Orioles' Charlie Morton: Fans seven in revenge game
Rotowire
Morton (5-7) picked up the win Friday, giving up two runs on six hits and a walk over 5.1 innings in a 3-2 victory over Atlanta. He struck out seven.
Facing the team he spent the last four seasons with, Morton generated 33 called or swinging strikes among his 97 pitches (66 total strikes) as he won his fifth straight decision. The 41-year-old righty hasn't been saddled with a loss since returning to the rotation at the end of May, going 5-0 over his last seven trips to the mound with a 2.97 ERA, 1.32 WHIP and 44:11 K:BB through 36.1 innings. He'll look to keep rolling in his next start, which lines up to come at home next week against the Mets.
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Orioles' Charlie Morton: Next start coming Friday
Rotowire
Morton's next start has been pushed back from Tuesday in Texas to Friday in Atlanta due to low-grade right elbow tendinitis, Roch Kubatko of MASNSports.com reports.
Brandon Young will draw a spot start Tuesday in Morton's place. While the Orioles are optimistic that Morton will be ready to go after a few extra days of rest, he will likely need to get through a bullpen session this week before being cleared to start Friday.
Orioles' Charlie Morton: One rough inning in no-decision
Rotowire
Morton didn't factor into the decision in Tuesday's 6-5 extra-inning loss to the Rangers, giving up three runs on four hits and two walks over five innings. He struck out three.
The veteran righty held Texas in check for four of his five frames, but he was lucky escape the fourth inning with only three runs on his ledger, as some shaky Baltimore defense kept the snowball rolling after he issued a leadoff walk to Corey Seager. The three strikeouts were Morton's lowest total since a relief appearance May 10, and over six starts since rejoining the rotation, he's gone 4-0 while posting a 2.90 ERA, 1.32 WHIP and 37:10 K:BB through 31 innings. He'll look to get back in the win column in his next outing, which lines up to be a rematch with the Rangers next week in Texas.
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Orioles' Charlie Morton: Sharp again for fourth win
Rotowire
Morton (4-7) allowed one run on six hits and struck out seven without walking a batter over six innings to earn the win Thursday over the Rays.
Morton gave up the opening run, a Danny Jansen RBI single in the third inning, but that was it. This was Morton's third quality start in his last five outings since rejoining the rotation May 26 versus the Cardinals. During that span, the veteran right-hander has earned all of his wins on the year while allowing just eight runs (seven earned) over 26 innings. His ERA is down to 5.64 with a 1.60 WHIP and 74:32 K:BB through 67 innings over 17 appearances (11 starts) this season. Morton is projected to make his next start at home versus the Rangers.
Morton (3-7) earned the win against the Angels on Friday, allowing five hits and one walk while striking out 10 across five scoreless innings.
Morton was fantastic, generating 16 whiffs on 78 pitches for his second 10-strikeout performance of the season. If not for a lengthy rain delay, the veteran likely would have had a shot at his third quality start in four outings since rejoining the rotation May 26. On the year, he owns a 6.05 ERA, 1.66 WHIP and 67:32 K:BB across 61 innings and lines up for a road matchup with the Rays next week.
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Orioles' Charlie Morton: Early exit Saturday
Rotowire
Morton allowed four runs on six hits and four walks while striking out five over 2.1 innings in a no-decision versus the Athletics on Saturday.
Morton had seemingly turned a corner with two successful starts in a row since returning to the rotation, but he faltered again Saturday. He threw 76 pitches (42 strikes) in this effort, which saw him give up all four runs in the first inning, though the Orioles were able to overcome the early deficit. Morton has generally been better since the start of May after a brief shift to the bullpen, but it continues to be tough to trust the 41-year-old from one outing to the next. He's at a 6.59 ERA, 1.70 WHIP and 57:31 K:BB through 56 innings over 15 appearances (nine starts) this season. Morton's next start is tentatively projected to be at home versus the Angels.
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Orioles' Charlie Morton: Grabs second straight win
Rotowire
Morton (2-7) earned the win Sunday against the White Sox, allowing one unearned run on six hits and a walk over 6.2 innings. He struck out seven.
After a dreadful start to the year that resulted in a demotion to the bullpen, Morton's turned in back-to-back wins and quality starts since returning to the Baltimore rotation, and he's allowed three runs (two earned) while striking out 12 over 12.2 innings in that span. The veteran right-hander lowered his ERA to 6.20 with a 1.58 WHIP and 52:27 K:BB across 53.2 innings this season. Morton will look to keep it going in his next outing, currently scheduled for next week on the road against the A's.
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Orioles' Charlie Morton: Finally tallies first win
Rotowire
Morton (1-7) earned the win Monday against the Cardinals, allowing two runs on four hits and two walks over six innings. He struck out five.
Not only did the veteran right-hander secure his first win, but he also collected his first quality start with this vintage 86-pitch performance. The lone blemish on Morton's outing was a 368-foot, two-run homer off the bat of Pedro Pages in the fifth inning. After pitching to a ghastly 9.38 ERA across his first 31.2 frames, Morton has been better of late, firing a 2.35 ERA and 17:4 K:BB over his last 15.1 innings. The 41-year-old receives a soft matchup for his next start, which currently lines up to be at home against the White Sox this weekend.
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Orioles' Charlie Morton: Slated to start Monday
Rotowire
Morton is scheduled to start Monday's game against the Cardinals at Camden Yards, Jacob Calvin Meyer of The Baltimore Sun reports.
After the Orioles parted ways with Kyle Gibson last Tuesday, Morton had been expected to slot back into the rotation during the team's series versus Boston over the weekend, but rainouts Thursday and Friday resulted in some reshuffling with the pitching schedule. Morton is now set to take the hill Monday on eight days' rest and will be making his seventh start of the season. The veteran right-hander is still holding down a 7.68 ERA and 1.76 WHIP on the season, but he's been much sharper over his three most recent relief appearances. In those outings, Morton struck out 12 batters over 9.2 innings while allowing two earned runs on four hits and two walks.
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Orioles' Charlie Morton: Re-entering rotation
Rotowire
Morton will start for the Orioles on Friday in Boston, Roch Kubatko of MASNSports.com reports.
Morton pitched well after taking over for an ineffective Kyle Gibson on Saturday versus the Nationals, striking out six over 4.1 innings of one-run ball. He's yielded only two runs with a 12:2 across his last 9.1 relief innings and will now get another shot in the Orioles rotation.
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Orioles' Charlie Morton: Shifts back to bullpen
Rotowire
Morton struck out two over two perfect innings of relief in Saturday's 5-2 loss to the Angels.
After slotting into the rotation Wednesday and dropping to 0-7 on the season while giving up three runs over four innings in a loss to the Twins, Morton shifted back to the bullpen this weekend and was tasked with mopping up in Saturday's loss. With the Orioles bringing Zach Eflin (lat) back from the injured list to start Sunday's series finale in Anaheim, Morton isn't expected to be needed in the rotation anytime soon.
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Orioles' Charlie Morton: Falls to 0-7
Rotowire
Morton (0-7) took the loss against Minnesota on Wednesday, allowing three runs on four hits and one walk while striking out two batters over four innings.
After being demoted to a bulk-relief and then a bullpen role in late April, Morton was given another chance to start Wednesday since the Twins needed to fill a rotation spot. The veteran righty actually fared slightly better than he had in his previous five starts -- the three runs were the fewest he's given up in a starting appearance so far this season, and he walked just one batter -- but that's not saying much since he lasted only four frames and took his MLB-worst seventh loss. Given Morton's 9.38 ERA through 31.2 innings on the campaign, there's ample reason to believe that Father Time may have finally caught up to the 41-year-old. With starter Zach Eflin (lat) slated to be activated from the injured list this weekend, it's likely that Morton will head back to the bullpen.
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Orioles' Charlie Morton: Making start Wednesday
Rotowire
Orioles manager Brandon Hyde said that Morton will start Wednesday's game against the Twins in Minnesota, Andy Kostka of TheBaltimoreBanner.com reports.
Morton was demoted to the bullpen last week after getting roughed up over his first five starts and two bulk-relief appearances of the season, but the Orioles never called up a pitcher from the minors to replace him in the rotation. With the Orioles needing to add a fifth starter back to the mix Wednesday, Morton will get the nod, but he's expected to shift back to a relief role immediately after the game. Zach Eflin (lat) appears on track to return from the injured list by the time the Orioles would next require a fifth starter May 17.
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Orioles' Charlie Morton: Shifting to bullpen
Rotowire
Orioles manager Brandon Hyde said Wednesday that Morton will work out of the bullpen moving forward, Jacob Calvin Meyer of The Baltimore Sun reports.
In lieu of re-signing Corbin Burnes or bringing aboard another frontline starter via trade or free agency this offseason, the Orioles brought Morton aboard on a one-year, $15 million deal with the hope that he would serve as a stable contributor in the middle of the rotation. That gambit has backfired, as Father Time appears to have finally caught up with Morton in his age-41 season. The Orioles deployed Morton in bulk relief in his last two appearances with the hope that the arrangement would yield better results, but the right-hander gave up four earned runs on six hits and six walks over six innings between those outings and now owns a 9.45 ERA and 2.17 WHIP for the season. Hyde hasn't closed the door on Morton starting again at some point down the road, but the veteran may need to turn in a few quality low-leverage appearances out of the bullpen before the Orioles insert him back into the rotation.
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