Toronto Blue Jays pitcher Kevin Gausman has been excellent in his two starts this season, but doesn’t have a win to show for it.Nathan Denette/The Canadian Press
One has to feel a bit sorry for Kevin Gausman. He has made two splendid starts for the Blue Jays and has nothing to show for it.
On Wednesday the 35-year-old right-hander allowed two hits and struck out 10 batters in six shutout innings.
He is the only pitcher since 1900 to strike out 10 or more batters and walk zero in his first two starts of the season.
On opening night, he left after six innings with a 2-1 lead over the Athletics. Toronto won 3-2 but he did not get the win. That went to Jeff Hoffman.
On Wednesday he was lifted after six innings with a 1-0 advantage, but Toronto went on to fall 2-1 in 10 innings to the Colorado Rockies at Rogers Centre.
Blue Jays enter new season with an arsenal of arms ready to deliver the right pitch
Through two appearances he has thrown 12 innings, given up one run, three hits and struck out 21 batters. But he is still 0-0.
“I feel like we have done that to him a few times,” manager John Schneider said. “[Today] he was in total control, just nasty against a really aggressive team.”
Gausman had the Rockies confused, throwing wicked split-finger fastballs, moving pitches up and down in the strike zone and occasionally mixing in a slider. He threw 67 strikes on 89 pitches.
Toronto left nine runners on base and squandered several opportunities to put the game away.
Gausman left the game at the end of the sixth inning to a standing ovation with his team up 1-0 against the visiting Rockies, only to see it end up a 2-1 loss in 10 innings.Nathan Denette/The Canadian Press
“We had chances to blow the game open and it just didn’t happen,” Schneider said. “It was like that the whole series.”
Colorado starter Kyle Freeland worked out of trouble multiple times. Over the first four innings he gave up five hits, walked a batter and hit two others but still only trailed 1-0.
After going ahead 1-0 in the second inning and loading the bases with one out, the Blue Jays failed to push another run across.
They headed to Chicago later on Wednesday with a 4-2 record. They begin a three-game series against the White Sox on Friday. A game between them scheduled for Thursday was postponed due to inclement weather.
Dylan Cease, who was superb in his first start, will get the ball on Friday for the Jays, with Eric Lauer taking the mound on Saturday. Sunday’s starter has yet to be announced.
On Monday the Blue Jays will be back under the dome to play the first of three against the L.A. Dodgers. Los Angeles outlasted the Jays in seven games five months ago to win its second straight World Series.
“We definitely could have played better this series,” Gausman said. “You have to give the Rockies credit where credit is due. Their pitchers were really good.”
The Blue Jays took a 1-0 lead on a single by Davis Schneider. They maintained that advantage until the eighth inning when Tommy Nance allowed a game-tying single by Troy Johnston and walked two in one-third of an inning.
Colorado went ahead in the 10th on a single by Tyler Freeman off Brendon Little. By the time it was over Toronto had used a half-dozen pitchers, including Jeff Hoffman, who struck out the side in the ninth. In four appearances so far, he has 10 punch-outs in four innings.
The Rockies’ bullpen allowed just two hits over the final five innings. Between the two opponents they used 26 players and 11 pitchers.
Toronto’s Kazuma Okamoto got a hit in his sixth straight major league game, Ernie Clement went 2-for-4 and Myles Straw went 2-for-2.
Gausman is in his 14th big league campaign and he has experienced just about everything. He doesn’t worry about his record, but his team’s.
“All things considered he is doing all right,” John Schneider joked. “At this time in his career he is not worried about his won-loss record.
“He has a pretty good gig going on.”
He just needs a little support from his teammates to make it great.