Markakis retires after 15 years with Braves, Orioles
ATLANTA — After a 15-year career that came up just short of the World Series, Nick Markakis has retired.
Markakis spent his first nine years with the Baltimore Orioles before moving to his hometown Atlanta Braves for his final six seasons.
The 37-year-old outfielder helped the Braves through a difficult rebuilding process that paid off with three straight NL East titles.
A free agent after last season, Markakis told The Athletic in a story published Friday that he was done playing after accumulating 2,388 hits, earning his lone All-Star selection in 2018 and closing out his career in Game 7 of the NL Championship Series.
Braves manager Brian Snitker called Markakis “the consummate pro in everything he did.”
“We got a game away from the World Series,” Snitker said. “I would have loved to do that for him. He was what the Atlanta Braves are all about.”
Even though he no longer fit into the team’s plans, Snitker said Markakis’ presence was missed in the Braves clubhouse. The manager talked with him on Thursday about his retirement plans before he made them official.
“It’s a big hole in there without him,” Snitker said. “We all miss him. Just his stability and the calming influence he had on everybody. It was just a great career . ...
I felt honored to manage him for the last few years of his career.”
Markakis joined the Orioles in 2006 and played at least 104 games every season until his last, finishing with a career average of .288. He initially opted out of the pandemic-shortened 2020 season, only to change his mind and return to the Braves in a part-time role.
He hit a walk-off homer in his first game back and nearly reached the World Series for the first time.