Opening Day brings a new start for the Blue Jays and for baseball

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A fresh start — for both the Toronto Blue Jays and the sport of baseball itself — is the theme as all 32 big-league teams take the field for Opening Day on Thursday. Here's what's new:

The Jays

At a glance, the 2022 Blue Jays were pretty successful. They won 92 games (the franchise's second-best total since the World Series years), returned to the playoffs after a one-year absence and, in their first full season back at the dome since their COVID-induced exile, drew the seventh-highest attendance in baseball.

But the team fell short of expectations. Listed as a top-three betting favourite to capture its first championship in three decades, Toronto finished seven games behind Aaron Judge and the Yankees in the American League East before getting swept in the first playoff round by underdog Seattle.

As they get set to open a new season Thursday at 4:10 p.m. ET in St. Louis, the Jays hope to reestablish themselves as a top World Series contender.

A big part of that hope rests on a remade outfield that reflects a new emphasis on defence. Last year's corner outfielders, Teoscar Hernandez and Lourdes Gurriel Jr., are out. In are Daulton Varsho, an exceptional defensive player who was acquired from Arizona, and Kevin Kiermaier, a three-time Gold Glover with Tampa Bay. Bringing in Kiermaier to play centre allows the Jays to move oft-injured George Springer to lighter duty in right while Varsho takes over in left.

The new-look outfield should turn a lot more batted balls into outs and looks better equipped to patrol Toronto's reconfigured ballpark, which now features angled