KANSAS CITY – Where is Elvis Andrus when you need him?

The Toronto Blue Jays opened the American League Championship Series with baseball’s best offense facing the staff with the worst ERA of the 10 postseason teams, as well as a starting pitcher who had a 6.46 career ERA against them. And what happened? The Blue Jays were shut out 5-0 on three hits, all singles.

Toronto needed 56 pitches and four innings before getting its first hit against Kansas City starter Edinson Volquez and mounted only one real challenge against him. That was in the sixth inning, when Josh Donaldson and Jose Bautista worked him for nine-pitch walks to lead off the inning. But the next three hitters -- Edwin Encarnacion, Chris Colabello and Troy Tulowitzki -- were unable to do anything against Volquez. (If only the Royals' shortstop had made three consecutive fielding blunders.)

Toronto didn’t do much against anyone else, either. Despite five walks, the Jays were 0-for-10 with runners in scoring position. That includes Justin Smoak, who fouled out with two on in the eighth inning while hitting for Encarnacion, who had an apparent finger injury on his left hand. Encarnacion went for X-rays afterward. So that's not good, either.

Starter Marco Estrada was coming off a solid start in the division series but allowed three runs in fewer than six innings against Kansas City’s aggressive approach. If he had given up only one run in nine innings, that still wouldn’t have been good enough.

But it’s only the first game. Toronto did OK after losing its first two in the division series against Texas.

Thumbs up: Second baseman Ryan Goins ended his postseason hitless streak with a single and also began a dazzling 6-4-3 double play by flipping a ball behind him to Tulowitzki covering second. And when that’s the big thumbs up, that tells you something about how little the Jays did Friday.

Thumbs down: Tulowitzki went 0-for-4, including an inning-ending strikeout with runners on first and second in the sixth inning. Tulo has two hits this postseason -- both in Game 3 against Texas -- and is 0-for-22 otherwise. Then again, he wasn’t the only one struggling at the plate Friday.

What’s next: American League ERA leader David Price starts Game 2 for the Jays. Price, who gave up three runs in a rare relief appearance in Game 4 against Texas, has only one start in the past three weeks but says he is “not out of my routine.’’