Toronto Blue Jays right-hander Alek Manoah, who'd been on the injured list with shoulder inflammation since the season began, hoped for a reversal of fortunes in his first start of the year on Sunday. Unfortunately for the Jays, that Sunday start against the Washington Nationals (GameTracker) brought more of the struggles that have bedeviled the 26-year-old right-hander even since his standout first seasons of 2021 and 2022.
In four innings of work against the below-average Nats' offense, Manoah allowed seven runs (six earned) on six hits. While he struck out six, Manoah also permitted four walks and allowed two home runs. Of his 92 pitches, 52 went for strikes. On the upside, Manoah did show improved velocity on his sinker and four-seamer relative to his 2023 levels.
The Nationals would end up winning 11-8.
Manoah finished eighth in the American League Rookie of the Year vote in 2021 and was even better in 2022, as he earned a third-place finish in the AL Cy Young balloting. He entered the 2023 season with a career ERA of 2.60 and roughly a strikeout per inning with good control. Since then, though, Manoah has all but fallen apart. He made 19 starts last year, tallying a 5.87 ERA (72 ERA+) and a 1.34 strikeout-to-walk ratio. The Blue Jays demoted him to the Florida Complex League in June before bringing him back a month later. He then saw his season come to a close prematurely in August for reasons that were never entirely explained.
Manoah also largely struggled across his five-start rehab assignment leading up to Sunday's season debut, which along with everything else makes his struggles not all that surprising. Given the recent injuries to Bowden Francis and Yariel Rodriguez, however, Manoah will get more than one opportunity to prove he's capable of getting back to the promise of his earliest years.
