Cincinatti Reds first baseman Joey Votto made some enemies in Philadelphia in May of 2016 when he pretended to throw a ball to a fan at the conclusion of an inning. Instead of throwing the ball to a young fan, Votto, who had been heckled for much of the game, kept the ball. Ultimately, Hall of Fame third baseman Mike Schmidt signed a ball for the young fan, and Votto admitted after the game that he enjoyed playing in front of an “energized bunch” at Citizens Bank Park and was just messing around.
Regardless of where you fall on Votto as a character, if you exclude Hall of Famer Barry Larkin, Votto is almost certainly the best Red since the Great Red Machine, which included Hall of Famers Joe Morgan, Johnny Bench and Tony Perez, along with Pete Rose, who would be a statistical lock for Cooperstown if not for extenuating circumstances.