Nick Markakis Profile and Stats, Who is The Wife, His Contract, Salary and Family
Nick Markakis is an American professional baseball player in Major League Baseball (MLB) who played for Baltimore Orioles and currently plays for the Atlanta Braves. His annual salary at his current club is something baseball fans will be interested in. Let’s take a look at these and other facts about him – his biography, contract, career statistics, and profile.
Nick Markakis’ Profile
Nick Markakis was born Nicholas William Markakis on November 17, 1983, in Glen Cove, New York, but he spent his youth in Woodstock, Georgia, as his family moved there when he was ten years old. Nick was born of his parents, Dennis Lou (father) and Mary Lou (mother). Little is known about his siblings, but we do know that he is the second child of three brothers, Dennis, Greg, and Michael, who are also baseball players. As for his educational history, Nick attended Woodstock High School in Woodstock, Georgia, and then went on to complete his college education at Young Harris College, a liberal arts college in Georgia. Nick Markakis is of both German and Greek descent and has both American and Greek nationalities. His ethnic background is white.
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Nick’s interest in baseball began at the tender age of two when he was introduced to the game by his mother Mary. She threw him and his older brother Dennis against each other and he outshone his older brother. The family members were big fans of the American professional baseball team Boston Red Sox. Young Nick watched the Red Sox for hours and did nothing else, and as he grew up, baseball became a passion (if not an obsession) for him. His favorite player with the Red Sox was Roger Clemens, who was nicknamed “Rocket”. Clemens played for the Red Sox from 1984 to 1996. Nick Markakis’ fascination with his baseball idol was so great that he wore the same jersey number (21) as his idol at the beginning of his professional career.
He developed a deep friendship with Taylor Scott Randahl, a boy who lived near the neighborhood where he moved with his parents in Georgia. Their friendship caught the attention of Nick’s parents, who referred to them as “frick and frack”. While Nick loved baseball, Taylor had a fondness for the mountains – he was a mountain biker. Taylor died in an accident while they were still in high school, which made Nick Markakis’s name become his first son Taylor.
He started playing in high school with the school baseball team – the Wolverines, the baseball team of Woodstock High School. In his senior year, he wrote impressive statistics as the team’s best left-handed pitcher, attracting the interest of the Cincinnati Reds, an Ohio professional baseball team. He refused to give up his college education and sign up for the Reds in 2001 and 2002 when they called him up. Instead, he decided to play in college with the Young Harris Mountain Lions, who as pitchers and outfielders made up his college baseball team. He twice won Georgia Junior College Player of the Year and was named JUCO National Player of the Year by Baseball America in 2002. He represented Greece at the 2003 European National Championships and the 2004 Olympic Games in Athens, Greece.
Career Stats, Contract, Salary
Nick Markakis has played for two major-league baseball teams so far – the Baltimore Orioles (2006-2014) and the Atlanta Braves (2015-), but his fiery career began in college. When Nick Markakis played for the Mountain Lions (from Young Harris College), he had an impressive run. He hit .439 with 21 home runs and 92 RBIs, scored .843 and an on-base percentage of .541, and stole 19 bases in 20 attempts. He went 12-0 on the mound, only scored .182 against him, had a save, and a 1.68 ERA.
He was selected by Baltimore Orioles in the 2003 draft as the seventh overall winner. He started in the Minor League, played for Aberdeen IronBirds in 2003, Delmarva Shorebirds in 2004, Frederick Keys in 2005, and moved to Bowie Baysox the same year. But his statistics ensured that he did not stay there (Minor League) for that long. In the 2006 season, he moved up to the Major League and made his Major League debut against the Tampa Bay Devil Rays on 3 April 2006 but from the substitutes’ bench. But two days later he was to celebrate his first start in the Major League.
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Nick transferred to the Atlanta Braves in 2014. He was announced as a Brave after signing a four-year $44 million contract with a $2 million signing bonus on December 3, 2014. The contract would give Nick Markakis an average annual salary of $11,000,000 plus additional contract bonuses/clauses. Some of the bonuses include an additional $25,000 when he wins the MVP of the Gold Glove or League Championship Series, and an additional $50,000 when he wins an All-Star Award, the MVP of the World Series or the Comeback Player of the Year award.
Who is Nick Markakis’ Wife, Family?
Nick Markakis is married and the brother-in-law of his Atlanta Braves teammate, Ryan Flaherty, as both are married to two sisters. His wife Christina Dutko is the older sister of Ryan’s wife Ashley Dutko. Nick met Christina through a mutual friend at a Super Bowl party in 2006. They started dating and got married in 2008 while he was still playing for the Baltimore Orioles. Christina is also an athlete and worked as a primary school teacher with a degree in education from Florida Atlantic University. She also received honors for indoor athletics from the All-Atlantic Sun Conference.
The couple has three children, all of whom are boys. Their first son arrived on March 11, 2009, and Nicknamed Taylor Jason in honor of his late friend Taylor Scott Randahl, Taylor Jason. Their second child, Tucker Edward, arrived on May 27, 2010, and the third child, Toby, on September 11, 2013.
