Nick Markakis once wanted Houston Astros players guilty of involvement in cheating scandal to be beaten up

Former Atlanta Braves outfielder Nick Markakis made headlines in February 2020 when he voiced his displeasure with the Houston Astros' involvement in the sign-stealing controversy. According to Markakis, every Astros player engaged in the scandal needed "a beating."

"I feel like every single guy over there needs a beating. It's wrong. They're messing with people's careers," Markakis said.

Markakis also took aim at MLB commissioner Rob Manfred.

"The way he handled the situation, he should be embarrassed of himself," Markakis said.

nick markakis on #Astros scandal "what they did was bullshit" he also added"every single guy over there deserves a beating” and "the commissioner completely handled it the wrong way. the way he handled the situation he should be embarassed of himself." https://t.co/XqttlTAjmt

The scandal involved the Astros using technology to steal signs from rival clubs during the 2017 and 2018 campaigns. The plan called for deploying a camera system to record the signs of opposition teams, which were then transmitted to Astros hitters via a system of garbage can banging.

After the controversy came to light in 2019 and the MLB conducted an investigation, the Astros were fined and forfeited future draft picks. However, they were not stripped of their World Series title and the players themselves were not punished.

Nick Markakis didn't genuinely condone violence

Markakis later defended his comments, claiming that he was just venting his annoyance with the circumstances and did not genuinely condone violence.

Markakis won three Gold Glove Awards and a Silver Slugger Award, and was selected to the MLB All-Star team in 2018. Prior to this, he held the MLB record for the most straight games played by an outfielder without committing a mistake. Markakis left the league before the 2021 season began.