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Nick Markakis - 15.8 IFFB%


CaptainRedbeard

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I don't want to turn this into a "bash Nick Markakis" thread - he is still one of my favorite players despite his brutal season - but after just watching him pop up with runners on 1st and 3rd and less than two down, I thought "it seems like he's doing that alot this year." So I looked it up and lo and behold, his IFFB% (infield fly ball percentage) this year is an astronomical 15.8%.

15.8% is not only considerably higher than Markakis' career average (8.3%) and highest single season mark (9.7% in 2011), but it's currently #6 in ALL OF MLB. This blew my mind.

So my question is, how is this happening? Has anybody noticed anything different in his swing? We all know his power is way down, and I think he's been playing through injury all season. But how has he changed so much to make such a drastic change in his rate of pop-ups?

The importance of IFFB% is often overlooked. It's essentially a strikeout because it has no chance at advancing the runners and is nearly always caught. It is a large contributing factor to BABIP. While Nick does a great job at not striking out, the huge spike in IFFB really limits his value as a contact hitter.

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Since June 1rst.

79 Games

2 HR

20 RBI

.246 BA

.304 OBP

.294 SLG

He is slugging less than .300 in a half a season worth of games. On May 31rst his OPS was .810, since it is .598. Think of the type of players that would compare to. He has hit like Mark Belanger for half of a season.

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I have defended Nick with many people mostly because I always thought people's expectations of him were too high because he has been one of the few bright spots on mostly bad teams. However this year during the second half he has gotten progressively worse. I don't understand what he has done in the past to not give him a few days off when he is slumping like he is now? I know he is an excellent outfielder but there are options especially with the expanded roster.

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Guest rochester
He has to be hurt. I don't see any other explanation for his dramatic step change in performance.

IDK, watching him flail on that FB at about neck high tells me it's more than injury - he looks lost. If he is injured he should be rested; if he is not injured, he should be rested.

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I am often curious about Nick. I believe he and Roberts were receivers of accolades when the O's were poor and looking for "stars" to root for. I don't demean ANYONE at the ML level they all are elite when compared with even 1% of the common population. I am upset when OHer's use stink, trade for a bag of balls, etc when talking about these guys.

That said, Nick is still (or should be) in the prime of his career. He is roughly the same age as Reimold, which many here still hold with much hope. I wonder why Nick 's performance has dropped so much recently. When fans use his grandmother's death as excuses for his recent drop in production I shake my head.I often wonder what motivates the good vs great ball players once they become exceptionally wealthy and can leave the game with few financial worries. For most of their lives they have dedicated their lives to a game. What happens when they are rich, have a family, can do whatever they want in the off season? In other words, can afford to lose the passion for the game.

I don't think any part of his game looks above average at this point in his career. Perhaps his arm. I think he needs some time with Brady and a dedicated off season to find out whether this season is an outlier. He just doesn't look good, and the wad in his mouth (I assume chew, could be wrong) doesn't add to my evaluation of him. Things like his missing second base yesterday, with a team struggling for runs and his seniority just doesn't add up. I hope it is all just the nagging injuries over the past couple years and time heals the wounds. I wish him the best, but I hope he will do his best prove himself again.

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Maybe the broken hamate means that his wrist isn't at full strength? even if it's not technically hurting...

He broke his hamate bone in May last year and hit well when he returned in July/August. He had 8 homers at the end of May this year and was on pace for 40 doubles. If Nick's poor performance is due to injury, it's something that happened after May of this year, not before.

Everyone knows Nick is my favorite player, but he's worthless at the plate right now. I feel like he's failed the last 10 or so times he's been up with a runner on third and less than two out, and he's usually someone you can count on to hit the ball hard somewhere even if he doesn't get a hit in that situation. He really looks clueless up there right now. He needs to sit.

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I am often curious about Nick. I believe he and Roberts were receivers of accolades when the O's were poor and looking for "stars" to root for. I don't demean ANYONE at the ML level they all are elite when compared with even 1% of the common population. I am upset when OHer's use stink, trade for a bag of balls, etc when talking about these guys.

That said, Nick is still (or should be) in the prime of his career. He is roughly the same age as Reimold, which many here still hold with much hope. I wonder why Nick 's performance has dropped so much recently. When fans use his grandmother's death as excuses for his recent drop in production I shake my head.I often wonder what motivates the good vs great ball players once they become exceptionally wealthy and can leave the game with few financial worries. For most of their lives they have dedicated their lives to a game. What happens when they are rich, have a family, can do whatever they want in the off season? In other words, can afford to lose the passion for the game.

I don't think any part of his game looks above average at this point in his career. Perhaps his arm. I think he needs some time with Brady and a dedicated off season to find out whether this season is an outlier. He just doesn't look good, and the wad in his mouth (I assume chew, could be wrong) doesn't add to my evaluation of him. Things like his missing second base yesterday, with a team struggling for runs and his seniority just doesn't add up. I hope it is all just the nagging injuries over the past couple years and time heals the wounds. I wish him the best, but I hope he will do his best prove himself again.

His first two months were solid and then he fell off a cliff. He has been brutal for 3 months. He started off fine and we are in a pennant race, not like we are a million game out. Hard for me to believe it isn't health related but anything is possible.

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He broke his hamate bone in May last year and hit well when he returned in July/August. He had 8 homers at the end of May this year and was on pace for 40 doubles. If Nick's poor performance is due to injury, it's something that happened after May of this year, not before.

Everyone knows Nick is my favorite player, but he's worthless at the plate righ now. I feel like he's failed the last 10 or so times he's been up with a runner on third and less than two out, and he's usually someone you can count on to hit the ball hard somewhere even if he doesn't get a hit. He really looks clueless up there right now. He needs to sit.

I keep trying to think if there was a play where he dove and got up slow and nothing comes to mind. I guess it is pointless but something had to cause this. Reimold's injuries started when he feel into the stands in Chicago last year. Maybe it is Nick's lower half and not his hand, who knows?

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