With no playoffs awaiting, the Atlanta Braves will honor one of the team’s favorite players with the starting assignment on Sunday when they host the Pittsburgh Pirates in the final game of the regular season.
The Pirates (71-90) have won the first two games of the series and have won six of their last seven games. The Braves (75-86) have lost three in a row and dropped a series to Pittsburgh for the first time since 2017.
The Braves will give 41-year-old right-hander Charlie Morton (9-11, 5.89 ERA) what is expected to be the final start of his long major league career. The veteran will face Johan Oviedo (2-0, 3.57).
Morton is expected to pitch an inning or so and yield to Chris Sale, the scheduled starter.
The Braves did a similar thing at the end of Phil Niekro’s career. In 1987, Atlanta brought the 48-year-old knuckleballer back for a final home start before he retired.
“We talked about it, trying to think of the best possible way to make it a special day since we did bring Charlie back and he’s meant so much to the organization,” Atlanta manager Brian Snitker said. “It’s something you can control if he’s an opener, and do a nice thing by honoring him and his career and what’s he’s meant to, not only us, but to baseball.”
Morton was originally drafted by the Braves in 2001 and made his debut in 2008. He was traded to Pittsburgh and played with Philadelphia, Houston and Tampa Bay before rejoining the Braves in 2021.
He played with the Braves from 2021-2024, but departed after signing a free-agent deal with Baltimore in the offseason. He was traded to Detroit at the deadline but released last week. The Braves signed Morton and brought him home for one final start before he retires.
“The way my year’s gone, it’s been crazy,” Morton said. “So the thought of coming back and being around guys here — the year has been surreal, in oftentimes bad ways. So having the chance to feel a little bit at home, a little peace is nice.”
Morton etched a permanent place in the hearts of Atlanta fans when he helped them win the championship in 2021. His right fibula was fractured when struck by a line drive in the first game of the World Series against Houston, but he continued to pitch and retired three batters before being taken out of the game because of the pain.
Oviedo is making his ninth start after missing the entire 2024 season because of arm surgery. He returned in mid-August and has allowed more than two runs in only one appearance.
In his last start on Tuesday, a 4-2 win over Cincinnati, Oviedo worked 4 2/3 innings and allowed two runs on two hits and three walks with a season-high seven strikeouts.
“It was good to see Oviedo come back and do what he did,” Pirates outfielder Tommy Pham said. “He’s going to help us a lot. I think he’s a big part of this team’s future. Coming back from injury is always tough. He’s shown tremendous perseverance.”
Morton has a 1-0 record with an ERA of 2.92 in two career appearances against the Pirates. Oviedo has no decisions with an ERA of 5.06 in two career appearances versus the Braves.