Ponce has sprained ACL after nasty fall, expected to be put on Blue Jays injured list

Toronto Blue Jays pitcher Cody Ponce (66) throws to a Colorado Rockies batter in first inning interleague MLB baseball action in Toronto on Monday, March 30, 2026. THE CANADIAN PRESS/Jon Blacker

Toronto Blue Jays pitcher Cody Ponce will miss “some significant time” as he recovers from a sprained knee.

Manager John Schneider said Tuesday that an MRI the night before revealed Ponce had sprained his anterior cruciate ligament, but the Blue Jays will have more doctors examine the imaging before creating a rehabilitation plan.

“I talked to him for a while last night, up until like 1 a.m.,” said Schneider in his office during a pre-game meeting with reporters. “He’s got a pretty good perspective.

“I think he’s frustrated, for sure, but I think he has pretty good perspective on it.”

Ponce was carted off the field in the third inning of Toronto’s 14-5 loss to the Colorado Rockies on Monday. He was chasing down a ground ball by Rockies centre-fielder Jake McCarthy when his knee buckled, and he rolled to the ground in obvious pain.

It was Ponce’s regular-season debut for the Blue Jays after signing a three-year, US$30-million deal with Toronto on Dec. 10.

“The person in me just hates it for him, first outing, weird play, all that kind of stuff,” said Schneider, noting that Ponce and his brother-in-law, San Francisco 49ers tight end George Kittle, were in high spirits hanging out in Toronto’s clubhouse earlier in the day.

“He’s handling it OK.”

Ponce was placed on the 15-day injured list later Tuesday with fellow right-handed pitcher Lazaro Estrada recalled from triple-A Buffalo in a corresponding move.

Ponce played for the Pittsburgh Pirates in 2020 and 2021, appearing in a total of 20 games with a 1-7 record and a 5.86 earned-run average. He had 48 strikeouts over a total of 55 1/3 innings pitched.

He then moved to Japan and South Korea, improving his pitching and developing a kick change-up.

Ponce was 17-1 over 29 starts with Hanwha in 2025, with a 1.89 ERA and 252 strikeouts to earn the KBO’s most valuable player award.

Scheider said that Ponce’s recovery plan will be dictated by what a closer examination of the MRI reveals.

“Even if it’s just a sprain, I think it is, it’s still a pretty significant rehab process,” said Schneider, noting that if it is a sprain, it won’t require surgery. “A rest and rehab process and see if you can get something done, whether it’s an injection or something, but we’ll cross that bridge when we get there.”

Ponce joined four other starting pitchers on Toronto’s IL.

Shane Bieber (forearm fatigue), Jose Berrios (stress fracture, right elbow) and Trey Yesavage (right shoulder impingement) are all expected to return this season. Bowden Francis (Tommy John surgery) won’t pitch in 2026 and will likely miss the start of the 2027 season.

Surefire Hall of Famer Max Scherzer was scheduled to pitch against the Rockies on Tuesday night, with Kevin Gausman — the first pitcher in the Blue Jays rotation — pencilled in for Wednesday’s series finale. Dylan Cease takes the mound on Thursday in Chicago against the White Sox.

Friday is an off-day, meaning Ponce’s spot in the rotation will fall on Sunday’s matinee on the road in Chicago.

“I don’t think we’re going to bump up anyone (in the rotation) with the off day coming up. I think we’re going to keep them as regularly scheduled,” said Schneider. “We’ll have to use our depth; we’ll have to use whoever can offer length.

“If that’s one, two times through (the rotation), we do have three other guys kind of getting close, in (Bieber, Berrios, and Yesavage.) I think it’ll be a variety of things, really, to kind of cover that hole until one of those guys is ready to come back.”

Estrada appeared in two games for Toronto last season, giving up seven runs on 10 hits and striking out 10 over 7 1/3 innings pitched. He has a 16-25 record across all levels of the minor leagues with a 3.82 ERA and 504 strikeouts over 431 2/3 innings pitched in eight seasons.

This report by The Canadian Press was first published March 31, 2026.

John Chidley-Hill, The Canadian Press