Bruce Kluckhohn-Imagn Images

Tigers Starter Charlie Morton Admits This One Thing Is Still Bothering Him

Originally posted on Detroit Tigers on SI | By Brad Wakai | Last updated Aug 25, 2025 7:33 PM ET

The Detroit Tigers were busy ahead of the trade deadline, but they didn't land anyone who analysts -- or fans for that matter -- deemed to be a difference maker.

With a loaded farm system that would have allowed them to shop at the top of the market, the front office opted to stick with their ethos of patience, understanding that their championship window has just opened with the superstar prospects coming up their pipeline.

But so far, the early returns for who the Tigers acquired has been good, with reliever Kyle Finnegan transforming their bullpen and the starting pitching duo of Chris Paddack and Charlie Morton providing quality depth for their rotation.

When it comes to Morton, not many people would have predicted he would be a desired player ahead of the deadline based on how poorly he had performed to start the season with the Baltimore Orioles. But the veteran turned his campaign around, and now he is in a starring role for his new team.

Charlie Morton Says This Is Still Driving Him

Morton has started four games for the Tigers and has a 3.63 ERA, striking out 29 batters in 22 1/3 innings pitched while walking just eight and holding opponents to a .195 batting average against.

Considering where he was through the month of April with an ERA of 9.45 that was in the double digits at one point, it's impressive to see the 41-year-old have the resilience to keep grinding through the season and become an effective pitcher again.

And it's those struggles with the Orioles earlier in the year that seem to have driven him, with the veteran admitting that those have become a motivating factor for him the rest of the way.

"If it didn't affect me, I wouldn't be playing. Part of what drives me back to the game is the failure. It's not the incessant failure. But for me, earlier in the year with the Orioles, that was difficult. That was really, really difficult," he said, per Bob Nightengale of USA Today. "Here I am with the limited time I have left on this earth and I'm spending it failing at baseball while I'm not present at home with my wife and kids. That was really tough."

Detroit is hoping they can keep getting this level of production from Morton the rest of the way, as the veteran has not only become an important cog in the machine for the rest of the regular season, but he could also make an impact in October.