Overlooked Blue Jays offseason move has become silently crucial to open season

The Toronto Blue Jays bolstered their starting pitcher depth this past offseason, with the big move being free agent Dylan Cease. John Schneider was also comfortable with a full season of Trey Yesavage if he could continue his postseason form, making the rotation so deep that the number of starters grew to eight once they signed Max Scherzer. However, the most underlooked signing of the offseason may end up being the most important: Cody Ponce.

The Blue Jays will start the year with Yesavage, José Berrios, and Shane Bieber all on the injured list due to issues with their throwing arms. Bieber has forearm fatigue, Yesavage has a shoulder impingement, and Berrios has a stress fracture in his elbow. Instead of Scherzer and Eric Lauer potentially spending time as long relievers out of the bullpen, they'll now be in the rotation for at least the first turn, and potentially more than that.

Kevin Gausman will get the start on Opening Day, with Cease and Lauer filling in after for the final two games of the opening series against the Athletics, setting the stage for Ponce to make his Blue Jays debut in the first game of the Colorado Rockies series. The Rockies are a great team for Ponce to get his feet wet against, and if Spring Training was any indication, the right-hander is going to be just fine.

Cody Ponce is Blue Jays' X-Factor after successful Spring Training

Ponce started five games this spring for Toronto, pitching 13.2 innings total. He left Dunedin with a 0.66 ERA and 12 strikeouts, demonstrating that he still had the swing-and-miss stuff that he showed last season in the KBO. It won't take long for MLB teams to figure him out, which could lead to some changes, but it's hard not to feel comfortable with what Pete Walker and his pitching staff can do after he has led the starters to so much success.

Ponce's MLB career lasted 6.2 innings during his time with the Pittsburgh Pirates in 2020 and 2021. After four seasons in Japan, he reinvigorated his career and wanted to give the big leagues one more shot. Leaving to join the Blue Jays after an MVP season where he went 17-1 and had a 1.89 ERA seemed like a great time to do it. Ponce looks ready to show that 32 years old isn't too late to make a name for himself in the MLB.

Ponce's best performance this spring came in his last start against the New York Yankees. He allowed only one hit over 5.2 innings, striking out five and walking no batters. While the Yankees' lineup was full of minor leaguers and bench players, the stuff Ponce showed looks like it could carry over to the best of the best in the regular season. If Ponce can have a signature moment against a team like Aaron Judge and the Yankees, he'll quickly become a hero in Toronto.