TORONTO – Marcus Stromans first career major league start began as the story of the day but once the Blue Jays were done waxing the Kansas City Royals, 12-2, in another record-setting fashion, he was happy to offer the proverbial tip of the cap to his offence. "The lineup is like playing a video game with a cheat team," he said. "Everyones like 100-level." By the time the first inning was over the Blue Jays led 7-0 on the strength of five hits, three walks and two hit batsman off Royals right-hander Aaron Brooks, wholl have far fewer fond memories of his first big league start than his mound opponent. Toronto set a franchise record; never before had the first eight hitters of a game reaching base safely. The cushion gave Stroman an opportunity to relax and he went to work with a dazzling curveball, striking out six Royals over six innings. The likes of Alcides Escobar, Eric Hosmer and Billy Butler succumbed as the pitch darted down and toward the left-handers batters box. "It was sharp today," said Stroman. "Me and (Dioner Navarro) got on a pretty good roll and whatever he was calling I was throwing and it just kept trickling in. I felt like we were pounding the zone pretty well." "You could even see the reaction of the hitters after they were swinging at it," said Navarro. "Hopefully he builds up from this start and keeps going strong and help us out throughout the whole season." Stromans final line: Six innings, one earned run, five hits, zero walks and six strikeouts. Manager John Gibbons offered a quick quip when asked if the 23-year-old had earned another start. "I think itd be crazy not to," said Gibbons. "I told you Im dumb, not stupid." Stroman started in place of Drew Hutchison, whose next start was pushed back to Tuesday for the series opener in Detroit. While nothing is ailing Hutchison, he has thrown 65 innings in 11 starts already this season. Pro-rate that over an expected 33 or 34 starts and Hutchison would be at, or close to, the 200-inning mark. Coming off a year-long rehabilitation of Tommy John elbow surgery and with limited minor league innings under his belt last year, the Blue Jays will take hand-picked opportunities to give Hutchison extended breathers. While the plan runs contrary to Hutchisons ultra-competitive nature, the 23-year-old is okay with the idea. "It was already kind of mentioned to me a little bit," said Hutchison. "I knew at some point this was probably going to happen. Of course I want to take the ball every five days, its something you take pride in doing but this is something I think will enable me to pitch all year and be beneficial." Hutchison threw a bullpen session on Sunday morning. "To keep it like it would be on my normal, five-day routine," said Hutchison. "Just to try to keep it the same so Ill be crisp leading up to (Tuesdays start)". RED HOT MAY The Blue Jays wrapped up a 21-9 May to improve their overall record to 33-24. The strong month comes on the heels of an 0-1 March and a 12-14 April. While pleased, manager John Gibbons delved into the personal history file to throw a bit of cold water on the excitement. "I think in 08 in May we won 20 games, we had the best record in baseball and I got fired three weeks later," said Gibbons. "I always enjoy a good month but it means absolutely nothing in June." Gibbons is right. Toronto went 20-10 in May, 2008 and had a record of 31-27 as a result. He was axed on June 20 with the club on a five-game losing streak and with a 4-12 record to that point in the month. As another point of reference: Toronto dropped a 4-3, 17-inning game in San Diego last May 31, which dropped the Blue Jays record to 23-32. Authentic NFL Jerseys . - The Carolina Panthers believe Steve Smith lost "top-end" speed, a big reason the franchise parted ways with its all-time leading receiver. Wholesale NFL Jerseys USA .com) - The Golden State Warriors have started another winning streak and theyll try to pad it Tuesday night when they head to Staples Center to face the Los Angeles Lakers. https://www.cheapnfljerseysjustwholesale.com/cheap-nba-jerseys . -- Miguel Angel Jimenez quickly shifted his focus back to the Ryder Cup after winning his first Champions Tour event. Cheap NFL Jerseys . Locke overcame a shaky start to pitch seven innings and Josh Harrison had three hits to extend his hot streak as the Pirates beat the Miami Marlins 7-3 on Wednesday night. Cheap College Jerseys . The mood in Seattle was electrified as the parade featuring the NFL champions began near the Space Needle and made its way to CenturyLink Field, the home of the team. At a ceremony inside the stadium, the team thanked its loyal followers -- the 12th Man -- capping a day of boisterous celebration that drew an estimated 700,000 revelers to Seattle.The St. Louis Blues have returned to the top spot in the TSN.ca NHL Power Rankings, just ahead of the rising Anaheim Ducks and last weeks No. 1, Chicago Blackhawks. The Blues outscored opponents by 20 goals during a recent seven-game winning streak (halted Friday by Vancouver) and are expecting a return from their best player this season, left winger Alexander Steen, who has been sidelined by a concussion. With goaltender Ben Bishop slated to return from injury, the Tampa Bay Lightning vault up from 21 to 12, their highest ranking since early November (in a related story, Steven Stamkos was injured November 11). 8-2-1 in their past 11 games, the New York Rangers have been climbing after a slow start, and are up to 14 from 18 last week, matching their preseason ranking as their highest for the season. Seven wins in 10 games has helped lift the Columbus Blue Jackets, from 24 to 17 this week, who have also had their lineup bolstered recently by goaltender Sergei Bobrovsky and right winger Nathan Horton coming back froom injury.dddddddddddd Heading the other way, the Dallas Stars have dropped six straight games and fell from 12 to 18, while the Nashville Predators, with one win in the past seven games, are down from 15 to 22. The Toronto Maple Leafs got thumped but good, outscored 21-7 in a four-game span prior to Sundays shootout win, and dropped from 16 to 23, while the Winnipeg Jets were outscored 24-14 during a five-game losing streak that cost head coach Claude Noel his job and knocked the Jets down from 14 to 24 in the rankings. Among other Canadian teams, the Vancouver Canucks remain the highest-ranked, at seven, three spots ahead of the Montreal Canadiens, who are down one spot to 10. The Ottawa Senators are up one, from 17 to 16, same goes for the Edmonton Oilers, from 28 to 27, and the Calgary Flames are crashing, down from 27 to 29. Scott Cullen can be reached at Scott.Cullen@bellmedia.ca and followed on Twitter at http://twitter.com/tsnscottcullen. For more, check out TSN Fantasy on Facebook. ' ' 'versus the Kings, and Los Angeles has won six in a row in Calgary. That includes two previous trips there this season. ' ' '