Baltimore Orioles Veteran Starter’s Turnaround Makes Him Trade Deadline Target

At one point, Charlie Morton was so bad the Baltimore Orioles consigned him to their bullpen.

Now? He could help them build for 2026.

The Athletic’s Ken Rosenthal (subscription required) wrote on Friday that Morton is “emerging as a legitimate trade candidate” after he’s flipped the script on an abysmal start of the season.

Baltimore signed the 41-year-old right-hander after whiffing on trying to re-sign Corbin Burnes. In hindsight, the O’s dodged a bullet as Burnes underwent Tommy John surgery earlier this year.

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But, in April, Morton was making the Orioles regret the one-year, $15 million deal to plug him into the rotation.

In his first six games, all of which were losses for Morton and the Orioles, he allowed 20 earned runs in 24.1 innings to rack up a 10.36 ERA. He struck out 24 and walked 20.

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Baltimore put him in the bullpen but that didn’t last long as injuries forced them to put Morton back in the rotation.

The former Atlanta Braves star didn’t win his first game until May 26, when he beat the St. Louis Cardinals, 5-1. Since then, Morton has gone on a heater, compared to what he did in April and early May.

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In his last six games he is 4-0 with a 2.90 ERA and Baltimore is 5-1 in his starts. He has 37 strikeouts and 10 walks in 31 innings. More importantly, he’s allowed just 10 earned runs and 11 overall.

The turnaround is so stark that Morton could now be a tradeable asset for the Orioles at next month’s trade deadline.

Rosenthal did point out one issue that might scare teams off. Morton’s salary was considerable, and even though the trade deadline marks the two-thirds mark of the season, he would still be owed around $5 million for the remainder of the season.

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That’s a figure the Orioles are unlikely to pick up. It’s a bill that may scare off some contenders, especially smaller-market teams.

Given where Baltimore stands in the American League race entering this weekend, only a huge turnaround would take the Orioles out of sell mode. Morton is among a crop of several free agency that may interest contenders at the deadline.

Morton has the benefit of experience. The 18-year veteran is a two-time All-Star with two World Series rings, which he won with the Houston Astros in 2017 and the Atlanta Braves in 2021.

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