The Toronto Blue Jays proved their desire to win when they signed starters Kevin Gausman and Yusei Kikuchi to go alongside Jose Berrios and Alek Manoah.
The acquisitions have played right into their favor to start the 2022 season.
But the Gausman signing in particular has been the most worthwhile.
After a Cy Young caliber season last year with the San Francisco Giants, Gausman appears to have kicked it up another gear in his first season with the Blue Jays.
In his first five starts, Gausman has struck out 41 hitters.
He also has yet to allow a home run or walk a batter.
.@KevinGausman has been putting on a clinic to start the season.
(MLB x @XboxGamePass) pic.twitter.com/ZEb3heghPB
— MLB (@MLB) May 3, 2022
Gausman Is A Beast
Gausman has taken it up a notch with the Blue Jays and is absolutely dominating his foes in the American League.
He has gone from being a fringe starter to an ace in a very short amount of time.
He is 2-1 to start the season with a solid 2.27 ERA in 31.2 innings.
The loss of Robbie Ray doesn’t appear to be hurting them too much.
Perhaps for Gausman, it’s his familiarity with the AL East division.
He spent the first several years of his career with the Baltimore Orioles, so he knows what to expect out his division rivals.
But he appears to have fully completed his transformation from a fringe starter to an ace.
He is replicating his success over his two years with the Giants.
Now as an ace, he can be the one that leads this Blue Jays ballclub to the postseason after narrowly missing out in 2021.
He’s reached another level with his new team and is on an absolute roll.
We’ll see if he can keep it going and continue to pitch like an ace.
NEXT: Blue Jays And Alek Manoah Continue A Shocking Streak