Braves’ Charlie Morton Continues Pitching With Broken Leg

Tragedy struck the Atlanta Braves as Charlie Morton, their star pitcher, broke his leg on the mound.

Morton spun a curveball past Jose Altuve for a called third strike, his 16th pitch after taking a 102 m.p.h. comebacker off his right leg, Morton stumbled and started to fall. Nobody knew that his leg was broken, yet Morton delivered with stride until the end.

“I wouldn’t think it’s possible,” catcher Travis d’Arnaud said. “It’s incredible that he even thought of going out there.”

Morton’s right fibula was fractured by Yuli Gurriel‘s one-hop screamer leading off the second inning of Tuesday night’s World Series opener, a ball hit so hard it ricocheted to first baseman Freddie Freeman for an out.

“You don’t wish bad on anybody,” Astros manager Dusty Baker said. “Charlie Morton is one of the best guys around, too.”

Braves manager Brian Snitker said that an initial X-ray after the second failed to show a break. “He wanted to keep going, because he was down in the tunnel and he was throwing against the wall,” Snitker explained. “He said, ‘It kind of hurts more when I run. I feel good when I throw.'”

Morton went back out for the third. Still reaching up to 95.9 mph, he struck out Altuve. The 37-year-old right-hander braced himself with both arms after the pitch and grimaced as he popped back up, then rubbed at his right ankle.

“To go out there and strike out the next guy with a broken leg, it blows my mind,” d’Arnaud said, repeating for emphasis. “It blows my mind.”

Morton’s World Series was over soon after it started, but even without Morton, they took a series lead on one of the best hitting teams of this generation. They even secured their first win in a World Series game since 1996 as they seek their first title since 1995. Whether Atlanta can survive the loss of Morton remains to be seen. The 37-year-old star player seemed certain to start again later this series, probably at an even more crucial moment.

“That’s Charlie,” Snitker said. “He wants to be on this stage. God bless him, I hate it for him. Really hate it for him. He’s such a great person, great person and teammate.”

The Braves are scheduled to play against the Astros on Wednesday night. Without their star pitcher, who knows if the Braves will be able to pull out another win.