Blue Jays' workhorse striving for more efficiency in his game after impressive year

"Gausman wants to push himself to be more readily available to pitch in the seventh inning, instead of having his day end in the fifth or sixth inning. He wants to increase the amount of innings he pitches, but decrease the pitches thrown and the batters faced."

"The dominant pitchers in baseball get through seven innings on 100 pitches, and that's the standard Gausman is working toward in 2026 as he seeks to maintain his elite status while improving his efficiency on the mound."

Kevin Gausman had a career year in 2025, reaching the World Series for the first time in his 13-year career with the Toronto Blue Jays. He made 37 starts across regular season and playoffs, totaling 223.2 innings pitched—a workload unseen since the 1980s. He led all pitchers in innings pitched, total pitches thrown, and batters faced. Despite this heavy workload, Gausman began spring training early. For 2026, his focus shifts to replicating and surpassing his 2025 success through greater efficiency. In a recent Grapefruit League appearance, Gausman struck out three batters while throwing 20 pitches with 13 strikes. He aims to pitch deeper into games, reaching the seventh inning more consistently while decreasing overall pitch count and batters faced.

Read at Jays Journal