Aaron Nola’s velocity is down. Here’s why the Phillies say they aren’t panicking.

HOUSTON — Much has been made of Aaron Nola’s pitch velocity this season. He is averaging 91.7 mph on his fastball, which ranks in the 12th percentile in baseball. It is a little slower than what he averaged last year (92.8 mph). The hardest pitch he threw in Friday’s 3-1 win over the Astros was a 92.7 mph sinker to Jake Meyers in the second inning.

Despite that, Nola gave the Phillies his best outing of the season. Watching from the visitor’s dugout, pitching coach Caleb Cotham didn’t focus as much on the radar gun. Instead, he looked at Nola’s pace. Nola is a slow worker and the introduction of the pitch clock has been a tough adjustment for him. But on Friday, he seemed to be working within the rhythm of the game.

“He wasn’t too quick or too slow,” Cotham said. “He just fast enough.”

That is the zone the Phillies would like Nola to stay in. It’s been a work in progress. He’s learned to cut out certain parts of his routine. There isn’t as much time to grab the rosin bag, or rub his hands with dirt, or knock the mud off his cleats. But the biggest adjustment he has made is not trying to throw too hard, too early — which is why we might be seeing a slight dip in his velocity.

“We’re on a timed clock out there,” Nola said. “If you’re going to go out there and throw as hard as you can as a starter, all the time, you’re going to get gassed after five innings.

“Don’t get me wrong. Some guys can do it. But it’s not up for me to go out there and rip everything for five innings and go out for the sixth inning and be completely gassed.”

Nola isn’t sure if the change in his pace accounts the entire velocity dip, but he says it’s at least part of it. At the beginning of the season, he felt he was overthrowing early. In an attempt to go deeper into games, he’s been trying to better pace himself. He saw Friday’s outing as a success in that regard.

Nola went eight innings and allowed just three hits, no walks, and one runs. His command of his secondary pitches got better as the game went on. He kept the Astros off balance with a steady diet of curveballs, changeups, and cutters. He threw mostly curveballs, and only 18 fastballs. In all, he totaled 107 pitches, including 72 strikes.

“At this time, with the pitch clock, I really don’t care about the velocity,” he said. “It’s more necessary when I need it in certain situations. But I’d rather have early groundouts and early popups any day. Strikeouts are whatever, they’re great, but to get in and out quicker and go deeper into the game is more important than anything.

“Every guy is different. I actually think my ball moves better when I’m throwing slower. When it’s at 90-92 mph, it moves a little bit more. My two-seam, side to side, down a little bit, more horizontal; more vertical on my changeup. But it just depends. If the fastball is higher, everything else is going to be higher, usually.”

Some pitchers need to rely on their velocity, but Nola is not one of those pitchers. He never has been. This is why, right now, the Phillies aren’t concerned with the initial velocity numbers.

“It’s something we’re trying to keep tabs on,” said Cotham. “I’d say more of a no-panic situation for me and him because the goal isn’t to throw harder, it’s to get outs. It’s not like, hey, we have to fix this tomorrow.

“I wouldn’t want to go crazy in a bullpen [session] and get him to 94 mph and get him out of his rhythm of his delivery. Let’s slow build and chip away at it over time.”

Manager Rob Thomson said Nick Nelson (left hamstring strain) will pitch again on Tuesday at double-A Reading. He’ll go four innings and get up to about 70 pitches. … Ranger Suárez (left elbow strain) will pitch with triple-A Lehigh Valley on Tuesday. He’ll be limited to three innings and 50 pitches.