Joey to get on track. Also with the understanding that we’re all aware that he will be back on track and he will be the productive offensive player that he’s always been.”

Last year, Votto missed the All-Star Game, hitting a respectable - if not elite - .277/.392/.484 in the first half, before putting up an all-time great second half, hitting .362/.535/.617 over his final 73 games of the season.

Votto shares Price’s confidence in his abilities. Even though he’s off to a slow start, he believes he will be better.

“I signed up for a high-level of performance. I didn’t sign up for this just to make money,” Votto said. “It’s great and I don’t take it for granted. I appreciate every dime that comes my way. I just care a great deal — desperately. I refuse to accept my peak has past, I refuse to accept that my best days are in the past. I’m not there yet. I just don’t see that, I don’t feel that.”