Kansas City on 29 June to advance the Dynamo to the quarterfinals of the Open Cup. He scored his first career MLS goal on 9 September in a 3–3 draw with SKC. On 24 September, Manotas scored a hat trick to give Houston a 3–1 win over the Portland Timbers, becoming the youngest Dynamo to record a hat trick at 21 years of age. He was named MLS Player of the Week for his performance against the Timbers. On 8 October he scored twice in 3–2 loss to Colorado. Manotas ended the season with 9 goals and 1 assist from 25 games across all competitions. 2016 was another disappointing season for Houston, finishing last in the Western Conference. 2017 season Manotas scored his first goal of 2017 on 15 April in a 2–2 draw with Minnesota United. On 6 May, he scored 2 and assisted on another in a 4–0 win over Orlando City, earning a spot in the MLS Team of the Week. Manotas had the first multiple assist game of his career on 5 July when he recorded 2 vs the Montreal Impact, earning another Team of the Week inclusion. Between 22 July and 12 August he scored 3 goals in a 4 game stretch, with Houston winning 2 and drawing 2 of them. On the last day of the regular season, he scored once in a 3–0 win over the Chicago Fire. Manotas ended the MLS regular season with 10 goals and 5 assists from 33 appearances, all career highs. His good play helped Houston qualify for the playoffs for the first time in 3 seasons. After not appearing in their knockout round win against Sporting Kansas City, Mantoas started leg 1 of the Western Conference semifinals, a 0–0 draw with Portland. He came off the bench in leg, scoring in the 77th minute to give the Dynamo a 2–1 win. He then started both legs of the conference finals, a 5–0 aggregate loss to the Seattle Sounders. 2018 season Before the start of the 2018 season, Erick "Cubo" Torres was sold to UNAM, making Manotas the first choice striker. He repaid the club by scoring in the first game of the season, a 4–0 win against Atlanta United on 3 March. He enjoyed a strong start to the season, scoring 5 goals through the first 10 games. On 23 June he scored twice in a 3–2