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Marcus Stroman looks like his 2015 self

Toronto Blue Jays starter Marcus Stroman looked like one of the best pitchers in baseball after returning from a knee injury at the end of the 2015 season.

And he looks like one of the best in the game to start the 2016 season.

Stroman is the first Blue Jays pitcher to go at least eight innings on Opening Day since Pat Hentgen did against the White Sox in 1997. He tried but failed to become the first Blue Jays pitcher to throw a complete game in a season opener since Jack Morris did against the Tigers in 1992.

In five starts dating back to last season, Stroman has allowed eight earned runs in 35 innings pitched, good for a 2.06 ERA.

How he won

Stroman threw 40 sinkers, the second-most he’s ever thrown in a start (it was also his second-highest rate throwing the pitch). He induced 17 ground balls, matching a career high. The Rays were 2-for-17 when hitting the ball on the ground.

He worked well out of the strike zone. Stroman got the Rays to chase on 42 percent of pitches, the highest chase rate of his career. The Rays were 2-for-10 in at-bats ending with a Stroman pitch thrown out of the zone.

What about the other guy?

Storman’s mound opponent, Chris Archer was no slouch. Archer struck out 12, the most in an Opening Day loss since Bob Gibson had that many for the Cardinals in 1975. The Elias Sports Bureau notes that Archer, Gibson, Gary Nolan (1969 Reds) and Tony Cloninger (1966 Braves) are the only pitchers with that many strikeouts in an opener defeat.

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