The Cincinnati Reds must be sighing a breath of relief. When Team Canada manager Ernie Whitt first discussed the WBC, Joey Votto and Chicago White Sox first baseman Justin Morneau were the only two players that he thought were shoo-ins. In the past Votto has been.
Votto released a statement that said that there are areas of his game that were lacking in 2016. That can be read a couple of different ways. Both ways result in him staying in Arizona for the duration of spring training.
One reason that he may be playing in the WBC is that he doesn’t want to travel across the country to show up for one game.