Morton (13-6) took the loss Tuesday, coughing up six runs on seven hits and two walks over four innings while striking out four as the Rays were trounced 15-1 by the Astros.
The right-hander got through the first two innings unscathed before the Houston offense erupted, and five of the seven hits Morton allowed went for extra bases. On the bright side, he did reach 200 strikeouts for the second straight season. Morton will carry a 3.11 ERA and 201:47 K:BB through 165 innings into his next start Sunday, at home against Cleveland.