Markakis is retiring

[Pushmonkey]

He will always be my part of my favorite memory. I know I probably will never make it back to the yard since moving. However, falling err catching not it was falling on his first grand slam was amazing. I still have the ball so very cool. I tried to give it back the next game I went to but the usher didn’t believe me. Lol. 

[Frobby]

Dayley.

———

Nick Markakis announced his retirement on Friday, calling a close to a 15-year-career that saw him log 2,388 hits, including 514 doubles and 189 home runs. Reliability and consistency were his trademarks. Markakis played in 155 or more games in 11 different seasons, seven times playing in 160 or more. He was never a bona fide star — although he did have a 138 wRC+ and 6.1 WAR in 2008 — but he was indisputably an asset for the Baltimore Orioles for nine seasons, and for the Atlanta Braves for six more. 

Shortly after the news broke, I asked Tampa Bay Rays manager Kevin Cashfor his thoughts on Markakis’s career.

“Basically, he performed like a superstar, quietly,” said Cash, who hadn’t yet seen the report. “You look at the amount of doubles. You look at the amount of games played. The RBIs. He was a really good player for a long time… I love hearing Buck Showalter talk about him, and what he meant to that Orioles group. You had Adam Jones, who appeared to be a pretty big vocal presence, and Markakis, who was a same type of presence but got there a different way. Both great players. Congrats to him.”

Miami Marlins manager Don Mattingly hadn’t heard the news either, and was equally effusive in his praise.   

“Nick’s been a really good player for a long time,” said Mattingly. “I have a lot of respect for him… Consistent. Good at bats. A good defender. Just a solid, solid player. Obviously a great career, so congratulations to him on that. I have a lot of respect for the way he played. He’s been a tough out for a long time now.”

Alex Cora echoed his managerial brethren when I asked for his thoughts on Markakis. 

“I saw something about hits and strikeouts,” said the Red Sox skipper. “He had 2,300 hits, or something like that, and not too many strikeouts. Since day one with Baltimore, all the way to the end with the Braves in that League Championship Series, a good at bat, a good solid player. He did everything on the field that the managers asked him to do. Enjoy his retirement now, but what a good player.”

https://blogs.fangraphs.com/sunday-notes-brendan-mckay-could-swing-it-brady-singer-cant/he 

[Orioles0615]

I hope one day the O's induct Jones, Markakis, and Buck into the O's hall of fame on the same day. 

[Frobby]

9 hours ago, andrewochs615 said:

I hope one day the O's induct Jones, Markakis, and Buck into the O's hall of fame on the same day. 

That would be pretty cool.   I don’t really think they will, only because the players deserving of OHOF status are stretched pretty thin now so they’d probably rather spread them out over three years instead of either inducting nobody the other two years or resorting to inducting someone pretty far down the totem pole.