THE BROO VIEW with Ken Broo

JOEY VOTTO IS RICH & THE REDS HAVE COST CERTAINTY. NOW WHAT?

If a $38 million dollar paycheck could be a 'win win' for both sides, then this is it. Joey Votto has most of his baseball career ahead of him, if he remains injury free. He'll earn tens of millions of dollars in addition to this latest contract he's signed with the Cincinnati Reds. He's set for life. The Reds avoid the nasty process of arbitration, surely to lose with each upcoming round to Votto. The total dollars of this deal most probably would have been for more than the $38 million they're spending now on their NL MVP first baseman.

But what does it mean to you and me?

Nothing.

Look, I'm happy for Votto and I think it's a wise move by the Reds. But the real game wasn't coming for three years anyway. All this deal does is cover Votto's arbitration years. In three years, he can still become a free agent. And if he continues to produce the kind of numbers he has the past two seasons, he'll simply be unaffordable in Reds-land. In St. Louis, Albert Puljos (who incidentally shares the same agent as Votto) might price himself out of that market. And if the Cardinals, who consistently draw three million fans each season, can't afford to pay Puljos (he'll probably command and get $20 million a year from some team), how can the Reds expect to pay Votto when he become eligible for free agency?

Joey Votto wasn't going anywhere for the next three years. The Reds simply made life for him, and them a little more palatable. But for you and me, this deal means nothing. Get back to around Christmas 2013.

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