Advertisement

Charlie Morton’s return to Houston a mess as Rays lose 15-1

Morton had a bad night against his former Astros mates, knocked out after allowing six runs in four innings.
 
Tampa Bay Rays starting pitcher Charlie Morton (50) and former Houston Astros pitcher waves to crowds as he receives a video tribute during the baseball game between the Tampa Bay Rays and Houston Astros on August 27, 2019 at Minute Maid Park in Houston, Texas.
Tampa Bay Rays starting pitcher Charlie Morton (50) and former Houston Astros pitcher waves to crowds as he receives a video tribute during the baseball game between the Tampa Bay Rays and Houston Astros on August 27, 2019 at Minute Maid Park in Houston, Texas. [ LESLIE PLAZA JOHNSON/ICON SPORTSWIRE | AP ]
Published Aug. 28, 2019|Updated Aug. 28, 2019

HOUSTON — The Astros gave Charlie Morton a warm welcome back before Tuesday’s game.

They raved in the clubhouse about how he was a great pitcher and an even better teammate during the two seasons he spent with them before signing with the Rays.

Manager A.J. Hinch talked in the dugout about the strong emotion for all parties of having him back in their building for the first time, even though he was in enemy colors.

A video on the Minute Maid Park outfield board highlighted Morton’s contributions, most notably his star turn in the 2017 postseason, and drew loud cheers and then a standing ovation from the fans. Morton, who was in the outfield loosening up for his start, stopped throwing to watch the video, responding to the cheering fans by twice tipping his cap then patting his heart.

But once the game started, the Astros got downright rude, knocking Morton out after four innings and six runs on their way to a 15-1 thrashing.

Morton admitted he was “amped up” by being back in Houston, but insisted beyond that the location was only an issue with his actual pitches.

“Six runs. That’s not good. Four innings,'' he said. "I don’t know if I did a great job mixing.''

Though he did allow that the video, shown about 20 minutes before first pitch, did throw him off a bit.

"It has nothing to do with how I pitched tonight,'' he said. "That’s more like I spent two really good years here and we did some really special things over there. It means a lot. Right before game, too. That’s a little rough. They got me with that one. (And) they took it to me on the mound.''

The six runs were the most runs Morton allowed in a game this season. The four innings matched his shortest start. The overall night had to be one of his biggest disappointments in a while, though he never actually used that word in saying so.

“Like sentimental reasons, it would’ve been nice to come back in here and pitch and keep the team competitive and we would battle it out and all that,'' Morton said. "But I really wanted to come in here for my team. And keep them in the game and go deep into the game, and I didn’t do either of those things. That’s what’s important to me.

"What I did in an Astros uniform, I did in an Astros uniform. That’s not going to change. If I come out here and I throw a no-hitter, that’s not going to change what I did in an Astros uniform. It was more about coming in here and being competitive with a really good team. Come in here, pitch well, the team gets the ball rolling in the series, that’s what I wanted to do.

"But I know those guys over there, they care about me. I know the fans appreciate what I did here. That’s not going to change, for better or for worse tonight.”

Worse for the Rays, it was an abysmal showing overall in the opening game of a series in which they hoped to measure up against one of the AL’s best teams, as well as their first game in nearly a month against a team with a winning record.

Stay updated on Tampa Bay’s sports scene

Subscribe to our free Sports Today newsletter

We’ll send you news and analysis on the Bucs, Lightning, Rays and Florida’s college football teams every day.

You’re all signed up!

Want more of our free, weekly newsletters in your inbox? Let’s get started.

Explore all your options

Instead, they dropped to 76-57 and dropped back a step in the AL wild card race, now 1½ games behind the leading Indians and a game behind the second-card holding A’s, who both won.

The 15 runs the Rays allowed were their most this season, surpassing 13 by the Yankees on May 19. As were the 17 hits, having given up 16 three times. The margin of defeat was their largest of the season, surpassing a 12-1 loss on June 19 at Yankee Stadium.

Infielder Mike Brosseau was not only pressed into service again as a pitcher, but asked to work two innings as the Rays used Andrew Kittredge and Chaz Roe for an inning each and didn’t want to go further into their bullpen.

Before the game, the talk on both sides of the field was about Morton’ s return.

Though Morton pitched just two seasons for the Astros, he earned a lofty place in team history with his 2017 postseason exploits, starting and winning Game 7 of the AL Championship Series against the Yankees then closing out Game 7 of the World Series at Dodger Stadium.

Former teammates still rave about his contributions and his influence.

“I love Chuck, and I don’t think there’s a guy that’s played with him and doesn’t love him,’’ outfielder George Springer said Tuesday afternoon. “He’s such a good teammate, he’s such a great person. Much to kind of how he looks on the mound, the guy’s a crazy competitor. I got to know him pretty well over here, and I’m sad he’s gone. One of the great guys out there. But he’s on the other team and I’ve got to try and beat him.’’

In the dugout, Hinch acknowledged the emotions of the evening.

“I think facing him in the beginning of the season (at the Trop) is one thing,’’ Hinch said. “To have him come back in to our building, a building we shared with him for a couple seasons, is pretty emotional for him and for our guys. It will be great to see him, despite the fact that he’s really hard to beat.

“We’ve got to find a way to navigate around his realty good stuff and his likeable personality. We’ll compete when the game starts until the game is finished, then probably spend some quality time with him over the next couple days.’’’

Morton certainly wasn’t going to be good company Tuesday night.

He gave up a leadoff single to Springer, one of his closest friends on the team, but got through the first two innings unscathed. The third started badly, with walks to the Nos. 7 and 8 hitters, then got worse with an RBI double by Jake Reddick and, after he loaded the bases by hitting Springer, a sac fly.

The fourth was a real mess.

Alex Bregman led off with a single that surely stung Morton, since it hit on his backside, then rookie Yordan Alvarez doubled. Yuli Gurriel, another Morton favorite, doubled in two runs. A ground out later, catcher Robinson Chirinos, the ex-Ray, hit a two-run homer to make it 6-0.

Rays manager Kevin Cash, who had some fun with all the Astros-Morton talk pregame by noting “he’s ours, you know he’s not the Astros’ anymore’’decided for he said were workload management reasons that the four innings and 77 pitches (49 strikes) were enough.

"The velocity was there, it looked like he couldn’t change eye levels like we’ve seen him do in the past,'' Cash said. "But you’ve got to give credit to Houston’s lineup. Their approach is solid. There are so many times you can go through a baseball game and see how many times a pitcher gives them a hittable pitch and it doesn’t get hit. It seemed like every time Charlie threw a ball they could handle they certainly did, and made us pay for it.''

Which, Morton said, came back to what he was throwing and where he was throwing it.

"I don’t think think I did a very good job elevating fastballs,'' Morton said. "I mean, pretty much everything that they saw was middle down. There was maybe a couple balls (where I) expanded top of the zone or above the zone. It was essentially a two-pitch mix. Some two-seamers, some four-seamers, which are fastballs, (and) a lot of curveballs. They did a great job against the curveball. I didn’t make great pitches with it, but there were a few there, you know, in some situations even like 0-0 or when I’m ahead in two-trike counts where they did a really good job. I think I got two swings and misses today. I think that speaks for itself. I really believe that mixing locations and mixing pitches, and I didn’t do a very good job of that.”

Morton was matched up with Justin Verlander, who was ejected in the sixth with the Astros leading 9-0 after Tommy Pham doubled. Verlander was arguing balls and strikes.

The Astros kept piling on from there as the Rays looked bad in all areas, trailing 14-0 before Joey Wendle got them on the board with a homer in the seventh.

Contact Marc Topkin at mtopkin@tampabay.com. Follow @TBTimes_Rays.