O's game blog: Kevin Gausman starts series opener at Rogers Centre

TORONTO - The Orioles have returned to Rogers Centre tonight to begin a four-game series against the Toronto Blue Jays. The Orioles' 2016 season ended here with a 5-2 loss in 11 innings last Oct. 4 in the American League wild card game.

The Birds begin the night with a 5-2 record and leading the AL East. Toronto is 1-7 for its worst eight-game start in team history. The Blue Jays have lost five in a row.

The Orioles were 9-10 last season against Toronto including a 4-6 mark in this ballpark. They went 1-3, 1-2 and 2-1 in three series at Toronto. Since the beginning of the 2015 season, the Orioles are 19-21 versus the Blue Jays, including a 7-12 mark at Rogers Centre.

The 2017 season began with the Orioles beating the Blue Jays by 3-2 and 3-1 scores. They held Toronto batters to three runs, 18 hits and just two extra-base hits (both doubles) in that series.

On the mound tonight, right-hander Kevin Gausman (0-0, 5.40 ERA) makes his third start. For Toronto, left-hander Francisco Liriano (0-0, 135.00 ERA) is set to make his second.

Yes, Liriano has a 135.00 ERA after the shortest start of his career. He lasted just one-third of an inning Friday at Tampa Bay, allowing three hits, four walks, a homer and five runs. He threw just 35 pitches and just 13 for strikes. It was the second time in 257 career starts that Liriano failed to escape the first inning.

The Blue Jays acquired him last Aug. 1 in a trade deadline deal. He had gone 6-11 with a 5.46 ERA for Pittsburgh before the deal. After it, he was 2-2 with a 2.92 ERA and 1.176 WHIP with Toronto.

The 33-year-old Liriano made one start last season versus the Orioles. He pitched 6 1/3 scoreless innings, allowing six hits with one walk and 10 strikeouts on 104 pitches on Sept. 28 in this ballpark. In nine career starts versus Baltimore, he is 2-4 with a 4.34 ERA and 1.552 WHIP.

After starts against Toronto and New York, Gausman gets a rematch with the Blue Jays tonight. On opening day at Camden Yards he went 5 1/3 innings allowing five hits and two runs with four walks and four strikeouts and threw 103 pitches.

In three starts last season against the Blue Jays, he went 0-2 with a 7.04 ERA. In 13 career games (eight starts) versus Toronto he is 2-3 with a 4.29 ERA and 1.450 WHIP.

Gausman averaged just 2.3 walks per every nine innings in 2015 and just 2.4 last year. But in his two starts this season he has walked seven over 10 innings for a 6.3 walk-rate. The Orioles went 14-16 in Gausman's 30 starts last season. They are 2-0 this year as he gets ready for his second showdown with the Blue Jays.

He is facing a Toronto team struggling to hit this year. They've scored just 23 runs in eight games and rank last in the American League in team batting average (.190) and slugging (.276) and next to last in team OBP (.272).