Blue Jays sign RHP Cody Ponce

The Toronto Blue Jays have made their second signing of the offseason, once again bolstering their strong rotation by signing right-hander Cody Ponce to a three year, $30 million contract.

Ponce last pitched in MLB with the Pittsburgh Pirates before heading to Japan and Korea. In 2025, Ponce became the first non-Korean player to be named MVP of the KBO, going 17-1 with a 1.89 ERA for the Hanwha Eagles. Ponce features a high-90s fastball, as well as a curveball and splitter — a pitch the Blue Jays found plenty of success with last season. On May 17th, Ponce broke his teammate and former Blue Jay Hyun-jin Ryu's KBO single-game strikeout record by fanning 18 SSG Landers in only 8 innings.

Cody Ponce wearing a Blue Jays Hyun-jin Ryu jersey during warmups for the KBO All-Star Game.

In recent years, going over to Korea has saved the careers of some fringe major leaguers. Most notably for the Blue Jays, Eric Lauer spent the 2024 season with the KBO's Kia Tigers before returning to MLB and posting career bests in WAR and ERA.

While the jump from the KBO to MLB is undoubtedly massive, the Blue Jays are looking to Ponce to boost an already strong starting rotation, and potentially a move to the bullpen based on the club's needs. At $30 million in total value, the move is fairly low-risk, but with a high ceiling if he can carry over his KBO dominance to North America.