Fallout from the Dexter Fowler debacle has left the Orioles at the altar still looking to add perhaps another corner outfielder. We can debate over whether or not Fowler was the ideal fit, or whether the team should look elsewhere, but the facts remain the facts: Dexter is a Cub, and the team reportedly still would like to add to its stable.
Austin Jackson remains on the market as probably the best, or maybe only option to slot directly into right field. He’s already rebuffed overtures from another outfield-needy team in the Angels, but given what Ian Desmond just signed with the Texas Rangers for — one year, $8 million — perhaps the reported price tag of just $2 million less might have been something Jackson jumped at.
Another option that has been kicked around, pardon the pun, in this space and by this author is to sign Pedro Alvarez. That is, have Alvarez DH, slot Mark Trumbo at first base and let Chris Davis have his day in right field. The raw power from that trio would be breathtaking, and it might be easier to jam these square pegs into round holes that it might be, say, having Trumbo in right and Davis at first. Jimmy Paredes is sort of a straw man at DH, but it really boils down to which guys will play best in which position. Or perhaps more aptly, what’s the best way to move guys around to eliminate guys being embarrassed out of position?
(Discuss this on the boards here!)
Another option comes in the form of an #oldfriend. The venerable Peter Gammons reported on Twitter on Tuesday that the O’s had reached out to the Braves to gauge interest in a possible Nick Markakis deal. But despite the seemingly surface level of a marriage here, the Braves didn’t allow the conversation to go too far, it seems.
It all seems so strange. The Braves are in a clear rebuild mode, with little need for Markakis’ production — or lack thereof — heading into his age-32 season. If that isn’t enough, Markakis is inked through his age 34 season, and is coming off most likely his worst season as a big leaguer. Injury woes threatened to put a damper on Markakis’ first season in Atlanta, but he surprisingly managed to play 156 games — the eighth time in 10 big league seasons he’s played at least 150 — while holding down right field after the Braves shipped out Jason Heyward.
Markakis was somewhat productive, though he hit just three home runs after being good for 10-15 for pretty much the bulk of his big league career. He still managed to hit .296/.370/.376, thanks in large part to a spike in doubles and a four-year high in hits and a five-year high in walks, but at this point he just doesn’t seem like a good bet to age well regardless of if he plays in the field — as a two-time Gold Glove winner — or not. In Atlanta he doesn’t really have a choice, whereas in Baltimore, of course, the a semi-routine DH’ing becomes an option. Then again, at his current production level, he doesn’t really have the ability to hold up his end of the bargain. Then again, he’d probably still outproduce Paredes, and that’s the baseline we really have to consider here.
What can we glean from the Orioles’ interest in Markakis, though? Does it mean they’ve been told Jackson really isn’t interested in playing there? That they’d rather not have one of the worst defenses in baseball with Alvarez and Trumbo in tow? Is there a sense or air of desperation? It does sort of seem so.
The familiarity has to be intriguing to the Orioles with Markakis, but the other question one is left with is why are/were the Braves so quick to deny their overtures? For all their warts in rebuilding, Markakis is by no means a necessity for a team that also has the bloated contracts of Nick Swisher and Michael Bourn on its books. Getting out from another while still *ostensibly* returning value on Markakis would seem to be a wise, if not a bit predatory, move.
I guess I’m writing this less from a place of “here’s what I think” but more from a “what do O’s fans think” standpoint. Would you like a Markakis reunion? How much would you be willing to give up, or how much salary would the Braves have to kick in to make it work? Or would you rather have Jackson or Alvarez? Which is preferable to you?
Orioles Analyst
Warne is a Minnesota Twins beat reporter for 105 The Ticket’s Cold Omaha website as well as a sportswriter for Sportradar U.S. in downtown Minneapolis. He also contributes to FanGraphs / RotoGraphs.