Toronto Blue Jays starter Kevin Gausman made franchise history in Friday's 3-2 Opening Day win over the Athletics. By the fifth inning, Gausman had already reached double digits in strikeouts and went on to finish with 11 over six innings, making him the first pitcher in team history to record at least 10 strikeouts in a season opener, surpassing the nine shared by Roy Halladay and Esteban Loaiza.

The 35-year-old also joined an exclusive group as just the seventh pitcher since 1901 to record 11 or more strikeouts with zero walks on Opening Day. His outing began with three consecutive strikeouts, making him only the second Blue Jays starter to strike out the first three batters of a season.

Across six innings, Gausman allowed one run on one hit, a fourth-inning solo home run by Shea Langeliers, and did not issue a walk. He threw 83 pitches with a 72.3% strike rate and generated 17 swinging strikes, consistently combining a mid-90s fastball with his splitter and slider. He carried a perfect game into the fourth inning and remained in control throughout the start.

Over 32 starts in 2025, Gausman struck out 189 batters with a 3.59 ERA. This was his first Opening Day start for Toronto since signing a five-year, $110 million contract before the 2022 season, though he previously started openers for the Baltimore Orioles in 2017 and San Francisco Giants in 2021.

The defending American League champions provided just enough support. Andres Gimenez drove in all three runs, including a walk-off single in the ninth inning. Langeliers hit two home runs for the Athletics, one of which was a game-tying shot in the ninth.