Nick Markakis

Nick Markakis' rookie year was a big deal for O's fans. Its been a while(try Cal Ripken) since the O's have seen such a young, everyday prospect come up and perform so well at the Major League level. The only organizational position players to truly have more than brief stay in Baltimore in recent history have been Roberts, Hairston, Bigbie, and Matos. Only Roberts has had true success with Baltimore. The Marlins had more talent come up through their system last year than the Orioles have had in the last decade. In Markakis, it seems like the O's had finally drafted and developed a player who would not be merely good, but one of the best players in the league at some point.

I've been somewhat disappointed in Nick Markakis this season, but truly pleased at the same time. The negatives are that he hasn't been able to hold down the 3rd spot in the batting order. I think that he is a true #3 hitter, and I would like to see him earn the right to keep that spot in the Orioles lineup. The issue has been his consistency in my opinion. His average isn't where I expected it to be, and he seems to be hitting into more than his fair share of double plays(currently 3rd in the AL with 11).

However, while his average is currently 26 points below where he ended up last year, I remember that he struggled a lot early in 2006. Markakis had one of the top averages in the AL following the All Star break last season, after struggling early on as a rookie. I definitely feel that he won't be batting .265 at the end of the season, and that his average and OBP will come up. Nick Markakis' potential is huge when you consider he is leading the team in RBI with 33, and that he is currently 8th in the AL in both doubles and extra base hits. He is doing that without hitting for the average that is expected of him. If Markakis gets on a tear during the summer months like he did last season, this surely will be a season to remember for O's fans.