Joey Votto's absence from Reds' lineup should be brief

GOODYEAR, Ariz. — Joey Votto's absence from the Reds spring training lineup shouldn't be a lengthy one, manager Bryan Price said on Tuesday.

Before the team's first Cactus League game, the Reds manager said Votto is behind others on the last bits of training, including lateral movement and sliding, but he should be back in the lineup soon enough. The Reds play the Indians in the first game of spring Tuesday at 3:05 p.m.

"I don't anticipate it being in the middle of the schedule, it's really hard for me to say an exact date," Price said. "It really comes down to getting enough reps to where we're comfortable enough to put him out there and letting him play. It's not like we're going to see a huge separation between him and the rest of the guys."

Votto missed 100 games last season with a left knee injury, Price said the team is just being cautious with Opening Day still more than a month away.

"He's come this far, he's put in all the work to do this," Price said. "It just didn't make sense between the medical staff and myself until he gets as many ground balls and the opportunity to slide and cut and do all the drills and do all the things he wasn't able to do before he got to spring training."

Votto said on Monday that he felt good, better than expected even, and didn't think he'd be out of the lineup too long.

Considering the fact he missed 100 games last season and also had a knee injury in 2012, his absence from the first lineup of the spring did raise eyebrows, and understandably so. Despite playing 162 games in 2013, Votto's health is going to be a major storyline of spring — and will likely continue through the season.