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Toronto Blue Jays Officially Tab José Berríos as Opening Day Starting Pitcher

For the second season in a row and the third time in four years, All-Star right-hander José Berríos will take the mound on Opening Day for the Toronto Blue Jays.

Sam Connon

Dunedin, Florida, USA; Toronto Blue Jays pitcher Jose Berrios (17) throws a pitch against the Atlanta Braves in the first inning during spring training at TD Ballpark.
Dunedin, Florida, USA; Toronto Blue Jays pitcher Jose Berrios (17) throws a pitch against the Atlanta Braves in the first inning during spring training at TD Ballpark. / Nathan Ray Seebeck-Imagn Images
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Veteran right-hander José Berríos will start on Opening Day for the Toronto Blue Jays, the team announced Monday morning.

Berríos will face off against the Baltimore Orioles for the regular season opener at Rogers Centre on March 27, with first pitch scheduled for 3:07 p.m. ET. It will mark his second consecutive Opening Day start for the Blue Jays, and his third in four years.

The 30-year-old will be tied with Jimmy Key for third-most Opening Day starts in franchise history. Dave Stieb ranks second with four, while Roy Halladay leads the way with seven.

The Blue Jays won in each of Berríos' previous two Opening Day appearances, although the righty didn't earn the victory after allowing four earned runs in 0.1 innings to kickstart the 2022 campaign. In 2024, Berríos allowed six hits, one walk and two earned runs with six strikeouts in 6.0 innings of work.

Berríos started on Opening Day for the Minnesota Twins in 2019 and 2020, before he got traded to Toronto. For his career, Berríos is 2-0 with a 5.50 ERA, 1.278 WHIP and 8.5 strikeouts per nine innings on Opening Day.

No American League pitcher has recorded more starts or innings than Berríos since he made his big league debut in 2016. He was named an All-Star in 2018 and 2019, placed ninth in AL Cy Young voting in 2021 and won a Gold Glove in 2023.

Berríos is 27-23 with a 3.63 ERA, 1.170 WHIP, 7.9 strikeouts per nine innings and a 4.7 WAR over the past two seasons.

The Blue Jays picked Berríos over Kevin Gausman, Chris Bassitt and Max Scherzer, all of whom also have All-Star appearances under their belts.

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Sam Connon
SAM CONNON

Sam Connon is a Staff Writer for Fastball on the Sports Illustrated/FanNation networks. He previously covered UCLA Athletics for Sports Illustrated/FanNation's All Bruins, 247Sports' Bruin Report Online, Rivals' Bruin Blitz, the Bleav Podcast Network and the Daily Bruin, with his work as a sports columnist receiving awards from the College Media Association and Society of Professional Journalists. Connon also wrote for Sports Illustrated/FanNation's New England Patriots site, Patriots Country, and he was on the Patriots and Boston Red Sox beats at Prime Time Sports Talk.

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