Cody

Ponce

Ponce is expected to be a full-go at the outset of spring training. The 31-year-old starter suffered the knee injury while attempting to field a ground ball during his Blue Jays debut back in late March.

Blue Jays manager John Schneider told reporters Ponce will be out for at least six months, which effectively ends his season. The 31-year-old suffered an ACL sprain in his right knee during his season debut against the Rockies last week. It was his first start in the big leagues since 2021. The 31-year-old’s extended absence creates even more issues for Toronto’s rotation, which has been decimated by injuries this season.

The Blue Jays have yet to announce whether or not Ponce will require surgery to repair his ACL, it’s clear that he’s going to miss a substantial amount of time either way, so him moving to the 60-day injured list was an inevitability. Austin Voth was promoted from Triple-A Buffalo to take his place on the team’s roster.

While Dr. ElAttrache is mostly connected to Tommy John surgery, he is an orthopedic surgeon who sees players for all kinds of injuries. Blue Jays manager John Schneider said Dr. ElAttrache wanted to “get his hands on [Ponce], and decide what route to take. Surgery is on the table.” This is not the best development, but we will have to wait until next week to know what the outlook is for Ponce.

Blue Jays manager John Schneider said that Ponce will miss significant time, but the club remains hopeful he’ll pitch again this season and will await additional medical opinions before determining his next steps. The 31-year-old journeyman left his Blue Jays debut on Monday night with right knee discomfort before an MRI revealed an ACL sprain in his right knee. His prolonged absence puts additional strain on Toronto’s rotation which is already without Trey Yesavage (shoulder), Shane Bieber (elbow) and José Berríos (elbow).

He’ll undergo further evaluation and imaging to determine the severity of the injury. It’s an ominous injury designation after Ponce was carted off during his Blue Jays debut following an awkward attempt to field a grounder up the first-base line in the third inning of his first major-league appearance since 2021. The 31-year-old journeyman spent the previous four seasons overhauling his arsenal in Korea and Japan before returning stateside on a three-year, $30 million deal with Toronto. An extended absence would be a significant blow to an already injury-ravaged rotation that’s without Trey Yesavage (shoulder), Shane Bieber (elbow) and José Berríos (elbow). An update on his status should arrive in the coming days, but he’s in clear jeopardy of missing his next scheduled start against the White Sox on Sunday.

It’s potentially a brutal development for Toronto’s already injury-depleted rotation if Ponce is facing an extended absence. This one didn’t look good. The 31-year-old righty pulled up while running to field a ground ball up the first-base line and ultimately had to be carted off the field. He exited his first major-league appearance since 2021 after allowing one run over 2 1/3 innings. He struck out three and issued one walk. There should be a definitive update on his status following the contest.

Lauer earns his spot in Toronto’s season-opening rotation with rookie sensation Trey Yesavage (shoulder) along with veterans Shane Bieber (forearm) and José Berríos (elbow) heading to the injured list. Big-ticket offseason acquisition Dylan Cease will get the ball following Opening Day starter Kevin Gausman. It’ll be Cody Ponce and Max Scherzer rounding out the initial rotation.

Both Scherzer and Ponce will work in an additional minor league game to continue getting stretched out before taking their respective turns in the Jays’ rotation. That means the two right-handers can be penciled in — in some order — for the first two games of the Rockies’ series that starts on Monday, March 30. That means Dylan Cease and Eric Lauer are likely to follow Kevin Gausman during the first series of the season against the Athletics.

The Yankees brought just three likely major leaguers with them, two of whom (Amed Rosario and Randal Grichuk) would typically only play against lefties. Ponce had an easy time with the group, even though his velocity fell off some today; he averaged 94.5 mph with his fastball, down from 96.0 in his previous four spring outings. Ponce’s rotation spot in Toronto could eventually come into jeopardy if they ever have all of their seven starters healthy at once. We like him in mixed leagues until then, though.