Nick Markakis has been a staple in right field for the Orioles since 2006. He has been the Birds’ most consistent player and a fan favorite over that time. But right now, something isn’t right with him.
His Gold Glove winning defense hasn’t taken a hit (seven outfield assists), but his offensive numbers have sure dipped. He used to slap doubles off the out of town scoreboard, but those have now turned into dribblers to the second baseman or pop-ups to short.
Is it a problem stemming from his broken right wrist from last year? Maybe an injury he won’t publicly talk about that is taking his power away? An injury being hidden is a possibility because it would most likely only show up in his hitting. He can hide a wrist injury on his non-throwing hand in the field, but maybe that wrist is causing him pain swinging the lumber.
This sudden decline could just be a fatigue issue. Markakis has been one of the most durable players since coming into the league and isn’t one to ask out of a lineup or complain about an injury. Except for last year’s injury-plagued year, Markakis had played in at least 147 games every season since his rookie year.
Whether injury or fatigue, something is catching up with him.
Heading into Thursdays game against the White Sox, Nick’s slash line was .270/.325/.357, which would all be career lows. Not originally in the lineup, Showalter planned to give Nick a “Mental day off”, but he was inserted late in the game.
Markakis also has a WAR (Wins Above Replacement) that is 157th in the MLB at 0.3- not very good for a guy making $15,000,000 this year. For comparison, Steve Pearce and his “injured wrist” also have a WAR of 0.3.
His slugging percentage is .357, good for 77th out of 82 qualified players. And the former home run threat is hitting a homer every 61 at bats, 12th-lowest in the MLB.
Markakis has slowly been declining the past few years, and the wrist injury suffered last year didn’t help. It is just hard to understand why the decline seems like it came so rapidly.
He has been moved through the lineup this season in an attempt to rejuvenate his bat, batting anywhere from leadoff to 7th. Hitting .308 in 31 games at the leadoff spot seems like a good spot for him but it is hard to keep him in the lineup if he can’t consistently get on base. He seems to have gotten the ground ball to second down pretty good.
I’m confident that after a full offseason when he isn’t injured, Markakis can rebound and be able to put up the numbers that we know he is capable of.
However, I’m not 100% confident in that outcome. The problem is that Nick is set to make $15 million again next year, the final year of his 6-year, $66 million deal signed before the 2009 season. The team cannot afford to pay that kind of money for Nick’s current level of production (you could argue that even at his best, he’s not worth that type of money).
The club has a $2 million buyout option on Nick’s contract at the conclusion of the 2013 season. (Edit: According to Spotrac, the buyout isn’t until all 6 years of the contract are up – that is, it’s for year 7. The O’s are stuck with his $15M for next year).
What do you think is wrong with Nick? Injury? Fatigue? Just losing his touch? Let me know.
All stats from ESPN.com
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4 Responses
Your article is wrong, the buyout is for a 2015 option. They are stuck next year with 15m.
http://www.spotrac.com/mlb/baltimore-orioles/nick-markakis/
You’re right. Fixed.
Nick is having an off year. Hopefully, the team can figure out what is going wrong before the playoffs. We should keep him around next year and if her doesn’t improve, maybe then he can sign with another team or negotiate a new contract.
Nick is a hard working pro. A true team player. He’ll work hard in the off season and be worth bringing back. No doubt in my mind.