Akeel Jamael Morris (born November 14, 1992) is an American professional baseball pitcher who is a free agent. He has previously played in Major League Baseball (MLB) for the New York Mets, Atlanta Braves, and Los Angeles Angels. He was drafted by the Mets in the 10th round of the 2010 MLB draft, and made his MLB debut with them in 2015.
Early life
Akeel Morris was born in Saint Thomas, U.S. Virgin Islands to Kenneth, a crane operator from Saint Kitts, and Corlette, an insurance agent from Antigua. Before he began to focus on pitching, his favorite baseball player was
Derek Jeter; afterwards, it was
Josh Beckett.
Morris attended Charlotte Amalie High School. In December 2009, he pitched a perfect game, striking out all 15 batters he faced.
Professional career
New York Mets
Morris was drafted by the New York Mets in the 10th round, with the 302nd overall selection, of the 2010 Major League Baseball draft.
He made his professional debut that season for the rookie-level Gulf Coast League Mets. He appeared in eight games with six starts, going 1–1 with a 2.19 ERA and 28 strikeouts over innings.
Morris played 2011 and 2012 with the rookie-level Kingsport Mets.
After splitting time between starting and relieving his first four seasons, Morris became a full-time reliever for the Single-A Savannah Sand Gnats of the South Atlantic League in 2014. In a game against the Augusta GreenJackets in April, Morris struck out four batters in one inning.
Morris began the 2015 season with the St. Lucie Mets of the High-A Florida State League (FSL), for whom he was 0–1 with a 1.69 ERA with 46 strikeouts and 13 saves in 32 innings, and was a mid-season FSL All Star.
Morris began the 2016 campaign with Double-A Binghamton, and posted a 2-2 record and 4.62 ERA with 36 strikeouts and six saves across 22 relief appearances.
Atlanta Braves
On June 8, 2016, the Mets traded Morris to the
Atlanta Braves in exchange for Kelly Johnson.
He was assigned to the Double–A Mississippi Braves on the same day. On August 12, Morris was recalled by the Braves.
The next day, Morris was optioned down to Mississippi.
On July 6, 2017, Morris was promoted to the Braves' major league roster.
With the Braves, he was 1–0 with a 1.23 ERA and nine strikeouts in innings.
Morris'
fastball topped out at 95 miles per hour, and his best pitch was a fading
change-up.
Morris was designated for assignment by the Braves on March 31, 2018.
Los Angeles Angels
On April 3, 2018, Morris was traded to the Los Angeles Angels in exchange for cash considerations or a player to be named later.
The Angels called up Morris four days later and he pitched in the game that day.
He made nine appearances for the Angels, logging a 5.79 ERA with seven strikeouts across 14 innings of work. On August 15, Morris was designated for assignment by Los Angeles.
He cleared waivers and was sent outright to the Triple–A Salt Lake Bees on August 18.
Morris made 40 appearances for Salt Lake on the year, struggling to a 7.04 ERA with 45 strikeouts and 5 saves across 46 innings pitched. He elected free agency following the season on November 2.
High Point Rockers
On April 1, 2019, Morris was drafted by the High Point Rockers of the Atlantic League of Professional Baseball at the 2019 ALPB Player Showcase.
In 22 appearances for the Rockers, Morris recorded a 4.23 ERA with 23 strikeouts across innings pitched.
New Britain Bees
On July 8, 2019, Morris was traded to the Southern Maryland Blue Crabs of the Atlantic League of Professional Baseball. On July 12, he was traded to the New Britain Bees in order to complete an earlier trade, without appearing in a game for the Blue Crabs. In 16 appearances (13 starts) for the Bees, Morris compiled a 7-4 record and 4.94 ERA with 52 strikeouts across innings pitched.
Long Island Ducks
On November 6, 2019, Morris was selected by the Long Island Ducks in the New Britain Bees dispersal draft. Morris did not play in a game in 2020 due to the cancellation of the ALPB season because of the COVID-19 pandemic and became a free agent after the year. On May 17, 2021, Morris re-signed with the Ducks.
In three starts for Long Island, he threw 14 scoreless innings and struck out 17 batters.
San Francisco Giants
On June 11, 2021, Morris's contract was purchased by the San Francisco Giants organization.
He split the remainder of the year with the Double-A Richmond Flying Squirrels and Triple-A Sacramento River Cats. Morris made 15 appearances (14 starts) for the two affiliates, accumulating a 7-3 record and 5.57 ERA with 86 strikeouts over 76 innings of work. He elected free agency following the season on November 7.
Long Island Ducks (second stint)
On March 31, 2022, Morris again signed with the Long Island Ducks.
He made 24 starts for Long Island, compiling a 6-10 record and 5.65 ERA with 96 strikeouts across innings pitched. Morris became a free agent following the season.
High Point Rockers (second stint)
On March 21, 2025, Morris signed with the High Point Rockers of the Atlantic League of Professional Baseball.
In four appearances for the Rockers, he struggled to a 13.50 ERA with five strikeouts across innings pitched. Morris was released by High Point on May 11.
International career
Morris was selected to represent Great Britain at the 2023 World Baseball Classic qualifiers.
External links
