ST. PETERSBURG, Fla. -- Marcus Stroman got his first Opening Day start Sunday, and the Toronto Blue Jays ace did not disappoint, pitching into the ninth inning as Toronto pulled out a 5-3 win over the Tampa Bay Rays at Tropicana Field.

"He rose to the occasion," Jays manager John Gibbons said. "It doesn't surprise me. It doesn't surprise anybody. He's good, but he's only going to get better. ... He was outstanding, found a groove and really started rolling. He got a lot of quick outs late and did a hell of a job."

Stroman (1-0) held the Rays to one run on four hits through eight innings, then ran into trouble in the ninth, giving up a solo home run to designated hitter Corey Dickerson and a single to Desmond Jennings. Reliever Roberto Osuna came in and struck out two and gave up a run before closing it out for a save.

Stroman outdueled Tampa Bay's Chris Archer, who got into trouble in the first inning but struck out 12, the most by any major-league pitcher on Opening Day since 2007.

"The opposing pitcher was dealing," said Archer, making his second career Opening Day start. "It's tough to put up runs against anybody throwing the baseball that well. You look at how well he got ahead, the sharpness, crispness of his pitches all the way throughout the game."

Stroman, at 5-foot-8 baseball's shortest Opening Day starting pitcher in 45 years, picked up where he left off at the end of last season.

"You look at him, and there's not many guys that size that normally do that, but there's something different about this kid," Gibbons said. "He's not doing it with smoke and mirrors alone. He's got a real good arm."

Tampa Bay (0-1) stayed close with the defending American League East champions until the eighth, when Troy Tulowitzki hit a two-run home run to left off reliever Ryan Webb for a 5-1 lead.

Evan Longoria had two hits for the Rays, who played to a sellout crowd of 31,042 that included commissioner Rob Manfred, but the rest of the lineup managed only two hits until the ninth, when Dickerson hit a solo home run to right field in his Rays debut.

Jennings followed with a single, and Toronto turned to Osuna, who struck out the first two batters he faced. But Kevin Kiermaier hit a two-out, two-strike RBI single to score Jennings, putting the tying run at the plate. Osuna got Hank Conger to ground back to the mound for the final out to end the Rays' rally, earning the save.

According to Elias Sports Bureau, the 16 combined strikeouts by Rays pitchers match the most by any team on Opening Day since 1900 -- the Mets had 16 against the Reds in 2005.

Toronto's potent lineup got to Archer in the first. Josh Donaldson singled to right field, Jose Bautista walked and both advanced on a wild pitch before scoring on a two-run single by Edwin Encarnacion for a 2-0 lead.

"I wish I could have done a better job in the first inning. Probably would have helped us out later," Archer said. "As a whole, we did well. We played a good team game."

Archer's last nine outs were all by strikeouts and his total of 12 shattered the Rays' Opening-Day record of seven, set by David Price in 2011 and Steve Trachsel in 2000. The 12 strikeouts were the most by any major-league pitcher on Opening Day since Felix Hernandez struck out 12 in 2007.

The Rays got back within a run in the third inning as Longoria got his second hit of day, a single that drove in Logan Forsythe, who had reached on a fielder's choice. The Rays had two on and two out for Jennings, but he grounded out to shortstop to end the inning.

Toronto padded its lead with an unearned run in the fourth, as Michael Saunders hit a high line drive that went off the glove of new Rays first baseman Logan Morrison for an error. Saunders advanced on a single by Ryan Goins and scored on an RBI single by Kevin Pillar for a 3-1 lead.

NOTES: Unable to work out a trade, the Rays released veteran 1B James Loney as their final move to set a 25-man roster, meaning the Rays will pay him $8 million not to play this season. ... The Rays' Opening Day lineup had four newcomers in 1B Logan Morrison, DH Corey Dickerson, SS Brad Miller and C Hank Conger, emblematic of what the team hopes is an upgraded offensive group for 2016. ... The Blue Jays are defending a division title for the first time in 22 years, since winning the AL East and a World Series in 1993. ... The Rays sold out their home opener for the 11th year in a row, with commissioner Rob Manfred among those in attendance. He is the first MLB commissioner to attend a Rays home opener.