The Baltimore Orioles have added a veteran arm to their starting rotation: right-hander Charlie Morton. It’s not the blockbuster acquisition that many thought the Orioles would go after to push themselves to World Series contenders, but it’s a start to adding depth to a young roster.
Mark Feinsand of MLB.com first reported the news of Morton’s agreement with the Orioles for one year and $15 million.
The Orioles Sign Charlie Morton
Many thought with a change in ownership for the Orioles that they would spend big this offseason. Add in losing Corbin Burnes and a having a young core, it only made more sense. They haven’t quite done that.
While the Orioles did ink Tyler O’Neill to help anchor their young offense, they’ve largely done nothing on the pitching side. That was their clear need heading into the offseason.
With the addition of O’Neill and Tomoyuki Sugano, it seems the Orioles are content to continue to let their young stars do the heavy lifting while supplementing the roster with veteran talent.
That’s what Charlie Morton represents for the Orioles. Morton, 41, is by no means the ace the Orioles need to anchor their staff. Instead, this signing gives the Orioles reliability and veteran experience.
The Orioles will add Morton to the mix of Zach Eflin, Dean Kremer, Grayson Rodriguez, and Cade Povich to the rotation, among others.
The Orioles, as they currently stand, will hope that Grayson Rodriguez finally develops into an ace, and Morton will be there to help give innings and offer guidance.
What Morton Brings to Baltimore
Morton definitely has the reliability down. He’s thrown over 160 innings in six out of the last seven seasons. He’s also started at least 30 games in six of the last seven seasons.
The one year where he didn’t was the shortened season in 2020 due to COVID-19.
Morton’s fastball is no longer as effective as it once might have been. He now relies heavily on his curveball, throwing it 42% of the time. The pitch has proven to be a weapon in his steady presence as batters slugged .309 off of the curveball last year.
He ended the 2024 season with a 4.19 ERA across 165.1 innings. He walked 65 batters and struck out 167.
Morton represents veteran leadership and a player who has been there and done that, having won the World Series in 2021 with the Atlanta Braves.
His presence will hopefully help the Orioles make a deep postseason run and push them to World Series contention.
