Toronto Blue Jays place Cody Ponce on injured list, recall Lazaro Estrada

The Toronto Blue Jays officially announced that they have placed Cody Ponce on the 15-day IL and recalled Lazaro Estrada.

Toronto Blue Jays manager John Schneider provided an update on right-hander Cody Ponce, who departed yesterday’s game with an injury.

Ponce has a sprain of the anterior cruciate ligament in his right knee.

He has avoided a full tear and it’s still to be determined whether surgery will be necessary.

Even if he does avoid surgery, he will miss “significant time” regardless, though the Jays are holding out hope he can pitch later in the year.

Time will tell exactly how it plays out as the Jays are still gathering medical opinions but it seems like Ponce is likely to miss a few months even in a best-case scenario. It’s a brutal blow for Ponce and the team.

Estrada, a 5-foot-10 native of Cuba, has limited experience in the majors, having made just two appearances with Toronto last season.

Over 7.1 innings, he allowed seven runs while striking out 10 batters. Notably, he issued just one walk, giving him an impressive strikeout-to-walk ratio.

During spring training, Estrada appeared in six games for the Blue Jays and posted a 4.76 ERA.

He recently kicked off his Triple-A campaign with a strong showing, tossing 2.2 scoreless and hitless innings in his season debut on Friday.

The right-hander features a four-pitch repertoire, led by a 93 mph four-seam fastball, and supported by a slider, sinker, and an occasional curveball.

At the Triple-A level last year, Estrada recorded a 5.73 ERA across 26 outings, including 20 starts.

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