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More votto means more MLB problems

Chris Cullum, Columnist

In an age where there are so few certainties in the world of sports, we can now officially add one to that short list: Joey Votto will not be leaving the Cincinnati Reds anytime soon.

Votto's new 10-year, $225 million contract extension, which was tacked on to the two years and $23 million remaining on his current contract, will keep the 2010 NL MVP in Cincinnati through the 2023 season when Votto will turn 40-years-old.

The two sides to this deal are pretty concrete. Those who support the deal say that a medium-sized market team like the Reds needed to do whatever it takes to keep a homegrown talent (he was a second-round pick of the Reds in 2002) in Cincinnati for the rest of his career.

Those who oppose the deal point to the fact that Votto will be 30 when his extension kicks in, and paying a 30-year-old first baseman over $20 million per year for the next 10 years isn't the best idea, and a full no-trade clause means getting out of this deal will be nearly impossible.

Both sides make valid points and no matter how good Votto is, a deal of this magnitude is a tremendous risk, but one worth taking.

However, how does it affect the rest of the baseball world?

On a large scale, the biggest winner is the National League. After losing Albert Pujols and Prince Fielder to the American League this offseason and with Ryan Howard far from a sure thing, losing Votto would have been a huge blow to senior circuit. Often viewed as the lesser of the two leagues, keeping Votto around keeps at least one respectable player in the fold for the foreseeable future.

In terms of specific teams, the Dodgers come out of this deal as winners while the Royals look to be the biggest losers.

Last November the Dodgers signed superstar centerfielder Matt Kemp to an eight-year, $160 million contract extension. I know he's only had one year of MVP-level productivity, but if I were spending $20 million per year on a player, I would rather give it to a 27-year-old centerfielder than a 30-year-old first baseman.

The Royals, on the other hand, were served a large dose of reality. Eric Hosmer, Kansas City's 22-year-old first basemen will be eligible for free agency after the 2017 season.

Yes, that's a long time from now, but with the way salaries are trending and assuming Hosmer reaches his full potential, all signs point to him being in line for an extension just as large, if not larger, than Votto's.

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And even if he falls a bit short of expectations, he is still going to be a great player and great players still get paid a lot of money. The largest contaract ever handed out by the Royals was a $55 million deal they've given to two different players: Mike Sweeney and Gil Meche.

As you can see, this is new territory for Kansas City, so they cannot be happy with what happened with Votto's deal.

And what about other players? The biggest name out there is Red Sox centerfielder Jacoby Ellsbury, who is still under team control through 2013. He's similar to Kemp in that he's really only had one excellent year, but after seeing a team with a much smaller payroll than itself double-down on a player, the Red Sox may be forced to extend Ellsbury before he hits the open market.

But rest assured Reds fans, you won't have to worry about Votto hitting the market for a long time.