Last season, the Blue Jays made it farther than any other American League team, coming two outs away from winning the World Series. I guess MLB decided they needed some extra rest, because now Toronto has had to wait longer than any other AL club to begin its 2026 campaign. Well, its tied with Kansas City. Whichever stadium does player introductions slower will have the crown. Just something to monitor.
The Jays return most of their roster from last year, including Kevin Gausman, who will get the nod on Opening Day for his first time while in a Toronto uniform. The Athletics will counter with Luis Severino, fresh off lighting up the radar gun for the Dominican at the World Baseball Classic.
Can the Jays get 2026 started on the right foot? Or will the A’s spoil the party in Toronto? Let’s preview this Friday matchup with the help of some odds and lines on the DraftKings Sportsbook.
Athletics vs. Blue Jays prediction, preview
Kevin Gausman is entering his fifth season with the Blue Jays, finishing out what has undoubtedly been one of the most valuable contracts in baseball over the past half-decade. That said, it’ll be interesting to see how the 35-year-old looks after throwing 223.2 innings across seven months in 2025. Gausman had a very solid campaign last year, posting a 3.59 ERA and a 3.41 FIP in his 32 non-playoff starts. It was a nice bounce-back from 2024, when a Spring Training set-back led to reduced velocity for a majority of the season. Gausman’s strikeout rate rose from 21.4% to 24.4%, his swinging strike rate went from 10.5% to 12.6%, and, as you would expect, a 4.82 xERA fell by more than a run. Still, the veteran RHP isn’t the same guy who was competing for Cy Young Awards back from 2021 to 2023. Gausman’s solid, but he’s not really an ace — which is likely why Toronto found itself paying $200 million for the services of Dylan Cease this winter.
Luis Severino feels like he’s in a similar boat. Severino was not shy about his distaste for pitching at Sutter Health Park last season, and the RHP’s splits back up that sentiment. The 32-year-old owned a 6.01 ERA when pitching in Sacramento and a 3.02 mark when pitching anywhere else — in “real MLB stadiums” is probably how Severino would phrase it. Location wasn’t Severino’s only issue in 2025, though. Let’s start with the good news. Severino’s 65.7% strand rate was the fifth-lowest mark among all qualified pitchers, and some serious positive regression is on the horizon. However, you leave yourself open to factors like strand rate when opponents are consistently manufacturing batted ball events, which was the case against Severino in 2025, thanks primarily to a career-low strikeout rate (17.6%). He did strike out six Americans over 3.1 innings in the WBC semifinal. That was encouraging!
Another similarity for these two starters? A difficult matchup. Both of these lineup ranked inside the top 10 of wRC+ last season, with the Jays accomplishing the feat alongside posting the league’s lowest strikeout rate (17.8%). Toronto will need to answer some questions regarding sustainability in 2026. Mainly about whether Kazuma Okamoto can replace Bo Bichette’s production, but also about the likelihood of George Springer having another MVP calibre showing. Meanwhile, the A’s locked up most of their young and exciting core this winter, though were unable to get an extension done with Nick Kurtz. The reigning AL Rookie of the Year was a demon in 2025, finishing the season with 98th percentile marks in both bat speed (77.2) and barrel rate (18.4%). That’s how you hit 36 home runs in only 420 at-bats.
Athletics vs. Blue Jays pick, best bet
Best Bet: Over 8.5 (-118)
The ball was flying throughout the league yesterday, so I’m thinking overs might need to be the lean in the early going. Plus, you’ve got a matchup between two top 10 lineups from last season and the presence of the A’s underwhelming bullpen.
Strong Lean: Luis Severino Over 3.5 Strikeouts (-126)
I know what the stats from last season say, but this number is lower than I was expecting for a man averaging over a strikeout per inning for the whole of his career. I also just can’t shake his WBC performance. If Severino comes out pumping 99 on Friday, he’s going over this prop.
