CHARLIE MORTON

11/12/83; '02 3rd (Atlanta); Redding, CT (HS)
R/R; 6-4, 190

Level

W-L-Sv

BB/9

K/9

WHIP

OAVG

ERA

2002 R (Atl)

1-7-0

39.2

6.8

7.3

1.69

.243

4.54

2003 R+ (Atl)

2-5-0

54.0

4.2

7.7

1.67

.302

4.67

2004 A (Atl)

7-9-2

117.0

140

102

5.2

7.8

1.77

.297

4.85

2005 A (Atl)

5-9-1

124.2

124

4.5

6.2

1.49

.261

5.20

2006 A+ (Atl)

6-7-2

100.0

116

4.9

6.8

1.70

.291

5.49

2007 AA (Atl)

4-6-0

79.2

4.2

7.6

1.47

.270

4.29

2008 NL (Atl)

4-8-0

74.2

4.9

5.8

1.62

.273

6.15

2008 AAA (Atl)

5-2-0

79.0

3.1

8.2

0.99

.181

2.05

2009 AAA (Atl)

7-2-0

64.2

2.2

7.7

1.05

.222

2.51

2009 NL

5-9-0

97.0

102

3.7

5.8

1.46

.276

4.55

The Pirates acquired Morton and two other prospects—CF Gorkys Hernandez and LHP Jeff Locke—in exchange for Nate McLouth. Despite being an early round pick, Morton toiled for years in the Atlanta farm system without getting on the radar, although the Braves long considered him to have outstanding stuff. He throws two-seam and four-seam fastballs that register anywhere from the upper-80s to the mid-90s, as well as a slider, curve and change. His performance was never exactly terrible, but it didn't come together until 2008, when he had an outstanding first half in AAA. He pitched respectably for the Braves for half a season, although he was hampered by shoulder soreness. Morton returned to AAA in 2009 and continued to pitch very well there. He's done a good job keeping the ball in the park the last couple years and hasn't had much of a platoon split over his career, which probably speaks well of his changeup. He may be a good example of the difficulties and unpredictability inherent in developing pitchers drafted out of high school.

The Pirates immediately inserted Morton into their rotation and he experienced ups and downs the rest of the season. He had a start or two delayed by a mild hamstring strain that clearly affected his running the rest of the season. It's hard to say whether it affected his pitching. His overall numbers are heavily skewed by one disastrous start in Chicago in which he allowed ten earned runs in one inning. Without that start, his ERA with the Pirates was 3.66. Of course, it's easy to make a player look good by cherry-picking stats to exclude, but that one start shows how factors that have little to do with a player's ability can affect short-term stats. Pirates' manager John Russell seems obsessed with managing the workload of his bullpen, to the point where he often seems to sacrifice chances of winning in order to keep the bullpen "fresh." Another manager, or a manager on a team in a pennant race, probably would have relieved Morton much earlier. If he'd allowed, say, five earned runs in a third of an inning, his ERA would have been 4.10, which would have been better than the league average of 4.21.

In any event, Morton showed very good stuff but shaky command, as he often fell behind hitters. His command, and his pitching generally, improved markedly after the Chicago fiasco. His ERA after that game was 3.50. In his last four starts, he walked only eight in 29 IP, and he finished the season with a complete game, four-hit shutout. Of course, it came against a Cubs team playing mainly backups; September stats always have to be viewed with suspicion. The Pirates no doubt will be hoping to see Morton follow in Ross Ohlendorf's footsteps and have a breakout season in 2010. One note of caution is due for Morton's command, which isn't nearly as good as Ohlendorf's. On the other hand, Morton may have better stuff, as shown by his much lower HR rate. Contrary to his experience in the minors, Morton had a huge platoon split. LH batters walloped him for an OPS of .923; he held RH batters to a measly .594, including a .269 slugging average. If he can address that issue, he could very well end up as the Pirates' best starter. There's also a very good chance that, by himself, he'll more than justify the hugely unpopular McLouth trade.

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