Blue Jays – A brief history overview of starting the season on the road

The first year was 1991 when the Blue Jays faced the Boston Red Sox at home and lost 6-2, with Dave Stieb earning the loss in the contest. Later that year, Toronto would finish the campaign with a 91-71 record and won the AL East division before dropping the ALCS series to the Minnesota Twins.

The other came in 2022 when the Blue Jays hosted the Texas Rangers and won in a come-from-behind fashion by a score of 10-8. Jays starter José Berríos was unable to get out of the first inning while allowing four runs and the team was able to claw their way back into the game by scoring runs from the fourth inning on, with Jordan Romano locking down the save.

The remaining series have all started on the road, with the Jays facing Kansas City (1985 & 1989), Detroit (1992), Seattle (1993), New York (2015), Tampa (2020) and St. Louis (2023). Their record stands at 6-2, with the Jays losing the 1985 and 1993 home openers.

Current three-game road win streak

Since the 2020 season, the Blue Jays have made three of their last four Opening Day starts away from Toronto. The last Opening Day start at the Rogers Centre came back in 2022, as mentioned previously.

Since 2020, the Blue Jays have fared well when starting the season on the road:

2020: vs. Tampa Bay Rays (6-4) – Jays win
2021: vs. New York Yankees (3-2) – Jays win in extras
2023: vs. St. Louis Cardinals (10-9) – Jays win

Their last road loss to start the year came back in 2017 when the Jays dropped a 3-2 decision to the Baltimore Orioles at Camden Yards. Tied at 2-2 heading into the 11th inning, Jays reliever Jason Grilli entered the game and gave up a home run to Mark Trumbo, with the Orioles winning via a walk-off.

Before that loss in Baltimore, the Jays had won their two previous contests on the road, beating the Yankees in 2015 and the Rays in 2016.

Should the Blue Jays win their game against Tampa on Thursday, it would be the first time the franchise has won four consecutive road wins on Opening Day. They have tied with three wins before (2002, 2005, 2007) but have not found a fourth consecutive road win to open the season.

History against Tampa is not a cause for concern

Since 1977, the Blue Jays and the Tampa Bay Rays have faced each other four times down in Florida to start the year (2005, 2014, 2016, 2020).

While Toronto has a checkered history at Tropicana Field, any past issues with winning games against Tampa in their home stadium escape them when it comes to Opening Day.

The Blue Jays currently hold the advantage over their AL East rival at 3-1 when the Rays are the home team. The only loss for the Jays came in 2014 when former Jays pitcher David Price held Toronto batters to just two runs through 7 1/3 innings while knuckleballer R.A. Dickey earned the loss in the 9-2 affair.

As well, the Rays got the last laugh in the 2020 season, when the Jays took the home opener but Tampa swept the Blue Jays in the AL Wild Card later that season (at Tropicana Field) and eventually advanced to the World Series before falling to the Los Angeles Dodgers.

The quick hits

• Current record on the road for Opening Day: 14-14
• The Blue Jays have two walk-off road win losses on Opening Day – Seattle (1984) & Texas (2010)
• Most runs scored on a road game Opening Day: 2002 – Blue Jays win 12-11 over the Boston Red Sox
  • A sac fly by Darrin Fletcher in the ninth inning gave the Blue Jays the lead
  • Kelvim Escobar earned the save

Tyson Shushkewich is a contributor at the Blue Jays Nation. He can be followed on X or Instagram at Tyson_MLB or reached via email at Tyson_MLB@hotmail.com