Many questioned Detroit Tigers president of baseball operations Scott Harris for taking a more conservative approach to the 2025 MLB trade deadline, including us. Between a loaded farm system and the wide-open nature of the American League, there was a clear opportunity to push the envelope. Well, it turns out there's a reason why the American League Central leaders are paying him the big bucks to make these decisions.
Harris appeared to be off his rocker when he turned to the Baltimore Orioles for rotation help in the form of Charlie Morton. The 41-year-old hurler looked closer to retiring midseason than contributing to a World Series contender. To make matters worse, the Tigers sent rising young minor league left-hander Micah Ashman to acquire him. Nevertheless, hindsight suggests we might've been too hard on Detroit's shot-caller.
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Tigers fans should fill out a Scott Harris apology form after Charlie Morton trade deadline realization
All Morton ostensibly needed to rediscover himself was a change of scenery. His splits with the Tigers thus far are eons better than what we can safely declare a forgetful half-season stint with the Orioles. He was legitimately in the conversation for being the worst starter in the Majors early in the campaign; it's been day and night in Detroit.
The good times continued to roll in Detroit's 7-2 series finale victory over the Houston Astros. Morton recorded his third quality outing in four appearances with the Tigers. He recorded eight strikeouts while allowing only two earned runs across six strong frames en route to notching win No. 2 in Detroit.
It's on front office executives to identify talent and hidden advantages that could propel their franchises forward. Sometimes, that requires thinking outside the box and going against the grain, which Harris did. Members of the media and Detroit faithful alike weren't fond of his strategy, though they've eaten crow based on the early returns.
Morton has gone 2-2 with a 3.63 ERA, 1.075 WHIP and 29 strikeouts across 22.1 innings of work with the Tigers. He's already posted a Game Score of 63 or higher thrice, which took him 23 contests to accomplish in Baltimore. No matter how dusty and outdated it may seem, the moral of the story is to never judge a book by its cover.