Glew: Who has made the most Opening Day starts for the Blue Jays?

Ernie Whitt made nine Opening Day starts behind the plate for the Toronto Blue Jays.

March 26, 2025

By Kevin Glew

Canadian Baseball Network

Who has been in the Toronto Blue Jays’ Opening Day lineup the most in their 48-season history?

With Opening Day just over 24 hours away, I did the research to find out.

It turns out that three players are tied for the most Opening Day starts with nine: Ernie Whitt, Lloyd Moseby and Vernon Wells.

Whitt made nine starts as a catcher (1980 to 1984, 1986 to 1989) and Wells made nine consecutive starts in centre field for the Blue Jays from 2002 to 2010.

Moseby, meanwhile, started in centre field eight times (1981 to 1987, 1989) and in left field once (1988).

Here’s a complete breakdown by position of Blue Jays’ players who have made more than one Opening Day start with the club:

Pitcher

7 – Roy Halladay

4 – Dave Stieb

3 – Jimmy Key

2 – Dave Lemanczyk

2 – Jim Clancy

2 – Jack Morris

2 – Pat Hentgen

2 – Ricky Romero

2 – R.A. Dickey

2 – Marcus Stroman

2 – Hyun Jin Ryu

2 –Jose Berrios (will be three with Thursday’s start)

Catcher

9 – Ernie Whitt

5 – Darrin Fletcher

4 – Russell Martin (Montreal, Que.)

4 – Danny Jansen

3 – Pat Borders

3 – Gregg Zaun

3 – J.P. Arencibia

2 – Rick Cerone

2 – Greg Myers

2 – Alejandro Kirk (will be three on Thursday)

First Base

7 – Carlos Delgado

6 – Willie Upshaw

5 – Lyle Overbay

5 – Vladimir Guerrero Jr. (will be six on Thursday).

4 – John Mayberry

4 – John Olerud

3 – Fred McGriff

3 – Edwin Encarnacion

2 – Adam Lind

2 – Justin Smoak

Second Base

7 – Damaso Garcia

6 – Aaron Hill

5 – Roberto Alomar

4 – Homer Bush

3 – Orlando Hudson

3 – Devon Travis

3 – Cavan Biggio

2 – Dave McKay (Vancouver, B.C.)

Shortstop

8 – Alex Gonzalez (the first Alex Gonzalez to play shortstop for the Blue Jays)

6 – Alfredo Griffin

6 – Tony Fernandez

5 – Bo Bichette (will be six on Thursday)

3 – Jose Reyes

2 – Manuel Lee

2 – Chris Woodward

2 – Russ Adams

2 – Yunel Escobar

2 – Troy Tulowitzki

Third Base

7 – Rance Mulliniks

6 – Ed Sprague

4 – Josh Donaldson

3 – Roy Howell

3 – Kelly Gruber

3 – Eric Hinske

2 – Tony Batista

2 – Troy Glaus

2 – Edwin Encarnacion

2 – Brett Lawrie (Langley, B.C.)

2 – Matt Chapman

Left Field

6 – George Bell

6 – Shannon Stewart

4 – Joe Carter

3 – Travis Snider

2 – Reed Johnson

2 – Melky Cabrera

2 – Lourdes Gurriel Jr.

2 – Daulton Varsho

Centre Field

9 – Vernon Wells

8 – Lloyd Moseby

5 – Devon White

4 – Jose Cruz Jr.

4 – Kevin Pillar

3 – Rick Bosetti

3 – Colby Rasmus

2 – Otis Nixon

2 – Randal Grichuk

2 – Kevin Kiermaier

Right Field

8 – Jesse Barfield

8 – Jose Bautista

4 – Shawn Green

4 – Alex Rios

3 – Raul Mondesi

3 – Teoscar Hernandez

2 – Bob Bailor

2 – Joe Carter

2 – Randal Grichuk

2 – George Springer

DH

3 – Otto Velez

3 – Paul Molitor

3 – Rowdy Tellez

2 – Rico Carty

2 – Cliff Johnson

2 – John Olerud

2 – Brad Fullmer

2 – Josh Phelps

2 – Shea Hillenbrand

2 – Frank Thomas

2 – Adam Lind

2 – Edwin Encarnacion

2 – Dioner Navarro

2 – Kendrys Morales