List of Toronto Blue Jays Opening Day starting pitchers


The Toronto Blue Jays are a Major League Baseball team based in Toronto, Ontario. They play in the American League East division. The Blue Jays first played their home games at Exhibition Stadium until, when they moved into the SkyDome, which was renamed Rogers Centre in 2005. The first game of the new baseball season for a team is played on Opening Day, and being named the Opening Day starter is an honour, which is often given to the player who is expected to lead the pitching staff that season, though there are various strategic reasons why a team's best pitcher might not start on Opening Day. The Blue Jays have used 25 different Opening Day starting pitchers in their 43 seasons. The 25 starters have a combined Opening Day record of 15 wins, 16 losses and 12 no decisions. No decisions are only awarded to the starting pitcher if the game is won or lost after the starting pitcher has left the game.
The Blue Jays first Opening Day starting pitcher was Bill Singer, who received a no decision against the Chicago White Sox. Roy Halladay holds the Blue Jays' record for most Opening Day starts with seven consecutively from to, and has an Opening Day record of 3–3. Halladay also has the most starts at home with four. Dave Lemanczyk has the worst winning percentage as the Opening Day starting pitcher with a record of 0–2, both of which were pitched away from Exhibition Stadium.
Overall, the Blue Jays' Opening Day starting pitchers have a record of 0 wins and 1 loss at Exhibition Stadium, and 6 wins and 4 losses at SkyDome/Rogers Centre. In addition, although the Blue Jays were nominally the home team on Opening Day 2001, the game was played in Hiram Bithorn Stadium in Hato Rey, Puerto Rico. Esteban Loaiza started the game in Hato Rey and won, making the Blue Jays' Opening Day starting pitchers' combined home record 6 wins and 4 losses, and their away record 6 wins and 9 losses. The Blue Jays went on to play in the American League Championship Series playoff games in 1985, 1989 and 1991, and won the World Series in 1992 and 1993. Dave Stieb, Jimmy Key and Jack Morris were the Opening Day starting pitchers those years, and had a combined Opening Day record of 2 wins and 3 losses.
The Blue Jays and the Cleveland Indians currently hold the record for the longest Opening Day game in Major League history. They set that record on Opening Day 2012, when Jairo Asencio of the Indians gave up a 3-run home run in the top of the 16th inning to give the Blue Jays the win. This broke the record of 15 innings set between the Indians and the Detroit Tigers in 1960.
The Blue Jays would later participate in the ALCS in 2015 and 2016.

Key

Pitchers

SeasonPitcherDecisionOpponentLocationRef
1977ND Chicago White SoxExhibition Stadium
1978LDetroit TigersTiger Stadium
1979LKansas City RoyalsKauffman Stadium
1980 LSeattle MarinersKingdome
1981ND Detroit TigersTiger Stadium
1982LMilwaukee BrewersExhibition Stadium
1983WBoston Red SoxFenway Park
1984 ND Seattle MarinersKingdome
1985* LKansas City RoyalsKauffman Stadium
1986 LTexas RangersArlington Stadium
1987ND Cleveland IndiansExhibition Stadium
1988 WKansas City RoyalsKauffman Stadium
1989* WKansas City RoyalsKauffman Stadium
1990LTexas RangersArlington Stadium
1991* LBoston Red SoxSkyDome
1992**WDetroit TigersTiger Stadium
1993** LSeattle MarinersKingdome
1994WChicago White SoxSkyDome
1995WOakland AthleticsSkyDome
1996WOakland AthleticsCashman Field
1997ND Chicago White SoxSkyDome
1998WMinnesota TwinsSkyDome
1999 LMinnesota TwinsHubert H. Humphrey Metrodome
2000ND Kansas City RoyalsSkyDome
2001WTexas RangersHiram Bithorn Stadium
2002ND Boston Red SoxFenway Park
2003LNew York YankeesSkyDome
2004 LDetroit TigersSkyDome
2005 WTampa Bay Devil RaysTropicana Field
2006 WMinnesota TwinsRogers Centre
2007 ND Detroit TigersComerica Park
2008 LNew York YankeesYankee Stadium
2009 WDetroit TigersRogers Centre
2010ND Texas RangersRangers Ballpark in Arlington
2011WMinnesota TwinsRogers Centre
2012 ND Cleveland IndiansProgressive Field
2013LCleveland IndiansRogers Centre
2014 LTampa Bay RaysTropicana Field
2015WNew York YankeesYankee Stadium
2016WTampa Bay RaysTropicana Field
2017ND Baltimore OriolesOriole Park at Camden Yards
2018LNew York YankeesRogers Centre
2019 ND Detroit TigersRogers Centre
2020ND Tampa Bay RaysTropicana Field