Houston Astros: Morton earns the honor of home-opener starter
By Kyle Cardoza
Houston Astros manager A.J. Hinch contemplated about how the pitching rotation should look. One thing he did was ensure that Charlie Morton deserved recognition for what he did in last year’s World Series.
Before the 2017 season, Charlie Morton was nothing more than a risky, inconsistent starting pitcher ravaged by injuries. But the Houston Astros took a chance on him, giving him a back-end rotation spot.
Their decision paid off handsomely.
Morton posted the best season in his career and earned the final out of the World Series, giving Houston its first ever title. Now manager A.J. Hinch is rewarding him for it by allowing him to pitch the first game at Minute Maid Park this season.
“I wanted Charlie to pitch the home opener,” Hinch told Jake Kaplan of the Athletic. “I think that’s something special that he’s earned.”
Fans will remember the 34-year-old’s relief outing against Los Angeles to clinch the title for the Astros. All he needed to do was force outs and limit the Dodgers. That’s exactly what he did.
Morton tossed four innings of one-run ball that game, striking out four and surrendering just two hits. That performance gave him the lowest ERA on the club in the World Series amongst anyone that pitched more than five innings.
The right-hander will look to recreate last year’s productive campaign. He registered career highs in wins and strikeouts while also sporting his lowest WHIP and hits-per-nine-innings ratio.
Morton amassed those accomplishments all while suffering an injury that kept him out for a few weeks. With a solid defense behind him and one of the best offenses in the game, Morton has a great opportunity to piece together another successful year.
What’s the rest of the rotation look like?
The Astros announced the starting five Saturday with no surprises.
Hinch dubbed Justin Verlander the Opening Day starter, followed by Dallas Keuchel, Lance McCullers Jr. and newcomer Gerrit Cole. All four of the hurlers will face off against the Rangers in Arlington.
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Houston’s rotation is one of just two with multiple Cy Young winners – Boston has the other one. Though analysts might not predict another Cy Young victory this season, the Astros possess arguably the best five-man staff in all of baseball.
The biggest issue Houston had last season pitching-wise was staying healthy. Mike Fiers, who was generally awful, led the club with 153 1/3 innings pitched. Only two other starters logged more than 140 innings – Morton and Keuchel. However, Verlander and Cole each notched 200 inning-seasons in 2017, so that counts too.
Astros starters ranked sixth in the MLB in ERA last year without Verlander and Cole. Only the Yankees and Indians ranked higher in the American League.
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Thus, they looked poised to be in the top five once again. Hinch and general manager Jeff Luhnow should be happy with what they have at this point, as long as the arms stay healthy.