Toronto Blue Jays pitcher Cody Ponce was carted off the field March 30 after suffering a scary injury in the Jays’ game against the Colorado Rockies at Rogers Centre.

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Ponce’s heel appeared to get caught in the dirt on the mound while delivering a pitch to home plate. He tumbled head over heels down the mound, throwing the ball towards the plate to try to avoid a balk, but it was too late.

https://twitter.com/js9inningsmedia/status/2038765072688836646

Ponce stayed in the game after that mishap, only to get hurt running toward first base chasing after Jake McCarthy’s ground ball to the right side of the infield.

The right knee injury left Ponce unable to walk off the field on his own power. He was taken off the field on a medical cart.

The team announced Ponce left the game with “right knee discomfort.” Further tests are expected on Ponce’s knee to determine the severity of his injury.

“He felt it hyperextended a little bit. That’s what he told me on the field,” Blue Jays manager John Schneider told reporters after the game. “We’ve got to wait for MRI results and we’re hoping for the best. This sucks with it being his first outing and what he’s been through. Hopefully, it’s the best news possible tomorrow.”

It was a sudden, abrupt ending to Ponce’s first game with his new team — and his first game on an MLB mound since 2021.

The Blue Jays lured Ponce, 31, back to North America from Korea with a three-year, $30 million contract in December.

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Ponce, a native of California, went 1-7 with a 5.86 ERA in 20 major league games with the Pittsburgh Pirates from 2020-21. He spent the 2022-24 seasons in Japan, and 2025 in the KBO. Last year he posted a 1.89 ERA with 252 strikeouts over 180.2 innings for the Hanwha Eagles.

Ponce’s 2026 debut had the potential to be one of the great comeback stories in baseball. For now, his much-anticipated return to the big leagues appears short-lived.

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“Don’t want to speculate about Ponce but I’ve been in sports a long time I know what that looked like,” former Blue Jays outfielder Kevin Pillar wrote on X. “I’m really hoping the best for him and that it isn’t as serious as it looked. Waited a long time to be back in this position.”

Don’t want to speculate about Ponce but I’ve been in sports a long time I know what that looked like. I’m really hoping the best for him and that it isn’t as serious as it looked. Waited a long time to be back in this position @BlueBirdTerr

— Kevin Pillar (@KPILLAR4) March 30, 2026

The Blue Jays lost to the Rockies, 14-5.