TODAY: Alvarado’s forearm strain will end his season, manager Rob Thomson told the Philadelphia Inquirer’s Scott Lauber and other media. The injury is “mild” overall, Thomson said, and surgery isn’t a consideration.
SEPTEMBER 12: The Phillies announced that they have selected the contract of right-hander Walker Buehler and placed left-hander Jose Alvarado on the 15-injured list, moves which were previously reported. Alvarado’s injury wasn’t specified in that earlier reporting but the Phils announced it as a left forearm strain, retroactive to September 11th. The severity is still unclear. To open a 40-man spot for Buehler, righty Matt Manning has been designated for assignment.
Manning, 27, has never thrown a pitch for the Phillies at the big league level. He was designated for assignment by the Tigers on the day of this summer’s trade deadline and quickly flipped to the Phils, with minor league outfielder Josueth Quinonez heading the other way. Manning didn’t pitch for a month after being acquired. It’s unclear if that was due to an injury or if his new team was having him work on some kind of mechanical adjustment.
He recently returned to the mound in the minors. He made two starts for Double-A Reading in the past two weeks, logging five innings combined with six earned runs allowed. He struck out eight and allowed just three hits but gave out seven walks, hit one batter and also threw two wild pitches.
Since he’s been bumped off the 40-man roster after the trade deadline, he’ll be on the waiver wire in the coming days. If he garners any interest, it would be based on his past pedigree. The Tigers took him with the ninth overall pick in the 2016 draft. He was ranked as one of the top prospects in the league for several years after that but hasn’t been able to deliver on that potential. From 2021 to 2024, he tossed 254 innings for Detroit with a 4.43 ERA. His 7.8% walk rate was good but he only struck out 16.4% of batters faced.
The Tigers kept him in the minors this year. He tossed 50 2/3 innings on the farm with a 6.04 ERA. He struck out 22.4% of opponents but also gave out walks at a 15.9% clip. The Phils tried to buy low on him but that doesn’t seem to have worked out.
Manning is in his final option year and will therefore be out of options starting next year. That will make it harder for him to keep a roster spot going forward. Given his past status as a top prospect, perhaps some club grabs him off the wire now. If some team does take a flier on him and manages to keep him on the roster, Manning can be controlled for four seasons after this one.
Photo courtesy of Mike Watters, Imagn Images
Tigers could scoop him up back up to try to rebuild his value, w/o using a 40-man spot.
He’d have to go on the 40 if they claim him and then they’d have to DFA him. Otherwise, he’s going to be outrighted to the minors in Philly if he goes unclaimed.
Manning looked so good for The Tigers just a few years ago….what happened to this guy? Injuries he couldn’t overcome?
Manning looked like a rotation lock with Skubal and Mize for the Tigers in 2022 & 2023, but bad luck and injuries derailed him.
Get Manning healthy and find a very good, creative pitching coach who might be able to unlock Manning’s talent and value @ the big league level.
Manning would be a good “project” pitcher for:
Padres or any other team in 2026 ( fix his mechanics and put him out there for every 5th start sink or swim).
If Manning has any value left (remember he has been a professional baseball player for 10 years) it will be as a relief pitcher. He’s working off a major league contract right now, so he has to go on the 40 man if anyone claims him. I bet the Phillies would be more than happy to keep him in their minor league system. He is still controllable. I think the Phils will have to offer him arbitration this Winter or let him go FA.. He’s made $5.5 million, so far, in his career. I hope he’s invested some of it.
My guess is he will elect free agency. I doubt the Phils offer Arb.
His next gig will be a minor league contract and invite to ST. JMHO.
Wow.
If Fetters couldn’t fix him…
Then, maybe Manning more sets of eyes and a different coaching staff to analyzed his mechanics top to bottom.
When he first came up…if I squinted really hard…I could see some Roger Clemensiness in him. Big, thick, power armed righty. Oh well.
Should have played football.
Yeah, Eli and Peyton could have taught him to chuck a spiral!
Alvarado should have played football. When he got suspended for steroids, instead of fans posting messages about what a horrible person he was, they would have said, “Will he be back in time for the playoffs?”.
I think it was basketball. He was going to go to Pepperdine. I think his dad was a pretty good hoopster. Might have played pro ball.
His Dad played in the NBA.
2016 1st round will go down as one of the worst ever
I’d take a minor league contract on him.
None. Yet.
If the Skubal injury is serious enough to finish his season and the Tigers were to sign Manning, would he be elligible to pitch in the postseason? Was he on their 40 man roster this year? Isn’t that all it takes?
Manning could be a “late bloomer”.
There are teams that will “take a flyer” on him
to see if they can catch “lightening in a bottle.
The price will certainly be reasonable.
Honestly, I think I’d take a flyer on Manning over Spencer Turnbull.