The Cincinnati Reds finished the 2014 season with a very disappointing 76-86 record and fourth-place ranking in the National League Central division. Although they had excellent pitching, the Reds just could not score runs in the manner to which they and their fans had grown accustomed. The biggest reason for their low run total of 3.67 runs per game -- 595 runs total, 28th in the Major Leagues -- is the loss of their best hitter, first baseman Joey Votto.

The slugging first baseman played in only 62 games in 2014 before going down for the year on July 6 with a severe distal quadriceps strain in his right leg. The Reds just could not seem to overcome the loss, and even when playing, Votto managed to hit only .255, 42 points below his previous career low of .297 in 2008. He also hit only six home runs and drove in just 23 runs this past season.

Votto, though, appears on track for a healthy beginning to 2015. MLB.com's Mark Sheldon reports, "Votto appears to be progressing in the right direction" as he works to make it to Spring Training on time in February and ready for a normal camp. Sheldon notes that Votto has resumed all baseball activities, including batting practice and running and fielding drills, some of which he began just as the season ended. He is now working out to his fullest extent in his home town of Toronto, Ontario, Canada. 

Sheldon quoted Reds general manager Walt Jocketty describing Votto's recovery, saying that his first baseman has shown steady progress. Said Jocketty ,

"Joey is doing great. We're getting good reports. [Strength and conditioning coach] Sean Marohn has checked in with him and has been up to see him. He said it's going well."

The good news is that Votto plays first base, so he does have a little less mobility to worry about on routine plays. However, he does have to stretch for throws, make sudden stops, beat runners to the bag, chase overthrows, and set up for relays. All that comes in addition to running the bases, which Votto always does hard. 

The Reds will certainly need Votto's bat back in the lineup. Other than Votto, Reds first basemen combined for just 10 HR and 34 RBI in 100 games -- and that includes Jay Bruce's 12 at bats. For the Reds to climb back into contention in 2015, they will need to drive in more runs, and Votto is the man to do just that.

Votto will begin year three of an eleven-year, $235-million contract extension he signed in April of 2012. His average annual value is over $21 million, and with the way baseball salaries have escalated in the past few years, that number seems a little smaller than it did when he signed the extension. If anyone has earned that contract, Votto has. In his six full seasons from 2008-2013, all with the Reds, Votto has averaged 144 games, a .314/.421./541 slash line, 26, HR, 86 RBI, and 5.6 WAR. He was also the 2010 National League MVP, and he won a Gold Glove in 2011 in addition to making four consecutive N.L. All-Star teams.