TORONTO — Four years ago, Kevin Gausman was at a “wellness resort” with his wife, Taylor, and he kept breaking the rules.
Gausman was a free agent, torn between the Blue Jays and Mets, the biggest decision of a career he’d built and rebuilt over and over. They’d looked at neighborhoods, talked about the lives they could build and wrestled with what it would mean to play in a different country. For four days, amid all of the zen and relaxation, Gausman kept checking his cell phone.
By the time they boarded their flight home, it had been decided. Gausman would take his talents to Queens to pitch for the Mets beginning in 2022. Then … the flight landed and Gausman’s phone blew up. It was his agent, who had been speaking more with the Blue Jays. Not long after that, Gausman had to call some people back to tell them that, actually, he was headed north to Canada.
On the eve of his biggest start for this organization since signing that five-year, $110 million deal, in Game 1 of the American League Division Series on Saturday against the Yankees, there was a lot on Gausman’s mind. Few players, if any, have embraced the adventure of crossing that border like Gausman and his family.
He thought he’d have his moment right away. In 2022, his first season in Toronto, Gausman started Game 2 of the Wild Card Series against the Mariners and allowed four runs over 5 2/3 innings. That game ended in an infamous collapse, five runs crossing in the final two innings, including the collision between Bo Bichette and George Springer in center field.
In the moment, it was crushing. With some distance, it’s come to frame how Gausman sees himself in this organization, this city and this country.
“I was thinking about ’22 the other day and pitching here in ’22. That postseason compared to now? It’s completely different,” Gausman said. “I was kind of fresh into the organization, still didn’t really know what it meant to be a Blue Jay, to be honest. I think now I understand we have one team for an entire country. With that, a lot of things come with that. There’s extra pressure that comes with that, but there’s a lot of love that comes with that from the fans, from people who might never even see you play in person.”
Gausman has a feel for this now. He knows the moment he’s standing in — 34 years old and in the fourth year of his five-year deal. These things don’t come around all the time, especially as a No. 1 seed with the Yankees coming to your house. It’s Gausman’s experience that makes him the easy pick for Game 1 against New York, and “experience” stretches to cover more than just the mound here.
“He’s the same guy every single day,” Schneider said. “You don’t worry about him getting caught up in the noise and the stuff that goes with a Game 1.”
Gausman is “an excellent, excellent pitcher” as Vladimir Guerrero Jr. put it and looked like he was gaining steam down the stretch instead of losing it, which has happened in previous years. He just threw a career-high 193 innings with a 3.59 ERA and all of his peripheral numbers look rock solid.
In Game 1, a manager wants to know exactly what he’s getting from his starting pitcher. That’s easy when the starter knows exactly who they are. This is where Gausman’s greatness lies. He’s not trying to surprise anyone, which takes the confidence you can only acquire over time, wins and losses included.
“I didn’t come up with a knuckleball the last couple days,” Gausman said. “Yeah, the book is out on me. These guys kind of know what they’re going to get. There’s different ways where I can kind of throw a wrinkle into their mind, but I’m going to throw my best two pitches, and I’m going to throw them a lot.”
Gausman could eventually come back around as the Game 5 starter next Friday if the ALDS goes the distance, or line up as the Game 1 AL Championship Series starter on Oct. 12 if the Blue Jays clinch early. It’s all right in front of Gausman and the Blue Jays, so much cleaner and clearer than it was back in 2022.
These are the moments the Blue Jays brought Gausman to Toronto to pitch in. He’s a long way from that wellness retreat now, a long way from sneaking looks at his cell phone. All of those missed calls, successes and failures have led to here, though, with the eyes of a country resting on its ace.
