Jeff Passan links SF Giants to this winter's most prominent KBO pitching project

The SF Giants have a need for starting pitching this winter, and they could turn their attention to the KBO to address that need. Jeff Passan of ESPN lightly suggests that San Francisco could be a landing spot for Cody Ponce.

Jeff Passan links SF Giants to this winter's most prominent KBO pitching project

Ponce is expected to receive a sizable deal after spending the last several seasons overseas. The Giants could have a personal edge in his market, given that his brother-in-law is San Francisco Forty-Niners tight end George Kittle.

The right-handed pitcher was originally a second-round pick by the Milwaukee Brewers in 2015 out of Cal Poly Pomona. In 2019, he was shipped to the Pittsburgh Pirates in exchange for Jordan Lyles. The deal worked out nicely for the Brewers, as Lyles put together his best stretch in the majors. He pitched to a 2.45 ERA across 58.2 frames down the stretch for Milwaukee.

On the other hand, Ponce struggled to a 5.86 ERA in 20 outings split across two seasons with Pittsburgh. The Pirates released him after the 2021 season, where he latched on with the Hokkaido Nippon Ham Fighters of the NPB.

The 31-year-old spent three seasons in the NPB before joining the Hanwha Eagles of the KBO for the 2025 campaign. He pitched to a 1.89 ERA, 0.93 WHIP, 12.6 K/9, and a 6.15 SO/W rate across 180.2 innings this past season.

On the mound, Ponce now features a mid-90's four-seam fastball. This is a noticeable spike from his time with the Pirates. However, he has added several ticks to his velocity while being overseas. He mixes in a kick change, cutter, curveball, sinker, and splitter. Ponce can give hitters a lot of different looks, and was able to get them to whiff at a high rate in a league that is often known for contact.

While Ponce might be in the market to land a sizable payday, he will likely not be in the same camp as Dylan Cease, Framber Valdez, or Tatsuya Imai. The Giants have expressed some reluctance toward signing a pitcher to a nine-figure deal, so Ponce might be more in their price range.

Buster Posey and Zack Minasian have done a lot of scouting overseas over the past year. Ponce has been among the players they have seen in person, so there is a bit more substance to this rumor.