Hanwha Eagles current and former pitchers all suffered injuries in their first appearances of the season.
Hanwha foreign pitcher Owen White started on the mound in the home game against the KT Wiz in the 2026 Shinhan SOL KBO League at Daejeon Hanwha Life Insurance Park on March 31.
After allowing one run in the first, White kept the second scoreless and returned to start the third. After giving up a medium single to Kim Hyun-soo and a walk to Ahn Hyun-min, White induced a grounder to first baseman Hilliard with no outs and runners at first and second. First baseman Chae Eun-seong first threw to the shortstop for a force out, and White moved to cover first base to try for a double play.
A problem occurred during this process. White limped and complained of pain. White ultimately left the mound. He left the field complaining of pain to the point that he needed to be supported.
Cody Ponce, who pitched for the Hanwha Eagles and finished with a 17-1 record, a 1.89 ERA and 252 strikeouts to lead four pitching categories (wins, ERA, strikeouts, winning percentage) and win MVP, also collapsed. He was injured in his first game back in the major leagues.
On the same day in Korean time, Ponce started on the mound in the home game against the Colorado Rockies at Rogers Centre in Toronto, Canada. It was his first major league start in five years since his 2021 stint with the Pittsburgh Pirates.
Ponce, who had thrown scoreless through two innings, collapsed in the third. After issuing a walk to the leadoff batter, a wild pitch and a balk put him in a 1-out, runner on third situation, and he felt something wrong in his right knee while fielding the ensuing ball and collapsed on the ground. Ponce was taken off the field in a cart with the support of team staff and medical personnel.
The Toronto club said on April 1 (Korean time) that Cody Ponce had been diagnosed with a sprain and would undergo detailed examinations to determine the extent of the damage and whether there was a tear. They said he was expected to be unable to pitch for the time being and had been placed on the 15-day injured list (IL).
MLB.com reported that Ponce is expected to miss a considerable period and that another setback has hit Toronto's rotation, which already had several injured players. Toronto manager John Schneider said, I talked with Ponce until 1 a.m. He said it is very unfortunate that he was injured in his first start.
Ponce, a former Hanwha player, is injured. In the KBO League, Hanwha's new foreign pitcher White also suffered an injury on his first start. Current and former Hanwha foreign pitchers are suffering injuries from their first appearances of the season.<
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