Reinforcements coming: Nick Markakis could rejoin Atlanta Braves Friday

Hopefully this weekend there will be one less Atlanta Braves player on the IL as 35-year-old outfielder Nick Markakis looks to return.

In what has felt like much longer, the Atlanta Braves have been without veteran outfielder, Nick Markakis, for going on seven weeks now.

After a successful round of live batting practice on Wednesday, the Atlanta Braves may finally get their soft-spoken leader back, as Markakis has been shelved ever since his last game on July 26.

Markakis on Wednesday:

"“I feel great. Under the circumstances, I didn’t think I’d be in this position right now as quick as I am. But trust in the team docs and medical staff here, I have to give them big props. They’re the reason I’m a week or two ahead of schedule. It’s just a matter of getting back into the swing of things, baseball activities, and progressing each day.”"

And even though the lineup has been gelling just fine recently, the addition of a healthy Markakis can’t come soon enough.

Season cut short

If you can remember, the lefty-swinging Markakis was swinging the bat pretty well before his unfortunate injury (fractured wrist).

In fact, Markakis was having a great month of July, slashing .324/.378/.441 with a home run and 5 doubles — good for an above-average 115 wRC+.

Those July numbers line up pretty well with what Markakis has done so far over the last couple of seasons, even though 2019 won’t go down as one of his best, thanks to the almost two months he’s missed now.

In 104 games in 2019, Markakis was practically right on track to match his 2018 season, though obviously he won’t, being that he played a full 162 last year.

If Markakis returns Friday — which is the general assumption if all goes well — he will miss a total of 45 games due to his wrist injury.

But if not for his IL visit, Markakis was on his way to yet another near-.300 average and 10-15 home runs, though it’s still possible:

• 2018: 162 G, .297 BA, 14 HR, 43 2B, 93 RBI
• 2019: 104 G, .284 BA, 9 HR, 22 2B, 55 RBI

These aren’t season-changing numbers, but I don’t think anyone is expecting an MVP-like Markakis when he returns.

Starting Friday, the Braves will have just 14 games left on the 2019 regular season schedule, a nice stretch with four off-days baked in. All the Braves need from Markakis is what he’s been since Opening Day of 2018.

What about when he returns?

Before it’s a for-sure thing that Markakis will return to active duty on Friday, the Atlanta Braves want him to hit again on Thursday, as well as participate in base-running drills. If there are no problems there, he should be fine and ready to go for this weekend versus the Washington Nationals.

The AJC reported on Wednesday that when Markakis returns “he’ll be mostly manning left field rather than right“, with the hot-hitting Matt Joyce primarily in right field.

Although, Brian Snitker also said there’s a chance Markakis “shifts between the corner outfield spots instead of staying in left full-time.”

So we’ll see… it appears that Snitker wants to be careful not to disturb what he has with Joyce right now, which is a good idea. In his last 7 games, Joyce is hitting .375 with 2 home runs and a double.

Regardless of how Markakis is deployed defensively, his return from the IL is nicely timed for the Braves. I mentioned those nice four days off over their next 2 ½ weeks, but the Braves’ competition won’t exactly be a breeze.

After they wrap up their series with the Philadelphia Phillies tonight, the Braves travel to Washington for a 3-gamer with the always tough Nationals, starting on Friday, then back home for three apiece with the slugging Phillies and always-feisty San Francisco Giants.

The Braves will get an off-day before and after a short two-game set with the Royals (which seem to play the Braves rather tough this season), before ending their 2019 campaign in Flushing with a three-game series versus the NY Mets —another NL Wild Card contender.

More importantly, now into September, with SunTrust Park packed every weekend, the excitement is at its peak as the Atlanta Braves look to cap off another fantastic season, as well as another NL East title (back-to-back!).

Nick Markakis might’ve been absent for the last 45 games, but he still has time to help lead the Braves in a deep playoff run. Hopefully we’ll see more of this in the coming weeks, as well:

His numbers may not be flashy, but when things are going well for Markakis, watching the Atlanta Braves is just a little bit better. Here’s to a strong finish to the season for “TTT”, as this may be his last in a Braves uniform (he has a club-option for the 2020 season.)