The Detroit Tigers have added a lot of pitching at the MLB trade deadline. But, right before the deadline passed, the Tigers made a trade with the Baltimore Orioles to land a new starting pitcher.
According to Jon Heyman of The New York Post, the Tigers are trading for veteran Orioles starting pitcher Charlie Morton. Detroit is sending left-handed pitching prospect Micah Ashman to the Orioles, according to Evan Petzold of The Detroit Free Press.
This season, Morton has a 5.42 ERA and a 7-8 record. But, while he’s struggled, a lot of those struggles stemmed from his early-season woes. Across his first seven starts, Morton had a 0-6 record and a 9.45 ERA.
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But over his next 16 starts, Morton was a different pitcher. He has a 7-2 record with a 3.98 ERA and 75 strikeouts in 74.2 innings pitched. In July, he’s struggled a bit again, sitting at a 4.91 ERA in five starts, but overall, he’s been a solid pitcher since his disastrous start to the season.
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One of the big bonuses he brings, aside from veteran leadership, is experience in winning the World Series. He won in 2017 with the Houston Astros, and again in 2021 with the Atlanta Braves.
In the postseason, he has a 3.60 ERA and a 7-5 record. His experience as a playoff starter will be a nice plus for the Tigers, who are a much younger team looking to make their first deep push into the postseason in over a decade.
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In year 18, and at 41 years old, Morton is one of the oldest players in baseball, and is now packing his bags and heading to Detroit. The Tigers have added a lot of pitching this trade deadline, and Morton is the latest starting pitcher to join the roster.
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