masn-baseballs-orioles.jpgCalling into Friday night’s Hot Stove Show on 105.7 The Fan, right fielder Nick Markakis said he doesn’t care whether he bats second or third this season. He pointed out that it really doesn’t matter after the first inning.

Markakis will mostly hit third, as he did last season, but the Orioles aren’t settled at the second and cleanup spots. He’ll move around on occasion.

Markakis hit second in 14 games last season, batting .317 with seven doubles, two homers, eight RBIs and a .925 OPS….Calling into Friday night’s Hot Stove Show on 105.7 The Fan, right fielder Nick Markakis said he doesn’t care whether he bats second or third this season. He pointed out that it really doesn’t matter after the first inning.

Markakis will mostly hit third, as he did last season, but the Orioles aren’t settled at the second and cleanup spots. He’ll move around on occasion.

Markakis hit second in 14 games last season, batting .317 with seven doubles, two homers, eight RBIs and a .925 OPS. He hit third in 100 games, batting .298 with 29 doubles, 11 homers, 69 RBIs and a .811 OPS. He also hit fourth in 47 games, batting .274 with nine doubles, five homers, 24 RBIs and a .735 OPS.

We’ll have to figure out who’s the best candidate to bat third when Markakis vacates that spot. As I keep saying, performance will dictate it. We can examine the qualifications of the other hitters, but it won’t be a guy who’s toting around a .212 average with limited run production.

Markakis said he’ll probably head down to Sarasota on Tuesday or Wednesday, though position players don’t have to report until the following week.

No list of the freakiest injuries in Orioles’ history would be complete, as at least one reader pointed out, without mentioning the time Peter Harnisch stepped on a nail while walking back to the team hotel during the final weekend of the “Why Not?” season.

Harnisch couldn’t make the next day’s start, and Dave Johnson held the Blue Jays to two runs over seven innings before the bullpen collapsed – and the plate umpire decided to change the strike zone – in a 4-3 loss that eliminated the Orioles from the pennant race.

Glenn Davis was hit by a line drive – while sitting in the dugout.

John Parrish showed up at spring training last year looking like he went bungee jumping without the cord. Parrish claimed that he hit a patch of ice while trying to park his motorcycle in his garage.

Dennis Sarfate injured his shoulder after a car door slammed into it. Or the front door to his house. I never figured out which one, but it was freakish.

Brady Anderson rounded a corner and slid under a bus while rollerblading to the ballpark.

Anderson sat on a table in the trainer’s room when shortstop Mike Bordick walked in and asked what happened.

“Nothing,” Anderson replied. “I just got run over by a bus.”