Alek Manoah made a rehab appearance Sunday afternoon. It didn’t go well.
As you may recall, Manoah made a start early in Spring Training where hit a few batters and gave up numerous runs. In the next side session he had, he felt something in his throwing shoulder and didn’t pitch again in Grapefruit League action.
Well, Manoah made his first start of the season, and to be frank, it went horrible. The 26-year-old finished with a line of 1.2 IP, 5 H, 6 ER (7 R), 4 BB, 2 K with a home run given up. Keep in mind, this was in Single-A action where players are usually in their early 20s.
It got off to a horrendous start, as Manoah walked the first four batters, only throwing two strikes in 18 pitches, with one coming on a bunt foul. He settled down in the first inning, striking out the next batter he faced, getting a fly out which drove in the second run, and then striking out final batter of the inning.
This… this is not good as Alek Manoah just walked in a run. pic.twitter.com/Bt9uy70l71
— Brennan Delaney (@Brennan_L_D) April 7, 2024
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While it may have appeared he settled down, that wasn’t the case as the second inning was a disaster in a different way. He generated a ground out for the first out, but Dom Johnson doubled, John Peck singled and stole second, Max Clark reached on a fielder’s choice error which scored two runs.
Next up was Josue Briceño, who flew out for Manoah’s final out of the game. Unfortunately, the Flying Tigers hit a home run, Manoah allowed a single, and for his final batter, gave them a Manoah-special by hitting them with a pitch.
Uhhhh, Alek Manoah just gave up a home run and it is now 6-1 for the Lakeland Flying Tigers. pic.twitter.com/xKXEXVaJjs
— Brennan Delaney (@Brennan_L_D) April 7, 2024
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It’s easy to draw parallels to his rough start in the Florida Complex League after being optioned last season. In that game, he gave up 11 earned runs, walked two, gave up two homers, and struck out three in 2.2 innings pitched. Hopefully, this poor performance lights a fire under him.
There are some positives to take away from this game though. Last season, Manoah’s velocity was a cause for concern, but that wasn’t the case in this game. His four-seam fastball averaged 94.3 mph and touched 95.4 mph, while the two-seam fastball averaged 94.1 mph and touched 96.2 mph. However, that’s about it for the positives.
We’ll see what happens next, but I, like many others, am concerned about the 2022 ace.
As always, you can follow me on Twitter @Brennan_L_D.
ARTICLE PRESENTED BY BETANO
