Markakis, who barely spoke in the clubhouse two years ago as a rookie, has started a new craze among his teammates with his purchase of Heelys, athletic shoes that have wheels on the bottom. The shoes are usually worn by children, but that matters little to Markakis, who sports them to and from the stadium and rolls around on them in the clubhouse and in the players' parking lot.

"We visited him [last week] and we were walking next to him and all of a sudden, he goes gliding by us on the sidewalk," said Dennis Markakis, Nick's father. "We didn't even know he was wearing them. He's like a little kid, always having a good time."

Loewen and Jeremy Guthrie have bought Heelys, and Burres says he wants to as well. On a recent off day, Markakis spent much of the afternoon rolling through a local mall. He also enjoys doing it at the grocery store but recently was scolded while he was wheeling in and out of aisles at a local Wal-Mart.