Alek Manoah is starting to look like the dominant pitcher who made the 2022 All-Star team.
After a rough 2023 season, the Toronto Blue Jays’ right-hander has delivered two consecutive solid seven-inning performances. He’ll make his fourth start of the season against the Detroit Tigers on Friday night.
Manoah (1-1, 3.00 ERA) allowed only three unearned runs and four hits against the Minnesota Twins on May 12, and then limited the Tampa Bay Rays to one hit and one walk, earning his first win of the season.
“He looked great again (Sunday),” Blue Jays manager John Schneider said. “I love how he’s attacking the zone. His last outing against Minnesota and (Sunday) were probably the best he’s looked since 2022.”
Manoah had a stellar 2022 season with a 16-7 record and a 2.24 ERA but struggled last season, going 3-9 with a 5.87 ERA and losing his command. He walked 59 batters in 87 1/3 innings last season, compared to just 51 walks in 196 2/3 innings the previous year, eventually being sent to the minors in an attempt to regain his form.
“I’m not looking back,” Manoah said. “I’m not going that way.”
In four career starts against Detroit, he’s 1-1 with a 4.09 ERA.
He will face right-hander Matt Manning (0-1, 4.88), who is also trying to re-establish himself as a major league starter. Manning has moved between Triple-A Toledo and the Tigers this spring after making 45 major league starts in the past three seasons.
Manning returned to the majors on May 13 when Kenta Maeda went on the 15-day injured list due to illness. His last two outings were disappointing: he allowed three runs and nine hits in 5 2/3 innings against Miami on May 13, and four runs and 10 hits in five innings at Arizona on Sunday.
“He battled himself from the get-go,” Tigers manager A.J. Hinch said. “He lost a lot of first-pitch battles and they put some good swings on him. He was under duress almost every inning. He did control the innings when he could by not giving up big innings of three, four, or five runs.”
Manning, who is 1-1 with a 2.43 ERA in three career starts against Toronto, could be headed back to the minors regardless of his performance, as Maeda is expected to be activated this weekend.
Toronto won the opener of the four-game series, 9-1, on Thursday night. Daulton Varsho, Vladimir Guerrero Jr., and Isiah Kiner-Falefa homered for the Blue Jays, who have won four of their past five games.
The Tigers have lost five straight, being outscored 41-14 during that span.
“Obviously this is a tough stretch,” Hinch said. “I love our game plan every night. Everyone understands it, but then you have to go out and execute it. It gets tougher and tougher as frustrations and lack of hits pile up.”