MINNEAPOLIS — During the peak of his career, Dallas Keuchel was the Grandmaster of the Groundball. Then he was done in by the fortune changes of baseball life.
Injuries, dropping velocity, losing the feel for pitches — the things that end careers —threatened to send Keuchel home for good. From 2014-2018 Keuchel finished in the top three of pitchers with the highest ground ball percentage four times. And he did it while pitching in hitter-friendly Minute Maid Park while with Houston.
He was no longer that guy in recent seasons. When he was released by Texas last September, he went home to Arizona to assess his future.
He didn't have to pitch again. He didn't have to train, recalibrate his mechanics, look for another team to sign with then risk having opposing hitters tell him it was all a waste of time. According to baseballreference.com, he had nearly $100 million in career earnings, so he didn't have to chase the bag. Heck, he could just watch his wife, former sports reporter Kelly Nash, continue her acting career and let her bring home the bacon. You might have seen Nash in a few episodes of "Succession."
"There was a lot of thought about just walking away and doing some things that I wanted to [in] post-career mode," Keuchel said, "but my body started getting back to health and I started to get that itch."
Keuchel made that statement last week from CHS Field, as he's decided to chase a different bag — the rosin bag. He signed a minor league deal with the Twins on June 22 and is giving the major leagues another try at age 35. An American League Cy Young Award winner in 2014, Keuchel was released by the White Sox, Diamondbacks and Rangers last season. It's not the way he wants his career to end. But he needed a few months off to get his mind and body right. He knew if he could fix those components then the third one, his competitive drive, could help him return to the majors.
Eventually, he fixed the first two. Nash helped him get in the right headspace. Then he visited the baseball performance factory that has become the rage of the sport — the Driveline Baseball Academy. One recently opened in Scottsdale, Ariz., not far from where he lived. He examined his biomechanics with Chris Langin, Driveline's director of pitching. Kuechel knew injuries had affected the quality of his pitches, particularly his slider.
"There was some pushback from my shoulder from me throwing so many sliders and so many breaking balls," Keuchel said. "Really my change-up took over as the offspeed pitch. My cutter morphed into my slider, and I just didn't really have the feel for a slider after awhile."
Keuchel chose the Twins over a handful of teams because of their pitching program. He also feels Rocco Baldelli is a very good player's manager. In two starts with the Saints, Keuchel has allowed one earned run over 8 1/3 innings as he builds arm strength. His next scheduled start is Friday at Iowa.
Those of you traumatized by the Twins' recent dealings with veteran pitchers should understand that Keuchel is not another Dylan Bundy, who was recently suspended for sticky hands while with the Mets' Class AAA team, or Chris Archer, who remains a free agent. Keuchel, for one, has achieved more than those two pitchers. Secondly, he was signed for depth, not to be a mid-rotation stabilizer.
It wouldn't be surprising if the Twins give Keuchel a look sooner than later. Keuchel has an out clause in his deal toward the end of July. The Twins could use a lefty in the rotation. And they don't want to wear down current starters. Bailey Ober, for instance, hasn't thrown 100 innings in a season as a professional.
So perhaps Keuchel will get the opportunity to extend his baseball life in the coming weeks — and enjoy a reunion with his former Gold Glove-winning shortstop in Houston, Carlos Correa.
"I did hit him up right before I signed," Keuchel said. "I said, 'Hey man, I'm hoping to be up with you guys soon.' "
