Charlie Morton, Braves Reportedly Agree to 1-Year, $15M Contract in Free Agency

Tony Gutierrez/Associated Press

Starting pitcher Charlie Morton agreed to a one-year, $15 million contract with the Atlanta Braves on Tuesday.

MLB.com’s Mark Feinsand first reported the agreement.

The contract is worth the same amount of money that he would have made from the Tampa Bay Rays, who declined his option for next season.

Morton spent the last two seasons with the Rays, playing an integral role in the club’s march to the World Series in 2020. Once he got to the postseason, he allowed 18 hits and six earned runs over 20 innings.

He finished his Rays tenure with a 3.33 ERA and 1.135 WHIP in 232.2 regular-season innings.

As he enters his age-37 season, Morton will look to show he can still be a middle-of-the-rotation option for a Braves team that needs pitching depth. That became clear after Mike Soroka suffered a torn Achilles in early August.

Ian Anderson and Max Fried, who combined for a 2.15 ERA with 91 strikeouts in 88.1 innings, anchored the rotation throughout the season.

With the reported addition of Morton and the expected return of Soroka early next season, Atlanta’s rotation has the team positioned to challenge the Los Angeles Dodgers for National League supremacy in 2021.