Today it was made public by Braves beatwriter for The Athletic that the Atlanta Braves have been in “aggresive” pursuit of Charlie Morton. The Braves have made it clear they are looking for pitching this offseason, after having arguably the worst rotation in baseball to start 2020. Morton has expressed his preference to sign with a team in the southeastern region, (GA, FL) close to his home in Tampa, FL.
Morton signed a 2yr/$30 million deal with the Tampa Bay Rays in 2019, including a 3rd year option worth $15 million. The Rays declined his 3rd year option, entering Morton’s name into Free Agency. Morton is a 37 year old right-handed starting pitcher, whom was selected in the 3rd round, 95th overall, in the 2002 MLB Draft by the Braves. Morton spent his career in the Braves organization until 2009, where he joined the Pittsburgh Pirates. He remained a Pirate until the end of 2016, where he joined the Philadelphia Phillies for the 2017 season. He was traded in the middle of the 2017 season from the Phillies to the Houston Astros. He won a championship with Houston in 2017, and stayed with the Astros through the 2018 season. Following the 2018 season, he signed his 2 year deal with the Tampa Bay Rays.
