3 Blue Jays to blame for lifeless Game 1 loss to Twins

Blue Jays to blame for Game 1 loss, No. 1: Kevin Gausman

Kevin Gausman has been a solid pitcher in 2023, but he has completely failed the Blue Jays. And now it seems like it will be a hard fight uphill after his early exit from the game.

Gausman only went four innings, and in those four innings, he was lackluster to say the least, giving up three hits, three walks, and three earned runs. All of the earned runs came off two home runs by Royce Lewis, but he still wasn’t finding the zone and was far from his normally sharp efforts on the bump.

In the loss, Gausman threw 73 pitches, of which only 43 were strikes, and he was unable to consistently show high-end control. As a result, he got lit up like a Christmas tree when he made any mistakes. His performance wasn't horrendous in itself, but the worst aspect was lasting just four innings.

Because Gausman was unable to go deep in the game, despite the fact they should have shoved him out longer, now the bullpen has been ravaged. The Blue Jays have to now hope their starters can go the distance.

After Gausman was taken out, Toronto had Erik Swanson, Tim Mayza, Chad Green, Génesis Cabrera, and Jordan Hicks all pitch, which depleted the bullpen for Wednesday's Game 2.

Game 2 will see Jose Berrios face off against Sonny Gray in a must-win game. But due to the bullpen being so heavily used in the series opener, even if the Blue Jays force a Game 3, the task would be much more difficult. Gausman's short-lived start on Tuesday put Toronto in a bind not just in Game 1 but for the remainder of the wild card.