Blue Jays linked to trade for All-Star Athletics pitcher after Cody Ponce injury

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Blue Jays linked to trade for All-Star Athletics pitcher after Cody Ponce injury originally appeared on The Sporting News. Add The Sporting News as a Preferred Source by clicking here.

Entering the 2026 MLB season, the Toronto Blue Jays looked to have one of the better starting rotations in Major League Baseball, especially when it came to their depth chart.

Kevin Gausman, Dylan Cease, Eric Lauer, Max Scherzer, and Cody Ponce were the main starters to begin the season, with Jose Berrios, Shane Bieber, Trey Yesavage, and Bowden Francis starting the year hurt. But Ponce got hurt, leaving a hole in the rotation.

Bleacher Report's Zachary D. Rymer linked the Blue Jays to Athletics All-Star righty Luis Severino as a possible trade target in the wake of the injury to Ponce.

Blue Jays linked to Luis Severino after Ponce news​

"The A's have been busy locking up their best young players ahead of their move to Las Vegas in 2028, but Luis Severino doesn't fit into those plans," Rymer writes. "... Potential landing spots: Atlanta Braves, Toronto Blue Jays, New York Mets."

With the Blue Jays down Ponce and a lot of other starters dealing with injuries to begin the season, trading for another starting pitcher would make a lot of sense.

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But it's important for the Blue Jays not to overspend either, as Yesavage and Bieber's return to the rotation would make for a six-man group, and that doesn't even include Berrios or a potential trade pickup.

Toronto needs another starter, as they cannot go through the opening portion of the season with a four-man rotation after Ponce's unfortunate injury.

Severino won't cost too much, as he's under control for just the 2026 season with a 2027 player option that might be less appealing to acquiring teams. But, with the Athletics open to moving him, who had a 4.54 ERA last year, this trade target would make sense.

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