Pirates' newest hire could lead to reunion with beloved veteran starter

It had been a quiet and slow start to the offseason for the Pittsburgh Pirates, but the team has finally made some moves, and there could be more in short order.

While many fans were excited to see a new hitting coach in the fold, that move was quickly overshadowed by the addition of Brent Strom to the coaching staff. The 76-year-old has nearly 30 years of coaching experience and a thoroughly impressive resume.

Strom was the pitching coach of the Houston Astros from 2014-2021, during which time the team won three American League pennants, one of which culminated in a World Series championship. Houston's pitchers recorded the second-most wins and the fifth-best ERA in MLB during Strom's tenure. He also oversaw Cy Young-winning seasons from two different pitchers and was named Baseball America's Coach of the Year in 2018.

After a brief retirement, Strom joined the Arizona Diamondbacks as their pitching coach and enjoyed similar success there, reaching another World Series and watching pitchers like Zac Gallen, Merrill Kelly, and Brandon Pfaadt develop under his tutelage.

Much of the appeal here comes from the abundance of young, high-end pitching talent the Pirates already possess, and that makes sense; who wouldn't want to pair Paul Skenes, Jared Jones, and Bubba Chandler with a coach who unlocked higher levels of success out of guys like Justin Verlander and Gerrit Cole?

Strom's addition could make Pittsburgh an attractive potential destination for free agent pitchers. Many veteran pitchers flourished working with Strom in Houston, one of whom is a current free agent and a former Pirate who could find his way back to Pittsburgh - Charlie Morton.

Brent Strom joining the Pirates' coaching staff could result in a reunion with Charlie Morton.

Morton just turned 41 but has expressed interest in continuing his career, which has already spanned 17 MLB seasons. He had a fine 2024 campaign, recording 30 starts for a sixth consecutive season (excluding the shortened 2020 season) and posting a 4.19 ERA, 1.33 WHIP, and, despite his age, still managing to strike out greater than a batter per inning.

Morton has become a household name, a two-time All-Star, was an AL Cy Young finalist in 2019, and has earned well over $100 million in his career. But the bulk of his success came after joining the Astros at age 33 and teaming up with Strom. His numbers from his two seasons in Houston look a lot different compared to the first nine seasons of his career:

Not often does a pitcher see significant improvements in velocity, durability, and overall effectiveness in his mid-thirties, but with Strom's help, Charlie Morton was able to make that happen. Both parties have publicly voiced how much they enjoyed working with each other. Strom once referred to Morton as "one of my top three all time I've ever been around," and Morton offered his praise of Strom's pitching philosophy, saying that it "makes it a lot easier to pitch."

Morton, being a free agent, will have all the say in where he goes to continue his career. As he's gotten older, he's exclusively signed with east coast teams in order to stay close to his family - since leaving Houston, he has only played for Tampa Bay and Atlanta. David O'Brien, who covered Morton in Atlanta over the past four seasons, has reported that this is still Morton's desire as he hits the open market again.

Morton and his family reside in Bradenton, Florida, which is the Spring Training home of, you guessed it, the Pittsburgh Pirates.

While starting pitching isn't high on the Pirates' list of needs this winter, adding a veteran starter like Morton would allow Ben Cherington to trade other pitchers on the roster to improve the offense. Adding Morton in addition to Strom would also infuse a very young pitching group with wisdom and playoff experience.

It would make sense for Morton, who has already won two World Series rings, to chase a third when choosing where to spend his age-41 season. Teams like the Yankees, Braves, Mets, and Orioles are looking to add starting pitching, are World Series contenders, and satisfy Morton's geographic requirements.

But Pittsburgh represents a unique opportunity - the Pirates are an organization on the rise, with one of the most talented young pitchers in the sport's history and a coach with whom Morton already has a strong rapport. Should he decide to run it back for one more season, that could be a fun way to go out.