Former All-Star Charlie Morton Set to Make Baltimore Orioles History on Friday

The Orioles will take on the Toronto Blue Jays on Friday night with the 41-year-old getting his first look in an O's uniform.
Baltimore Orioles pitcher Charlie Morton (50)  during spring training workouts at Ed Smith Stadium on Feb. 16.
Baltimore Orioles pitcher Charlie Morton (50) during spring training workouts at Ed Smith Stadium on Feb. 16. / Kim Klement Neitzel-Imagn Images
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After a six-home run barrage on Thursday, the Baltimore Orioles will take on the Toronto Blue Jays again on Friday night at Rogers Centre in Toronto.

And when they do, starting pitcher Charlie Morton will make some franchise history, according to Sarah Langs of MLB.com.

Charlie Morton makes his Orioles debut

Morton (41 years, 136 days) will be the oldest pitcher to start a game for the franchise since Satchel Paige (47 years, 77 days) did so for the St. Louis Browns on September 22, 1953

Lifetime, Morton is 138-123 over 17 seasons with the Pittsburgh Pirates, Atlanta Braves, Tampa Bay Rays, Philadelphia Phillies and Houston Astros. He's a two-time All-Star and a two-time World Series champion (2017, 2021) who has won double-digit games in six different seasons.

With the Rays, Morton went 16-6 back in the 2019 season and he helped Tampa get to the World Series back in the COVID-shortened season.

Morton struck out 167 batters in 165.1 innings for Atlanta last year, still flashing his trademark curveball and a solid sinking fastball.

Morton has thrown 163.1 innings or more in each of the last four seasons with Atlanta. He also threw 194.2 innings for the 2019 Rays, meaning that he's hit that 163.1 or more number in each of the last five full seasons. The 2020 season was shortened to 60 games.

The Orioles finished second in the American League East in 2024 while the Blue Jays finished last.

Morton will be opposed on the mound by veteran Kevin Gausman.

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Brady Farkas
BRADY FARKAS

Brady Farkas is a baseball writer for Fastball on Sports Illustrated/FanNation and the host of 'The Payoff Pitch' podcast which can be found on Apple Podcasts and Spotify. Videos on baseball also posted to YouTube. Brady has spent nearly a decade in sports talk radio and is a graduate of Oswego State University. You can follow him on Twitter @WDEVRadioBrady.