TORONTO — It would have been hard to fathom a better opening weekend than the one the Toronto Blue Jays just put together against the Athletics.
Three wins, including two walk-offs, an MLB-record 50 strikeouts by the pitching staff and strong debut performances from newcomers such as starter Dylan Cease and sluggers Kazuma Okamoto and Jesus Sanchez, each of whom hit their first Blue Jays home runs on Sunday.
As pitcher Eric Lauer said: “It doesn’t feel like we ever left.”
That’s before even considering the near-sellout crowds on hand to unveil the 2025 AL Championship banner and start the celebration of the franchise’s 50th season. Or Dub Gleed, an aptly named acquisition for a team that’s still undefeated.
Now 3-0 for the first time in 30 years, the Blue Jays have a chance to gain even more ground in the standings over the next week. A rare weak spot in the schedule brings the Rockies to Toronto for three followed by three in Chicago against the White Sox.
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On paper, it’s as favourable a week as the Blue Jays will get all season. Of course, it’s now a matter of executing on the field to ensure the opportunity doesn’t go to waste — and after a weekend of dominant pitching, it’ll be time for Cody Ponce to make his Blue Jays debut Monday (coverage begins on Sportsnet and Sportsnet+ at 6:30 p.m. ET / 3:30 p.m. PT).
“The first outing is always cool,” said Blue Jays manager John Schneider. “Cody fits in with what we’re trying to do here, he understands how his stuff works. I’m excited to see him pitch.”
While we await first pitch against the Rockies, here are three more stories emerging from the weekend:
Okamoto fitting in nicely
Because Okamoto produced on the field, his teammates had plenty of moments to celebrate him, showering him with Gatorade and beer and dressing him in the home run jacket he’d previously admired from Japan.
“I didn’t think this day would come,” he said through interpreter Yusuke Oshima. “That was an awesome feeling.”
While the home run was his biggest moment of the weekend, Okamoto collected three other hits while making all the plays at third, where he started all three games.
“I don’t think he’s going to have many problems adjusting,” Lauer said. “He’s very polished and ready to go.”
Quietly, other aspects of Okamoto’s game were tested, too. For instance: he found himself running at third base on two different occasions Friday, putting his communication skills to the test right away.
Interpreters like Oshima obviously aren’t permitted on the basepaths so in those moments, it’s on Okamoto to communicate directly with third base coach Carlos Febles about what to anticipate.
As the Blue Jays saw in Game 7 of the World Series when Isiah Kiner-Falefa was thrown out at home on a close play, even a fraction of a second matters. Realizing the importance of communication, Febles worked with Okamoto throughout spring training, speaking in English and even a little Spanish. Now a few games into the regular season, the Blue Jays are encouraged by how well Okamoto can understand instructions from Febles and put them into practice.
“He’s fine,” Febles said. “He knows baseball, and baseball has the same language. Like ‘Attack,’ or ‘See it through here’ or ‘Go on contact.’ He dominates on that, and we can also add in hand signals. It’ll take a little bit, but so far so good. He’ll be fine.”
Depth on display
Schneider found a way to get every player from the roster into the opening weekend except for starters Ponce and Max Scherzer, who didn’t appear for obvious reasons. Mixing everyone in wasn’t the first priority — Job 1 is winning the games, of course — but it’s a pleasant byproduct of how things unfolded.
Rule 5 pick Spencer Miles earned his first big-league win in his MLB debut, an experience he described as “surreal,” while bench players Tyler Heineman and Myles Straw each earned starts and responded with hits.
None of that fundamentally shifts how the Blue Jays are likely to use their roster, but Sanchez did make a strong impression by hitting a 417-foot home run out of the No. 2 spot in the batting order Sunday. With Tomoyuki Sugano slated to start for Colorado on Monday, that could be another chance for the Blue Jays to deploy Sanchez’s power against a right-handed starting pitcher, often a favourable matchup.
Starting rotation shines
Lauer’s impressive start Sunday showed that the Blue Jays have the starting pitching depth to hold their own even while the likes of Trey Yesavage, Jose Berrios and Shane Bieber work their way back to full strength. The left-hander pitched 5.1 innings Sunday, walking just one while striking out nine.
Eventually, there could be some tough decisions for the Blue Jays but no one’s on the brink of returning, so for now there’s no need to consider adjusting the rotation. That means Lauer will get more chances to prove he belongs, including over the weekend against the White Sox.
With Lauer now in the rotation, it’s less clear who the organization’s next arm up would be, but a couple of pitchers on the big-league radar had notable performances over the weekend. Grant Rogers struggled in his first start of the season, allowing six runs in 2.1 innings, but Chad Dallas struck out five over three innings Sunday while allowing one run and throwing 58 pitches. Meanwhile, Adam Macko and Lazaro Estrada pitched well in multi-inning relief roles.
Regardless of who’s pushing toward the major leagues, there’s rarely if ever any reason for a pitcher to fear for their rotation spot when their strikeout-to-walk ratio is 9:1.
