Keuchel wasn't as sharp as usual with his two-seam fastball in Friday's loss to the Rangers, Chandler Rome of the Houston Chronicle reports. "I felt good initially out of the gate but felt like I was forcing my arm-side fastball too much. It was one of those days where my glove-side extension side has more movement. I gave up more hits to lefties than I would have liked. It should have been a lot better than it was," Keuchel said.
Keuchel, who's normally death on left-handed batters, walked one and gave up three hits to lefties, including Nomar Mazara's solo home run. The bearded left-hander worked with men on base in five of six innings, but other than the homer, he curtailed the damage. He'll work on the precision of the two-seamer for his next start scheduled April 4 at home against Baltimore. He won his lone start against the Orioles in 2017.