Nomar Mazara connects for the Rangers first home run of the season, a line shot to center off Dallas Keuchel.

Doug Fister outduels Dallas Keuchel.

Wait, that should be:

Doug Fister outduels Dallas Keuchel?

This is what makes baseball so great. On any given day, you cannot predict what is going to happen. Even the impossible.

But Keuchel wasn’t sharp. And Fister was good enough to get the W.

So many games come down to an inning. This one came down to the sixth inning, and some close plays, and some umpire reviews.

After five solid innings from Fister, Chris Martin started the sixth because Banister. The Astros started with a Jose Altuve dying quail to right that just eluded Nomar Mazara’s glove. It took a review to prove it bounced.

Down 3-1 at the time, the Astros had a runner at first.

Then Martin struck out Carlos Correa. Which was huge.

That’s because any time Rougned Odor is on the field, it’s an meltdown waiting to happen. And it just about did happen.

Alex Bregman hit a squibler to Andrus, who tossed it a bit askance to Odor at second. Who caught it with his foot off the base, then compounded the problem by making an ill-advised throw to first that ended up six zip codes away, in the Rangers dugout, scoring Altuve.

Luckily the umpires called Altuve back to third. And after a walk loaded the bases, it looked like the Astros were ready to pounce.

But Gattis and J. D. Davis struck out to end the inning, and really end any threat the Astros would muster the rest of the game.

Houston never got anything going after that. And Texas beat Houston 5-1 for its first win of the year.

Doug Fister outduels Dallas Keuchel.

In baseball, nothing is impossible. Even the impossible.

*****
TODAY’S GAME:

Lance McCullers (0-0, -.–) vs. Matt Moore (0-0, -.–)
Game time: 3:05

How the Astros hit against Moore.
How the Rangers hit against McCullers.