Joseph Daniel Votto (born September 10, 1983) is a Canadian professional baseball first baseman for the Cincinnati Reds of Major League Baseball (MLB). He made his MLB debut with the Reds in 2007.
Votto is a six-time MLB All-Star, a seven-time Tip O'Neill Award winner and two-time Lou Marsh Trophy winner as Canada's athlete of the year. In 2010, he won the National League (NL) MVP Award and the NL Hank Aaron Award. At the end of the 2017 season, among all active players he was first in career on-base percentage (.428), second in OPS (.969), and third in batting average (.313).
Votto was born on September 10, 1983 to Wendy (Howell) and Joseph Votto in Toronto, Ontario, and grew up in Etobicoke, in the west end of Toronto. His mother is a sommelier and restaurant manager. His father was a chef and a baseball fan who died at age 52 in 2008. He is of Italian descent. As a child, he adorned his wall with a Ted Williams poster.