Charlie Morton DVOA, Advanced Stats, & Fantasy Rankings

Baltimore Orioles starting pitcher Charlie Morton (illness) is set to make his spring debut on Tuesday against the Detroit Tigers. Morton has missed the start of camp due to an illness. However, seeing him make a quick recovery is a positive sign and suggests that he should see a normal workload during the remainder of camp. Earlier in the offseason, the Orioles signed Morton to a one-year $15 million contract. Last season in Atlanta, the 41-year-old posted a 4.19 ERA with a 1.32 WHIP. He tallied 167 punchouts across 165 1/3 innings of work. He was able to generate ground balls at an above-average 47.2 percent rate. Fantasy managers should expect Morton to open the season in the Orioles starting rotation. Given his modest strikeout upside, he should only be targeted in deeper formats.

Baltimore Orioles right-hander Charlie Morton (illness) was not in camp on Thursday due to an illness. Morton could miss a few days of spring training while he recovers, but he should be back with the team sooner than later. The 41-year-old veteran is expected to slot in as the team's No. 3 starter behind Grayson Rodriguez and Zach Eflin in his first year in Baltimore after signing a one-year, $15 million deal in free agency. He leaves the tough National League East, but only to join the tough American League East. The two-time All-Star has made at least 30 starts in each of the last six full seasons, so he's been durable and dependable, but fantasy managers should have plenty of reservations after his velocity dropped in 2024, which led to a 23.8% strikeout rate, which was his lowest mark since 2015. There's just not a ton of fantasy upside with him at this point, and RotoBaller has him ranked outside the top-100 starting pitchers.

Free-agent starting pitcher Charlie Morton signed a one-year, $15 million contract with the Baltimore Orioles on Friday evening. The 41-year-old spent the past four seasons with the Atlanta Braves. Last season, the right-hander held a 4.19 ERA and a 1.32 WHIP across 165 1/3 innings. Morton made at least 30 starts in each season during his four-year tenure with the Braves. Under the hood, Morton generated a modest 23.8% strikeout rate with a below-average 4.49 xERA last season. This was a decline from the 25.6% K rate he held during the 2023 campaign. After losing Corbin Burnes to the Arizona Diamondbacks, Morton should have a permanent role in the Baltimore rotation throughout the 2025 season. However, given his declining metrics, he should only be targeted in deeper 15-plus team formats or AL-only leagues.