Will the Brave bring the back their 41-year-old rotation stalwart?
In his off-season prediction column released Tuesday morning, Jeff Passan of ESPN reported Charlie Morton does indeed plan to pitch in 2025, and the expectation this winter is he’ll sign a 1-year deal with a contender.
Charlie Morton Planning To Pitch In 2025 https://t.co/2Uhydht0AO pic.twitter.com/Gad4Cah4bE
— MLB Trade Rumors (@mlbtraderumors) November 12, 2024
This, of course, comes as news as there was wide-spread speculation for most of the 2024 season, that the 41-year-old Morton, who is now a free agent, would be retiring this winter.
It would be logical to assume the Braves would have at least some interest in bringing Morton back, given they have questions at the back end of their rotation for 2025. But it would almost certainly have to be at a smaller average annual value than the $20M/year Morton has made the last few years, and it’s unclear if the Braves would make Morton their plan A, or wait to circle back around once the offseason has played out a bit more.
Even at age 40, Morton was still a serviceable back-end starter last season, posting a 4.19 ERA and a 4.46 FIP in 165 innings.
What he would be able to do at age 41 in 2025 is obviously a bigger question.