Alek Manoah

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Alek Manoah
Toronto Blue Jays – No. 6
Pitcher
Born: (1998-01-09) January 9, 1998 (age 23)
Homestead, Florida
Bats: Right
Throws: Right
MLB debut
May 27, 2021, for the Toronto Blue Jays
MLB statistics
(through 2021 season)
Win–loss record9–2
Earned run average3.22
Strikeouts127
Teams

Alek Isaac Manoah (born January 9, 1998) is an American professional baseball pitcher for the Toronto Blue Jays of Major League Baseball (MLB). Manoah made his MLB debut on May 27, 2021.

Amateur career[]

Manoah attended South Dade High School in Homestead, Florida.[1] As a junior, he hit .492 with five home runs and 32 RBIs.[2] That summer, he played in the Under Armour All-America Baseball Game at Wrigley Field.[3] During his senior year, he signed to play college baseball at West Virginia University.[4] Manoah was not drafted in the 2016 Major League Baseball draft out of high school and thus enrolled at West Virginia.

In 2017, as a freshman at West Virginia, Manoah appeared in 19 games (ten starts), pitching to a 1–1 record with a 3.07 ERA,[5] earning a spot on the Big 12 All-Freshman Team.[6] As a sophomore in 2018, Manoah went 3–5 with a 4.00 ERA in 23 games (eight starts).[7][8] He particularly struggled with command, posting a 1.50 WHIP.[9] That summer, he pitched in the Cape Cod Baseball League for the Chatham Anglers where he went 4–3 with a 3.57 ERA in nine starts.[10][11] Prior to the 2019 season, Manoah was named a preseason All-American by Baseball America.[12] During the season, Manoah was named to the Golden Spikes Award watchlist along with unanimously being named the Big 12 Pitcher of the Year.[13][14] At the time he received the award, he was 8–3 with a 1.91 ERA in 14 starts, striking out 125 batters in 94 innings.[15] He finished his junior year with a 9–4 record and a 2.08 ERA over 16 starts, compiling 144 strikeouts over 108+1⁄3 innings.[16]

Professional career[]

Minor leagues[]

Manoah was considered one of the top prospects for the 2019 Major League Baseball draft.[17] He was selected by the Toronto Blue Jays with the 11th overall pick.[18] He signed for $4.55 million and made his professional debut with the Vancouver Canadians of the Class A-Short Season Northwest League on July 27.[19][20] Over six starts, Manoah compiled a 2.65 ERA with 27 strikeouts over 17 innings.[21] Manoah did not play a minor league game in 2020 due to the cancellation of the minor league season caused by the COVID-19 pandemic.[22]

To begin the 2021 season, Manoah was assigned to the Buffalo Bisons of the Triple-A East.[23] In his first start of the season, he struck out 12 batters over six scoreless innings.[24] Over three starts with Buffalo, Manoah went 3-0 with a 0.50 ERA and 27 strikeouts over 18 innings.[25]

Major leagues[]

On May 27, 2021, Manoah was selected to the 40-man roster and promoted to the major leagues for the first time, and started against the New York Yankees that day, while picking up the win in a 2–0 final.[26] He recorded his first MLB strikeout in his debut against Yankees infielder Rougned Odor. Overall, Manoah totaled seven strikeouts while allowing two walks, no runs, and two hits over six innings.[27] On June 22, he was suspended five games for an incident stemming from a June 19 game in which he was ejected for intentionally hitting Baltimore Orioles third baseman Maikel Franco with a pitch.[28] On July 2, Manoah recorded seven consecutive strikeouts against the Tampa Bay Rays at Sahlen Field, setting a Blue Jays franchise record.[29] Manoah finished his rookie season with the Blue Jays having started twenty games in which he went 9-2 with a 3.22 ERA and 127 strikeouts over 111+2⁄3 innings.[30]

Pitching style[]

Manoah features an upper 90s mph fourseam fastball, a mid 90s sinker, a changeup, and a slider that he learned from watching Dellin Betances on Rob Friedman's Twitter account.[31][32]

Personal life[]

Manoah's older brother, Erik, was drafted by the New York Mets in the 13th round of the 2014 Major League Baseball draft, but was released in 2019.[33] Manoah is of Cuban descent and can speak Spanish.[34]

References[]

  1. ^ "South Dade has the talent to win another state baseball title". Miami Herald. Retrieved April 15, 2019.
  2. ^ "WVU Announces Baseball Signing Class". 247sports.com. Retrieved April 15, 2019.
  3. ^ "South Dade's Alek Manoah Pitches As An All-American". South Dade News Leader. Archived from the original on April 15, 2019. Retrieved April 15, 2019.
  4. ^ "Four South Dade Buccaneer Baseball Players Sign Letters of Intent". USA Today. Retrieved April 15, 2019.
  5. ^ "Alek Manoah hopes to have breakout season". The 3rd Man In. Retrieved April 15, 2019.
  6. ^ "2017 All-Big 12 Baseball Team and Awards Announced". Big 12 Sports. Retrieved April 15, 2019.
  7. ^ "Manoah gets the nod to start on opening day". The Morgantown News. Retrieved April 15, 2019.
  8. ^ "Former South Dade star pitcher has a unique opportunity during the 2019 MLB Draft". Miami Herald. Retrieved May 29, 2019.
  9. ^ "Alek Manaoh Hopes To Lead Strong WVU Pitching Staff". BlueGoldNews.com. Retrieved April 15, 2019.
  10. ^ "WVU baseball: All-American Alek Manoah gets 'serious,' ready to lead Mountaineer pitching staff". Charleston Gazette-Mail. Retrieved April 15, 2019.
  11. ^ "#25 Alek Manoah". pointstreak.com. Retrieved September 23, 2021.
  12. ^ "Roundup: WVU's Alek Manoah named preseason All-American". Charleston Gazette-Mail. Retrieved April 15, 2019.
  13. ^ "Roundup: WVU baseball downs Maryland 3-1". Charleston Gazette-Mail. Retrieved April 15, 2019.
  14. ^ "WVU baseball: Alek Manoah named Big 12 Pitcher of the Year; Mazey named Coach of the Year". Charleston Gazette-Mail. Retrieved May 29, 2019.
  15. ^ "Mazey, Manoah garner Big 12 honors". The Morgantown News. Retrieved May 29, 2019.
  16. ^ Staff, BarDown (June 3, 2019). "Alek Manoah shares special moment with his family after getting drafted by the Blue Jays - Article". BARDOWN. Retrieved June 13, 2020.
  17. ^ "MLB.com 2019 Prospect Watch". MLB.com. Retrieved April 15, 2019.
  18. ^ "Blue Jays select Alek Manoah 11th overall". MLB.com. Retrieved June 4, 2019.
  19. ^ Province, The; Sports; Baseball; Email, Share Steve Ewen: Blue Jays first rounder Alek Manoah joins C's Tumblr Pinterest Google Plus Reddit LinkedIn; Tumblr; Pinterest; Plus, Google; Reddit; LinkedIn (July 29, 2019). "Steve Ewen: Blue Jays first rounder Alek Manoah joins C's | The Province". Retrieved June 13, 2020.
  20. ^ "Blue Jays sign first-round pick Alek Manoah and four other draftees". Retrieved June 13, 2020.
  21. ^ "From two-way threat to top prospect, debuting Manoah always dazzled". EerSports.
  22. ^ "How top Blue Jays prospect Alek Manoah made sure 2020 wasn't a lost year". Sportsnet.ca.
  23. ^ "Toronto Blue Jays' Triple-A Buffalo Bisons set Preliminary Roster". Boxscore World Sportswire. May 3, 2021.
  24. ^ "Magnificent: Manoah fans 12 to win Bisons debut". MiLB.com.
  25. ^ "What to expect from Alek Manoah". MLB.com.
  26. ^ "Blue Jays officially call up Alek Manoah ahead of MLB debut". Sportsnet. May 27, 2021. Retrieved May 27, 2021.
  27. ^ "Manoah's debut a family affair: 'All for them'". MLB.com. May 27, 2021. Retrieved May 27, 2021.
  28. ^ "MLB Suspends Blue Jays Alek Manoah Five Games For Hitting Maikel Franco With Pitch". MLB Trade Rumors.
  29. ^ "Alek Manoah dominates Rays in return". MLB.com. July 3, 2021. Retrieved July 3, 2021.
  30. ^ "Blue Jays' Alek Manoah: Dominates O's for ninth win".
  31. ^ Biertempfel, Rob. "The Pirates have West Virginia's Alek Manoah on their draft..." The Athletic. Retrieved December 7, 2019.
  32. ^ "Alek Manoah, West Virginia Ace, Boosts His MLB Draft, NCAA Tournament Stock". www.baseballamerica.com. Retrieved December 7, 2019.
  33. ^ "South Dade Ace Signs With The Mets". South Dade News Leader. Archived from the original on April 15, 2019. Retrieved April 15, 2019.
  34. ^ "10 things to know about Alek Manoah".

External links[]

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