TORONTO -- Imperfect as this opening homestand may have been, the past week at Rogers Centre has felt so much different than it did a year ago.
Those quiet Monday and Tuesday crowds are gone. Even a year ago, attendance quickly dipped down close to 20,000 for the second home series of the year. The 2026 Blue Jays, though? They’ve been packing the house with 35,000-plus each night, on average. When they return home early next week for a World Series rematch with the Dodgers, it will be the hottest ticket in the city.
“The fan support every single night and every single day, it’s not very often you get that in March and April,” manager John Schneider said. “You’ve got a packed house, no matter the day of the week or the opponent.”
It was never a guarantee that the national interest in this team would carry through the offseason this strong, but the Blue Jays have captured people, fully and completely. It doesn’t hurt that the Maple Leafs are a mess, leaving the spotlight to the Blue Jays earlier than ever, but the local ballclub has grabbed this opportunity with both hands. The Blue Jays are cool again. The dome is a destination again.
Wednesday’s 2-1 loss to the Rockies on a sleepy afternoon for the bats has the Blue Jays 4-2 to open the season, but with a few winnable games awaiting them on the south side of Chicago, they could easily return for that Dodgers series at 6-3 or better. The sense of momentum that didn’t truly explode until much later in 2025 is already showing itself in the attendance and TV numbers, and if Toronto carries this deeper into April, it will dominate headlines all summer.
Through the first homestand, this is what we’ve learned about the 2026 club.
1. The rotation (or what’s left of it) could change everything
Kevin Gausman, Dylan Cease, Eric Lauer and Max Scherzer have been simply outstanding. In their five starts (two by Gausman), the Blue Jays’ healthy starters have posted a 1.57 ERA with 46 strikeouts over 28 2/3 innings. You’re going to win a lot of ballgames with those numbers.
Of course, that excludes the injury-shortened start from Cody Ponce, who is going to miss “significant time” -- perhaps the entire season -- after an injury to his right knee ACL Monday. The Blue Jays must survive this brutal wave of injuries, at least until one of José Berríos or Trey Yesavage gets back, with Shane Bieber coming soon behind them.
The healthy starters are dominating, though, and Gausman exists in another realm right now. Gausman is the first pitcher since at least 1900 with 10-plus strikeouts and no walks in each of his first two outings in a season, a huge achievement for the 35-year-old who suddenly looks better than he ever has.
2. Kazuma Okamoto has star potential
Coming over from Japan, two questions dominated the discourse around Okamoto: Could he hit velocity, and could he handle the hot corner defensively?
Yes … and yes.
Okamoto has been the best story of the opening week for the Blue Jays, launching two home runs while fitting into this clubhouse perfectly. It’s already easy to see the upside here, and Okamoto is being praised by all the right people.
“The thing that’s impressed me most is his defense,” said Scherzer. “A diving play yesterday, he pops up and throws it. We know the hitting will come and go. He’s going to learn that. But the defense is what’s impressed me, and he’s making some great plays. Defense doesn’t go through slumps. If you go out there and play solid D, that’s a pitcher’s best friend.”
3. Jesús Sánchez will be a big part of this offense
Sánchez has Schneider using words he has never said to the media before, like when he called Sánchez’s swing on his first home run “magnificent.” The excitement from Schneider, hitting coach David Popkins and Sánchez’s teammates has been palpable.
“He’s swinging at good pitches and he’s swinging with intent,” Schneider said. “That’s it. I think he’s realizing our approach, and within that, what we’re asking him to do. It’s paying off. He’s got a lot of talent, and I like what I see.”
Sánchez is a big personality, too. Even throughout his at-bats, Sánchez is grinning. There are some real parallels to Addison Barger offensively, too, with massive bat speed and very exciting raw power. If the Blue Jays can unlock this, the payoff could change this lineup. Early on, we’re getting a glimpse of what the jackpot could look like.