The Angels took a flyer on Alek Manoah this winter, hoping they could fix what Toronto couldn’t. So far, it’s not working.
The former Blue Jays starter is getting lit up this spring, posting a 9.39 ERA across 15.1 innings with more walks than strikeouts. For a guy trying to salvage his career, that’s about as bad as it gets.
Manoah’s allowed 23 hits and 16 runs while walking 14 hitters against just 13 strikeouts. Yeah, those aren’t typos.
From Cy Young Candidate to Reclamation Project
What makes this so jarring is where Manoah was just two years ago. The 26-year-old posted a 2.24 ERA in 31 starts for Toronto in 2022, finishing third in Cy Young voting. He looked like a cornerstone pitcher.
Then everything fell apart.
Manoah’s ERA ballooned to 5.87 in 2023 before injuries and ineffectiveness limited him to just five major league starts in 2024. Those five appearances weren’t terrible – a 3.70 ERA – but they weren’t enough to convince the Blue Jays he was back.
Now he’s with the Angels, and the spring results suggest his problems weren’t just a Toronto thing.
Spring Training Usually Doesn’t Matter
Look, most of the time you can throw spring stats out the window. Guys are working on new pitches, ramping up slowly, facing lineups they’ve never seen before.
But Manoah’s situation is different. He’s fighting for his big league life here. This is his audition to prove he’s got something left, and instead he’s reminding everyone why things went sideways in the first place.
The Angels have made plenty of questionable moves lately, but taking a chance on Manoah wasn’t one of them. When a pitcher with his track record becomes available, you kick the tires.
The problem is those tires look pretty flat right now. Unless something changes dramatically over the next few weeks, Manoah might be looking at another year away from the majors.
And at 26, he’s running out of time to figure it out.
