ST PETERSBURG, Fl – The Baltimore Orioles start an important series tonight against the Tampa Bay Rays and they will do it without starting right fielder Nick Markakis. Markakis will miss up to a month with a broken bone in his right wrist. Markakis has a fractured hamate bone and is scheduled for surgery Friday with renowned hand specialist Dr. Brian Scofield in Sarasota, Florida. The Orioles have lost five straight games and eight of the last 10 heading into the three-game series with the Rays. Markakis has been a very durable player for the Orioles and this is his first trip to the disabled list. He has only missed 10 games over the past five seasons. Markakis had been hitting .291/.358/.558 with 13 extra-base hits and 15 RBI in his last 21 games. Orioles manager Buck Showalter said he is pleased with the news, which could’ve been much worse. “It’s actually better than I thought,” Showalter said. “If I woke up and knew I would have been told this, I would have signed up for it in blood.” Markakis is the eighth player the Orioles have on the disabled list.
