3:05pm: The decision was made on an individualized basis after Markakis sought an exemption, Bob Nightengale of USA Today tweets.
2:04pm: Braves outfielder Nick Markakis has reversed course on his choice to opt out of the 2020 season, David O’Brien of The Athletic was among those to report on Twitter. He will re-join the team, though his precise timeline for returning to active duty is not yet known.
This is the first instance of a player undoing an opt-out decision. We have updated our list of players electing not to play this year to reflect the change.
It’s a notable roster swing for the Braves, who’ve been working to bring in new outfielders of late. After losing Markakis, the team reached a deal with Yasiel Puig — only for that to fizzle out when Puig tested positive for COVID-19. The latest addition is Scott Schebler.
Markakis, 36, re-joined the Braves on a one-year deal in advance of the offseason. He turned in a .288/.358/.424 slash line over 469 plate appearances last season. Markakis was expected again to function in a platoon role and will presumably do so once he’s deemed ready for activation.
I didn’t think this was allowed.
I didn’t know either. I’ve seen it suggested by other posters and it made me wonder if it was. I guess we know now.
Theyre only allowed to opt back in if they were considered ‘at risk’ or vulnerable
At least thats what i remember reading
Brixton deserves upvotes
He said that it was family and his mother at he was opt out.
Non-high risk players who opt out are allowed to apply for reinstatement. Markakis applied and was approved. Although for obvious reasons it will likely become more difficult for players to opt back later in the season.
At risk. What a joke. Everyone is at risk….every day of their lives.
Didn’t think so either.
Huh. Thx Brix. Guess you read a little closer than most of us.
Freeman wasn’t as serious as it first appeared. When players have more information they should be able to opt back in.
I’m wondering if Freddie had another convo with him.
I’m sure he did. I’m sure Freeman was very scared. As would anyone be.
I’ve been sick many times where if I thought I had a “deadly” virus, I’d be scared for my life. But since I’ve never been infected with a deadly virus, I’ve never been so sick that I thought I could die.
When a person’s wife says, “He’s really sick,” it’s hard to know how sick he really is. In fact, when a person himself says, “I’m really sick. Man, I’m sick, this is terrible!” it’s still hard to know how sick he really is.
I usually err on the side of, “It’s not so bad.” Apparently, Markakis goes the other way.
SLL, No question about it. It’s also impossible to know how sick you are when you have a virus that has killed 150,000 people.
Markakis has a lot more information now then he had when he was forced to make the decision. Which I why I’ve always been in favor of a player having the option to opt back in.
This is cool. Don’t anyone get me wrong. I don’t get the impression Markakis is going to lite the world on fire with his bat. It’s his presence in the clubhouse and the depth he provides that’s worth the most.
Markakis is one of my favorite players. Glad to have him back so long as he ain’t starting every night.
It’s that left handed platoon piece they need
What? Can you do that after opting out of 2020 season and then coming back? I’m surprised.
I didn’t think you could…seems strange. If you don’t want to play a team or travel to a city, you can opt out. Then 3 days later, change your mind???
Well players can always go on the restricted list and forgo pay
Apparently you can
Has the last week made him *more* confident???
Right?
Why now? Did he get bored?
Got in a fight with the Mrs. and decided it’ll be a long season at home!
He opted out because his teammate sounded so sick on the phone. Then he was sitting at home while his teammate was back on the field. Things aren’t always what they seem.
He’s 36 years old and realizing that this is likely his last opportunity to play professional ball. I don’t blame him.
Why would this be his last chance to play professional baseball? He still seems like he’s got enough in him to play at least a couple more years
At 36, with 37 next year, one can never assume there is another year. I also doubt a “few more years” is reality since very, very, few ever play that late.
If anything, this is the time when careers end. Do you realize because of their age we may never Verlander or Kluber again. Of course injury is knocking them out but the principle is still the same.
I understand there are exceptions, but in a world where there’s a Bartolo Colon, there’s a 41 year old Verlander pitching for Nolan Ryan’s former team trying to rewrite record books.
Verlander will be back. Markakis was going to be a platoon/bench bat this season, so there’s no guarantee he’d get another opportunity that makes it worthwhile. I say worthwhile because he doesn’t strike me as the guy that will hang on as long as he can. It’d have to be the right team and situation at this point. He’s from and family lives year round in the Atlanta area, so the Braves make sense. If he were playing with, say Seattle, maybe he stays home this season.
Yes, Seattle has no room for 37-year-olds this season, unless they’re relief pitchers.
I was just referencing a team away from from his family who doesn’t have serious World Series expectations this year.
im interested to hear his reasoning for why he changed his mind
“Sometimes in life you make rash decisions. … I felt like I needed to be out there.”
wait that’s illegal
He will make it legal
+1
not in todays MLB where rules change on a whim.
Wow. This should not be allowed at all. This opens up very bad precedent. Very dangerous. Will he self-isolate for 14 days before joining his teammates?
very bad precedent for sure
Bad precedent in what way? What’s actually the downside to allowing entertaining players to play a partial season instead of no season?
they’re trading him to Miami
Stephenson might be ready. Reds should deal Casili or Barnhardt
whoops sent that on the wrong article somehow
His agent called…..
That’s great but can he throw five innings?
July 15 article from MLBTR would seem to suggest that unless Markakis opted out because of high risk, changing his mind wasn’t an option. There is, however, a mention that this might be changed. I can’t find anything more recent…
https://www.mlbtraderumors.com/2020/07/can-players-that-opt-out-change-their-minds.html
have to wonder if he was ruled as high risk and that’s why he’s back
I don’t care what team this is or what player this is. This should not be allowed. If you opt out, you opt out.
Poor guy felt bad for the terrible Braves team.
Maybe he wants to reteach Acuna how to make contact.
Good guy!
This made me laugh idk why lol
Cant wait until playoffs.
“Wait. You guys made the playoffs? I’m opting back in!”
Great guy.. class act. Braves need a veteran presence. Who cares if he changed his mind. Happens every day
i tend to agree, though i see the potential concern over players opting out and in from day to day and making a mess of the system.
Maybe he will help control some of the K’s. Kinda like having a extra player/hitting coach on the team. Always struck me as a future hitting coach.
LET’S GOOOOOOO
Probably got the RONA and recovered so he thinks hes good now
WTF? Can he do this?
At the very least I feel he should need approval from the Braves. If the feeling is mutual then ok, but we’ve gone out and signed other guys now he comes back and expects to get paid?
I have to assume this is not an automatic thing that he’s just allowed back because he’s opted back in.
Yeah he asked. He didn’t just go “wait I’m playing again and force his way back” lmao
My understanding was that if you opted out, you were out. The point of this was to prevent players from deciding at the end of the season to come back for the playoffs, as that is unfair to all of the other teams This shouldn’t be allowed, even if you’re a high risk player. If you opted out, see you in 2021. I respect the decision, but it should be final.
Per Jayson Stark…
Any player who opts out, may opt back in prior to 8/1.
Any player deemed high risk, must gain approval to opt back in.
Okay, that works. My fear was veterans opting out then trying to come back for the playoffs. Letting them change their mind in the first week seems reasonable.
Soooo many outfielders
Keeping the hope of 3000 hits alive!
Also he said he felt like he let his team down by opting out
Can he pitch?
King Felix can though, I hope Kakes called him and said look the braves need us I’m going back to play I expect you to come back and play too
I keep seeing people asking for Felix Hernandez to come back like he’s still a god. Does everyone forget his last three years?
4.36, 5.55, 6.40.
King Felix doesn’t have to be ‘king’ to be better than current spots 3-5 in Braves rotation.
Why is he a better option if he’s going to be throwing to an era of 5+? Might as well give the younger guys experience and see if they’re legit.
Exactly. If Felix isn’t a guaranteed upgrade over the young guys, use the young guys.
I think coronavirus may have given Felix the perfect opportunity to retire.
I wish King Felix would opt back in.
He was watching the braves and he got pissed because we aren’t hitting worth a crap. The reason Kakes is hated on so much is because snit puts him in the clean up spot. Put kakes in the 6-8 spots in the lineup and this guy will put up better numbers than anybody else batting in these spots. The guy can hit and he has gap to gap power. I don’t hate kakes I hate how snit used him in the lineup. This is a good sign just don’t put him in the cleanup spot he is not a clean up hitter but the guy can consistently hit so this will help
Main thing this should accomplish is to keep Ozuna as DH full time. Nick and Duvall can platoon in LF (better defense than Ozuna).
Oh my God, I hate watching Ozuna in the outfield. I knew he had a wet noodle arm, but he’s also slow and lazy. I’d rather have Adam’s in LF than him.
After watching Ozuna play LF for past week, I understand the reputation that he is a sub par OFer. He can hit however. So this move means that he doesn’t have to play LF anymore. Nick can play LF vs RH starters instead of Ozuna.
But with Nick joining team, Matt Adams is likely gone when Braves have to trim the roster down to 26.
Too bad he cant throw a fastball.
Can’t hurt!
Technically he signed a contract with the Braves so if he intends to opt back in, let him. He’ll do a series of tests over the next week or two and so long as he passes he will be welcomed.
*Actually
I would have paid good money to be a fly on the wall when Nick and Puig had some of their “conversations.”
Haha I was right. He did feel bad for the team. He just said it.
It is okay Nick. Blame the terrible GM and the fans who settle for minimal results.
He said he felt bad because he felt like he abandoned the team. Not all our fans are minimalist. People disagree with a team’s decisions. I for one, knew they should have added a starting pitcher in the off-season. It’s just no one shares the same level cynicism that you have and goes out of his way to bash everything that they do and make statements that just aren’t true. It’s like this franchise abandoned you at someone else’s doors when you were a kid. Like if you really need a hug and a lending ear I’m here for you
So you admit they didn’t address their rotation and it is/will hurt them?
Also don’t say if Hamels was healthy, anything would have changed.
Replacing Teheran and DK with Hamels is not an upgrade.
Faulty is now gone so i no longer have to rightly complain about this team giving him any more chances.
Until they get a top tier arm at the front end, I have every right to complain about their terrible decisions and postseason failures due to the former.
AA called JoJo Reyes to address the pitching. You’re good.
Per DOB from The Athletic: It was reported at the time that any player not classified as “high risk” to severe COVID-19 complications would be ineligible to play all season upon opting out and being placed on the restricted list. But MLB rules include a process for players returning from the restricted list, and that still held, provided a player applied for reinstatement before Aug. 1.
This is kind of strange… Like what happened that made him decide it’s no longer a risk? Basically the entire Marlins getting Covid? The US having 5 states set new records for covid related deaths in a day? I just don’t get how he could’ve thought it was too risky a month ago… but now thinks its safe. Personally if I were him I never would’ve opted out to begin with (just given the fact this could very well be his last year… maybe not… but maybe so as well) — I just don’t really get how recent events could’ve made him change his mind if just a few weeks ago he had determined it was too risky. I feel like years ago there was a story about him that in the off-season he didn’t even pick up a baseball bat… Like about how to him – when the season was done he was done with baseball and wanted a break… maybe he legit just didn’t want to go through “Summer Training” and now that he can basically just take a week or two on his own schedule to get up to speed and then go straight to games he’s like “yeah sure why not?” — also just to be clear… I could be wrong about that story I read years about being about Markakis… there’s a chance it was Alexis Rios — but it was definitely one of the two.
That’s definitely doesn’t sound like him. Sounds like rendon
Mark to the rescue. Look guys here I am to save the season. BS. Just ride away on your high horse
I kinda feel like Markakis is just the type of guy who was watching his friends go at it and was sitting and home and just felt soft and was just thinking what am I doing
Opposing teams need to gameplan for the opposition, and Markakis, as a middle of the order lefty bat, certainly qualifies as an important piece for the Braves.
So if you’re just going to let guys come back when they feel like it, I don’t see how that’s right.
What’s to stop a pitcher from saying he’s out, his team overperforms and then all of a sudden he’s back having thrown fewer innings than the competition?
Meanwhile, you’ve got the Nats and Phils playing “road” games against Toronto but in their park but the Mets have to play their road games in Buffalo.
I know these are unusual times, but this stuff isn’t good for the integrity for the game either.
Ben Zobrist set the precedent last season, albeit different circumstances. But he left his team and came back. Like Markakis, Zobrist signed a contract to play baseball. Both left, both returned. If Nick passes COVID-19 tests, let him back.
Marlins are in the market for an outfielder, maybe there is some room for them to take his contract….
I’m fine with him coming back honestly. I would love to see him come back hitting like he has usually hit Nd driving in runs. It would be a huge boost to this offense in my opinion. Plus having a veteran like him in the locker room can’t hurt and should only help with some of these younger guys who might need a little guidance!!