On Facebook
On Flipboard
On Twitter
For the second time this season, it seems like the Baltimore Orioles have moved Charlie Morton into the bullpen.
This comes on the heels of the disastrous beginning to his tenure where he had an 0-5 record and a 10.89 ERA through his first five starts, looking like a shell of his former self and a far cry from a $15 million pitcher that he was paid to be this year.
Knowing something had to change, the Orioles converted him into a reliever, a role he had for three outings before he made a spot start on May 7.
But after he allowed three earned runs in four innings and was credited with the loss, Baltimore seems to have moved him back into the bullpen since he pitched three days later against the Los Angeles Angels on Saturday night.
That appearance was the best he has looked this season.
Morton didn't allow a hit in two innings pitched, striking out two batters and walking none.
While $15 million for a reliever who isn't a closer is certainly not a good allocation of funds, if the veteran can continue to pitch in this manner when coming on in relief, that could be a major benefit for this Orioles team.
How Can Charlie Morton Help the Orioles?
Coming into the 2025 campaign, Baltimore expected their relief unit to be a strength of the team.
While the lackluster offense and horrendous starting rotation has gotten much of the attention during this poor start to the year, the bullpen hasn't been much better.
They have a 5.14 ERA, the third-worst in Major League Baseball.
Adding Morton to the bullpen equation could benefit both the starting rotation and relief staff since he is much more suited to pitch fewer innings at this stage of his career than having lengthy outings.
If he can have better stuff when only pitching a few frames, then that could give the Orioles a boost.
Whether or not that happens will be seen, but both parties have to find something that works.
More From Orioles On SI
More must-reads:
- Why did the Orioles activate star player during last week of season?
- MLB approves Patrick Zalupski as new Rays owner
- The 'Switch-hitter single-season HR leaders' quiz
Breaking News
Trending News
TODAY'S BEST
Atlanta Braves Swoop Up Yet Another Piece of the Sean Murphy Trade
The Athletics trade of Sean Murphy to the Atlanta Braves was just plain awful. Not only did they move a solid starting catcher, but they didn't even get back the second or third best player in the deal. On Monday, Atlanta brought in the other piece that the A's moved. In a trade with the Braves and Milwaukee Brewers, the A's traded Murphy to Atlanta, and Joel Payamps to Milwaukee, while Atlanta sent the biggest piece of the deal, William Contreras, away to the Brewers. It's quite possible that both the A's and Braves would like a re-do on this deal. After providing Milwaukee with a pair of solid seasons in 2023 and 2024, Payamps has faltered this season. The 31-year-old right-hander has posted a 7.23 ERA with a 1.61 WHIP across 23 2/3 innings for the Brewers this year, after combining for a 2.78 ERA with a 1.01 WHIP in 129 2/3 innings the previous two seasons. While he hasn't been a big name relief pitcher, he's certainly pitched like one of the better relievers in baseball the past two seasons. Now the Braves are taking on shot on him, claiming him off waivers from Milwaukee on Monday. To make room for Payamps on the 40-man roster, the Braves have designated 29-year-old righty Connor Seabold for assignment. Payamps has been designated for assignment by Milwaukee twice this season, first on May 22, only to be outrighted to the minors, then again on September 20. What makes this addition interesting for Atlanta is that the righty still has two years of arbitration remaining after this one, and he won't reach free agency until after the 2027 campaign. The veteran reliever is earning $2.995 million this year in his second season of arbitration, so he figures to be a relatively inexpensive high-ceiling addition for Atlanta heading into 2026. While Payamps has been added to the 40-man roster, he was not added to the Braves 28-man roster for the final week of the season just yet. From the A's standpoint, they have been without any part of the return they got for Murphy and Payamps for most of this season. Kyle Muller is pitching overseas, Freddy Tarnok has been up and down with the Miami Marlins, catcher Manny Piña was hurt most of his one season with the team, and Esteury Ruiz was DFA'd at the beginning of the season and claimed by the Los Angeles Dodgers. The final piece of the return, Royber Salinas, was claimed by Atlanta last November, but he put up a 7.71 ERA in 4 2/3 innings in Hi-A, and was released by the club in July. He has not signed elsewhere. Estuery Ruiz is the only player that was included in this deal that has not yet been under the Atlanta organizational umbrella. The Athletics have said consistently that they don't plan on having to make these type of big trades as much in the future, with the club heading to Las Vegas. Based off of how this trade ended up, it's probably for the best.
Steelers' Once Promising Third-Year Defender Could Be Relegated On The Depth Chart
The Pittsburgh Steelers have begun the 2025 NFL season with a 2-1 record, however there are some things that need to be figured out. The defense is shaky at best despite forcing five turnovers in Sunday's win over the New England Patriots in Week 3. The group still struggles to get off of the field on possession downs, and stopping the run has been an issue throughout the first three weeks of the season. A lot of that starts with the front seven and the interior defensive line. Pittsburgh has been banged up in that area, but some healthy contributors returning could shake up the lineup. Pittsburgh was able to see the regular season debut of Derrick Harmon on Sunday. The organization selected Harmon in the first round of the 2025 NFL Draft, but he suffered a sprained MCL in the preseason finale which kept him on the sidelines throughout the first two weeks of the regular season. He made an impact while serving in a limited role on Sunday against New England as he recorded a sack and two total tackles, and he is expected to help the run defense in the near future. Team insider Mark Kaboly spoke about the interior defensive line after the game on Sunday on the most recent episode of Kaboly + Mack, and he believes there will be two rookies starting in that area very soon. "They made some moves there, and it was able to help them out," Kaboly said. "That's a definite difference in what they were able to do. And I think it's just a matter of time until Yahya Black, Derrick Harmon and Cam Heyward's your one, two and three across the front. It's just a matter of time." Currently, Cam Heyward and Yahya Black are the starting defensive tackles for Pittsburgh while Keeanu Benton has been the starting nose tackle. That is the part of the lineup that will be shuffled, as Benton will likely switch to being a rotational piece, while Harmon enters the starting lineup. He will likely takeover the duties at defensive tackle, while Black shuffles to nose tackle. Benton was expected to take a leap forward going into his second season in 2024, but that didn't necessarily happen. He has made some big plays for Pittsburgh, but he has not been the consistent force that the organization had hoped he would be to this point. There was hope he would improve once again during the 2025 season, but if anything, the third-year pro has shown some regression since his rookie season. Moving to a rotational role where he can fill in at both defensive tackle and nose tackle might be best for Benton at this point. He doesn't necessarily have the size to be a true nose tackle in the NFL, so the coaching staff in Pittsburgh has seemingly been setting him up for failure a little bit in that regard. He would likely play better at defensive tackle, which is something the coaching staff could find out if the starting defensive line gets shuffled. Steelers Need To See Keeanu Benton Step Up No matter what role he is serving, Benton needs to play better moving forward. The interior defensive line is a key part of stopping the run, and Pittsburgh has struggled to do that. It is going to be hard to win meaningful games if that problem persists, especially against the better teams in the NFL that show up on the schedule later in the year. Benton needs to show some signs of progression, whether that be as a starter, or as someone who rotates in with the starting lineup throughout a game. Benton can still have a future in Pittsburgh, but he is going to need to improve in 2025 while setting himself up for success in 2026.
Exciting Jordan Addison Development Occurs Ahead of Vikings-Steelers
The Minnesota Vikings are fourth-worst in the NFL with 503 passing yards through three weeks, but they've been compromised. Wide receiver Jordan Addison was suspended for the first three games for violating the NFL's Substances of Abuse Policy. The 23-year-old was arrested on suspicion of DUI near Los Angeles International Airport in July 2024 and pleaded no contest to a "wet reckless" charge this past July, which is a misdemeanor offense. The Vikings drafted Addison No. 23 overall out of USC in 2023, and he was productive in his first two seasons. The 5-foot-11-inch, 175-pounder has career totals of 1,786 receiving yards on 133 catches with 19 touchdowns over 32 games. Addison is now done with his suspension, via NFL Network's Ian Rapoport. "Suspensions are over for 49ers wide receiver Demarcus Robinson and Vikings WR Jordan Addison, who both served three games and are now back with their teams," he reported on Monday. Minnesota will now have its No. 2 receiver back moving forward. Superstar wideout Justin Jefferson leads the team with 12 catches and 200 yards, while the next receiving leader is fellow wideout Josh Nailor with 96 yards. Tight end T.J. Hockenson also has nine receptions for 76 yards. Addison has a better track record than Nailor, who has never topped 414 yards in a season since entering the league in 2022. On the other hand, Hockenson notched 95 catches, 960 yards, and five touchdowns in 2023, but he's a safety blanket underneath and over the middle. Addison can help take the top off of the defense alongside Jefferson, which should open up the Vikings' offense. Vikings Positioned for Success Against Steelers Not only is Minnesota getting Addison back for this Sunday's bout with the Pittsburgh Steelers, but it'll face a defense that ranks 23rd in the NFL with 25.7 points allowed per game. The Steelers did hold the New England Patriots' offense to 14 points in last Sunday's win, but they coughed up 32 points to the New York Jets in Week 1 and 31 to the Seattle Seahawks in Week 2. Vikings quarterback J.J. McCarthy (ankle) is out, but veteran backup Carson Wentz showed he can still play in Sunday's 48-10 trouncing of the Cincinnati Bengals, completing 14 of 20 passes for 173 yards and two touchdowns. They're now 2-1 ahead of their Week 4 matchup with the Steelers in Dublin, Ireland, and could go 3-1 if Addison picks up where he left off.
Raiders HC Pete Carroll unhappy with running game amid Ashton Jeanty's struggles
Ashton Jeanty is not having the start to his career the Las Vegas Raiders hoped he'd have when they took the star running back with the No. 6 pick in this year's draft. Jeanty carried the ball 17 times for 63 yards (3.7 yards per rush) in the Raiders' 41-24 loss to the Washington Commanders in Week 3. Jeanty is averaging 3.1 yards per rush this season, with 144 yards and one touchdown on the 1-2 Raiders. Not all of the issues are on the rookie. During his news conference on Monday, head coach Pete Carroll said the team needed to improve the running game to have success on offense. He suggested Las Vegas is doing all it can to run the ball with the talent they have on the offensive line. "We're working on some stuff," Carroll said of the offensive line. "We want to see (Jackson Powers-Johnson) come back to action and get back involved. "We have to in all phases of it. We've got to get off the football better and make more of the running game. "There's not enough happening there to act on the play-pass game, and we're just not getting enough. So we just got to keep working it. We got the guys we got." The Las Vegas Raiders need to fix the offensive line Despite a poor game by the offensive line, quarterback Geno Smith was effective on Sunday. He threw for 289 yards and three touchdowns. However, he was sacked five times for minus-28 yards. The offense was much better than it was in Week 2 when the Raiders scored nine points in a loss to the Los Angeles Chargers on "Monday Night Football." Still, the running game needs to be a threat, not only to help Smith and the passing attack, but to keep the defense off the field. The Raiders invested in the running game by drafting Jeanty with a first-round pick. So far, that pick has not paid off.
Customize Your Newsletter
+
Get the latest news and rumors, customized to your favorite sports and teams. Emailed daily. Always free!
PRIVACY POLICY EDITORIAL POLICY CONTACT US
ABOUT YARDBARKER TERMS OF SERVICE
Use of this website (including any and all parts and
components) constitutes your acceptance of these
Terms of Service and Privacy Policy.
This site is for entertainment purposes only.
There is no gambling offered on this site.
Gambling Problem? Call 1-800-Gambler.
