Ray lasted only five innings in Houston on Wednesday, giving up three runs on six hits and two walks while striking out six.
It took Ray 99 pitches just to get that far, part of a larger trend of inefficiency -- he's failed to pitch even six innings in seven of his last eight starts. Ray owns a fantastic 10.42 K/9, which will keep him on a lot of fantasy rosters (especially in keeper leagues), but his too-high walk rate has combined with some bad luck on batted balls to leave him with a 4.74 ERA so far. That's the bad news. The good news is that his xFIP -- considered one of the best indicators of future ERA -- is a full point lower, and that .360 BABIP should come down. Until that transpires, though, Ray needs to be deployed with extreme caution.