TORONTO -- It all looked so shiny and new against the backdrop of a renovated Rogers Centre, but no amount of money can chase the ghosts away.

Only wins can do that. Tuesday night’s game was a fine start, with a 9-3 win over the Tigers which finally felt like a deep inhale for a Blue Jays team that opened the 2023 season with 10 straight games on the road. Back in the building where it all went wrong 185 days ago, you can see just how different this year’s team is.

Toronto’s loss to end 2022 is the type that sticks not just for months, but years. Up 8-1 against the Mariners in the fifth inning with their season on the line, the club’s collapse is still difficult to wrap one’s head around. By the time Seattle completed its comeback, the Blue Jays were eliminated, George Springer was leaving the field on a stretcher and this franchise was forced to take a long look in the mirror.

“We don’t want to feel that way again,” Springer said prior to Tuesday’s game. “Obviously, to know that we didn’t get the job done and didn’t get to where we had hoped to go -- we didn’t get to where many people expected us to go -- that’s OK. As hard as it was, I think it’s a good stepping stone. This team has learned to succeed together, but [it] has also learned to fail and fail in a hard way.”

That’s what matters now.

The Blue Jays have experienced heartbreak before. So many of their great teams of the 1980s deserved better. For seven seasons, from 1983-89, the club averaged 91 wins, but it reached the postseason just twice. The collapse in '87, when they lost their final seven games and plummeted out of playoff contention, still elicits a wince of pain from fans who were around to watch it.

Toronto’s collapse in 2022 was sudden and jarring, but 29 of 30 teams go home miserable each season. It’s how that fits into the Blue Jays’ larger story now that will determine how it’s remembered.

World Series wins in 1992 and '93 softened many memories from the '80s, that brutal slide in '87 included. One win over the Tigers on April 11 isn’t exactly parade-worthy, but it’s enough of a start, opening up a fresh slate in yet another season that holds so much promise. It’s just a different type of promise this time, after the Blue Jays spent the offseason retooling and rebranding.

So far, so good. The club launched five home runs Tuesday, including Matt Chapman’s third and Bo Bichette’s fourth as both continue their incredible starts. From the shorter porches to the raised bullpens, it felt like the sold-out crowd of 42,053 was right on top of the play, erupting as the Blue Jays’ power bats kicked the door down.

“This crowd was just awesome tonight,” manager John Schneider said. “From 7 p.m. when we were in the dugout, we couldn’t have asked for a better opening night here at home. Hopefully this energy can kind of be contagious. It’s unique. It’s fun out there. Even when you talk to the guys in our bullpen, it was getting pretty wild.”

Even Kevin Kiermaier, known for the glove that made the play of the day on a leaping catch to rob a home run in the second, launched a shot of his own. Kiermaier knows the Blue Jays, but he’s new in town, spilling over with energy and optimism.

“I’ve been waiting for this moment for a long time, to run out there to center field in front of Rogers Centre and all these fans,” Kiermaier said. “We control our own destiny. The guys in here decide how much success we want to have. I like our chances. We’re going to pop some champagne later on in the year.”

To be more specific, the Blue Jays want to pop champagne at least five times: once each for clinching a postseason spot, for winning the American League East, for the AL Division Series, AL Championship Series and World Series. That’s a lot of bubbly.

All of the pieces are in place to do just that, though. Sure, they were also in place a year ago, but the Blue Jays are trying to run it back by going down a different road. We won’t know if that’s the right road until this club returns to the postseason, but with each win and each new wrinkle, Toronto will shake off those old ghosts and the memories that stick to the team.