Cody Ponce left his first start as a Toronto Blue Jay on a cart in the third inning after suffering a right knee injury.
The right-hander was making his first MLB start since 2021 and went down hobbling in the top of the third with one out while attempting to field a ground ball off the bat of Jake McCarthy. He was attended to by the training staff and eventually limped to a cart, which drove him off the field. He was officially ruled out with right knee discomfort.
UPDATE: RHP Cody Ponce was removed from tonight's game with right knee discomfort.
— Toronto Blue Jays (@BlueJays) March 31, 2026
The Rockies scored a run on the play as McCarthy’s slow grounder cashed Kyle Karros from third base, making it 1-0. Ponce was charged with an error on the play.
Right-hander Louis Varland came on in relief of Ponce and got out of the inning to preserve the one-run deficit. However, the Rockies’ bats would break out soon after as they won 14-5 to hand the Jays their first loss of the season.
Manager John Schneider told reporters after the game that Ponce was getting an MRI.
“Just wishing for the best, really,” he said via MLB.com’s Keegan Matheson.
Cody Ponce is undergoing an MRI right now, John Schneider said.
— Keegan Matheson (@KeeganMatheson) March 31, 2026
“Just wishing for the best, really.” #BlueJays
The 31-year-old Ponce was signed to a three-year, $30 million deal by Toronto this past winter after winning the MVP award last year in the Korea Baseball Organization. He was 17-1 with a 1.89 earned-run average in 29 starts last season for the Hanwha Eagles.
He had a 0.66 ERA this spring in five outings with 12 strikeouts in 13.2 innings pitched.
Ponce began his MLB career with the Pittsburgh Pirates and pitched in parts of 2020 and 2021 before heading to Japan and then eventually Korea.
The Jays will continue their series with Colorado on Tuesday at Rogers Centre.
