Kevin Gausman struggles in the start against the Rockies

TORONTO — Do you want the good news or the bad news first?

Kevin Gausman's velocity returned on Friday, giving you a chance to breathe a sigh of relief after some concerns a week ago. Those balls went even harder past Gausman, but the Rockies landed and hit.

Gausman allowed six runs on 10 hits over just 3 2/3 innings in the 12-4 loss, running his ERA to 11.57 in his first three starts. This is not the Gausman you know and love. Not sure, the Cy Young Award winner, who finished third a year ago, said he could look at any hitter in the big leagues and throw a splitter and still get it past them.

Friday was something else entirely. It was Rocky, not Gausman, who led the at-bats.

“Nothing good happened today,” Gausman said. “Just a lot of pitches, a lot of hits, a lot of doubles and a lot of runs. There aren't many positives.”

Gausman felt this time away from the fastball you often hear pitchers talk about, but the specifics are important here. Most of the Rockies' early hits came off of Gausman's fastball, but when he left that pitch, his slider and splitter gave batters too much “average velocity” to watch, as Gausman called it. With his trademark 86 mph and 83 mph slider, hitters can lower their mental shift and sit on either of those two pitches.

Gausman is not immune to duds either. There are few jars. Last year, the Astros stuck eight runs (seven earned) on Gausman in mid-April, and after three starts, he gave up eight more to the Red Sox. There have been 14 scoreless innings with 24 strikeouts over the two spans, Gausman's dominance in every measurable way.

Spring training must be a factor here. Gausman missed time with a strained right shoulder and was ready in time to make his first start in Tampa when he recovered. That's why he was named No. 4, not the Opening Day starter. It was supposed to be his first start without any restrictions, but that's not the same as pitching after a fully healthy spring.

“I wish I had eight starts right now, but I'm three or four,” Gausman said. “It's unfortunate. It's frustrating. I have to give myself a little mercy when it comes to this too, but it's frustrating. I want to go there, how I know and dominate. I definitely wanted to do well in my first home start this year. It didn't happen. It wasn't good. Go to the next one.”

The 2023 rotation was excellent. Gausman, Chris Bassitt, Jose Berrios and Yusei Kikuchi were as reliable and healthy a back four as any quartet in baseball. Even when Alec Manoa went down in the 5th, the Blue Jays recovered with a strong bullpen and eventually the timely return of Hyun Jin Ryu. It may be a few years before we see such a carefree rotation again in Toronto.

This season, reality is back.

The Blue Jays' rotation has stumbled out of the gate, leaving Bassitt “disappointed,” but even after excellent outings from Berrios, Bassitt and Kikuchi, they're looking to play their game. This group is close, both as people and as pitchers, and they know it's only a matter of time.

“I have no problem thinking that Kevin Gausman is going to be very good this year,” Bassitt said.

The Blue Jays should see a dominant Gausman soon. He is the one. His first two seasons with the Blue Jays were elite, and neither of them came by accident.

“Every time he goes out there, we expect him to be good,” Blue Jays manager John Schneider said. “We expect him to do his thing. Tonight you have to pay them respect. They had a good plan. They hit the ball hard and found some holes. When you play in the regular season, it's make or break. Tonight was exactly that.”

Aside from the speedsters, the background is mixed and the Blue Jays gave up 20 hits to the 4-10 Rockies, all of which was very special to watch. Gausman is usually the story of the night for other reasons, but this year he's still settling in.