Joey Votto goes behind-the-back to retire Chris Coghlan

Have yourself a week, Joey Votto.

The Cincinnati Reds star first baseman just made headlines on Tuesday when he smashed three home runs in a victory against the Philadelphia Phillies.

On Saturday, he once again showed that he’s just as capable defensively by making a creative, crafty and downright dazzling play to retire Chris Coghlan of the Chicago Cubs.

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It happened in the fifth inning just ahead of what turned out to be a two-hour, 48-minute rain delay. The field conditions weren’t great, but Votto was up to the task as Coghlan chopped one in his direction.

Moving to his right, Votto grabbed the wet baseball with his bare hand after two bounces in the grass. Knowing he had to hurry and knowing his momentum was taking him the wrong direction, Votto improvised and/or morphed into Magic Johnson by throwing a no-look behind-the-back “pass” in the vicinity of first base, hoping that pitcher Mike Leake would be there.

Leake was, and despite the awkward catch and the initial missed call by umpire Toby Basner, the play was completed

This is definitely one of those spots where replay worked, but it’s rather unfortunate we didn’t get an emphatic out call to seal the deal on this one. We know NBA referee Joey Crawford wouldn’t have missed that opportunity. Neither would his brother, long time major-league umpire Jerry Crawford.

As it was, the play was pretty special. Perhaps even one of the best in MLB this season.

It also raised the bar in terms of ball handling skills. LeBron James and Steph Curry have nothing on Joey Votto.

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