Atlanta Braves Set to Re-Sign Outfielder Nick Markakis

According to Ken Rosenthal of The Athletic, the Atlanta Braves are close to re-signing free agent outfielder Nick Markakis.

This doesn’t come as a huge surprise as Alex Anthopoulos has been dropping hints the last couple of days that the Atlanta Braves were close to finding an outfielder, and Nick Markakis has been waiting in the wings all offseason.

Rosenthal also has the terms of the deal stating that Nick  Markakis will make $4 million in 2019 with a $6 million club option for 2020 or a $2 million buyout.

The 35-year-old right fielder is guaranteed $6 million in the deal and could ultimately earn $10 million if his option is picked up for 2020.

I think most Braves fans would agree that they love Markakis and are glad he’s back with the Braves, but this may not have been the big splash we were hoping for in the outfield.

In 2018 Markakis made his first trip to the All-Star game after hitting .323 in the first half of the season with 10 home runs.

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He struggled a good bit in the second half hitting just .258 with 4 home runs, which really hurt his value as a free agent. This could also be attributed to the fact that Markakis played every day last year, and while it was quite the accomplishment for a 34-year-old, it might have been best to give him a couple of days off every now and then.

Markakis also won a Gold Glove in 2018 as he played exceptional defense in right field.

No one is going to question the experience and leadership that Markakis brings to this team.

And even if his 2018 numbers were a bit of an aberration, you know Markakis is going to give you a professional at-bat every time he comes to the plate.

With the Atlanta Braves able to sign him for just $4 million guaranteed in 2019, that still leaves a lot of room in the projected budget as it now sits at around $110 million.

Not to get anyone’s hopes up, but there is potentially $20 million left to spend this offseason, so AA might yet have one big move left for us.