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Blue Jays Select Richard Lovelady

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The Blue Jays announced that they have selected the contract of left-hander Richard Lovelady. Right-hander Alek Manoah, who is recovering from Tommy John surgery, has been transferred to the 60-day injured list as a corresponding move. Hazel Mae of Sportsnet announced the moves prior to the official announcement.

Lovelady, 29, signed a minor league deal with the Jays in January. He made his seventh appearance today, allowing one earned run, pushing his earned run average to 5.14. That’s obviously not an incredibly impressive number but the southpaw does have eight strikeouts in seven innings.

Prior to joining the Jays, Lovelady’s track record has been that of a groundballer. He has 99 1/3 innings in the big leagues, spending time with the Royals, Athletics, Cubs and Rays. In that time, his 21.1% strikeout rate and 8.4% walk rate were close to league average, but with a strong 50.9% ground ball rate. With the Jays this spring, he came into today with a grounder rate of just 35.7%. Today’s outing went walk, ground ball double play, homer, ground ball single, walk, ground out.

For the Jays, Opening Day is still over a week away. Adding Lovelady to the roster now seems to suggest that he had some sort of opt-out in his deal and the Jays didn’t want him to get away. Left-handed relief is one of the bigger question marks on the Toronto roster. The Jays also have Brendon Little, Josh Walker and Easton Lucas on the 40-man but they all have options and each has less than 50 innings of major league experience.

Lovelady himself is out of options, but it seems he is not guaranteed a spot. Mae relays word from manager John Schneider that Lovelady is still trying to earn a spot on the active roster, even though he’s now on the 40-man. Although the Jays have added Lovelady now to prevent him from opting out, they may still decide to designate him for assignment when their season starts next week. If he ends up on waivers, perhaps some other club will be enticed and put in a claim.

If he were to clear waivers, what would happen next could depend on what salary figures are in his minor league deal. Lovelady has at least three years of service time, which gives him the right to reject an outright assignment. But since he has less than five years of service, electing free agency means walking away from whatever money he is still owed on his deal. The salary figures on his pact haven’t been publicly reported.

That means there’s a possible sequence of events where the Jays select his contract today and then pass him through waivers next week, with Lovelady then deciding to stick around in order to keep the money from this deal flowing. But it’s also possible that he cracks the Opening Day roster, or winds up bouncing to another club.

Players Who Could Move To The 60-Day IL Once Spring Training Begins

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Most of the clubs in the league currently have a full 40-man roster, which means that just about every transaction requires a corresponding move these days. Some extra roster flexibility is on the way, however. The 60-day injured list goes away five days after the World Series but comes back when pitchers and catchers report to spring training.

Per R.J. Anderson of CBS Sports, most clubs have a report date of February 12th or 13th. The Cubs and Dodgers are a bit earlier than most, on the 9th and 11th, respectively. That’s due to the fact that those clubs are heading to Tokyo, with exhibition games in mid-March, followed by regular season games against each other on March 18th and 19th. All the other teams have Opening Day scheduled for March 27th.

It’s worth pointing out that the 60 days don’t start being counted until Opening Day. Although a team can transfer a player to the 60-day IL quite soon, they will likely only do so if they aren’t expecting the player back until end of May or later. A team also must have a full 40-man roster in order to move a player to the 60-day IL.

There are still plenty of free agents still out there, including big names like Alex Bregman and Pete Alonso, as well as Nick Pivetta, Andrew Heaney, David Robertson, Randal Grichuk, Kenley Jansen, Harrison Bader, Lance Lynn, Jose Quintana and many more. Perhaps the extra roster flexibility will spur some deals to come together in the next week or so. It could also increase the ability of some clubs to make waiver claims or small trades for players who have been designated for assignment.

Here are some players who are expected to miss some significant time and could find themselves transferred soon.

Angels: Robert Stephenson

Stephenson underwent a hybrid Tommy John surgery with internal brace in late April. Given the 14-plus months required to recovery from such a procedure, he’s not likely to be ready in the early parts of the 2025 season.

Astros: Cristian Javier, J.P. France, Bennett Sousa

Javier underwent Tommy John surgery in June and is targeting a return in the second half of 2025. France is recovering from shoulder surgery and hoping to return in July. Sousa’s timeline is less clear but he underwent surgery for thoracic outlet syndrome in April. Other possibilities include Luis Garcia and Lance McCullers Jr., who are expected to start the season on the IL but returning in April or May still seems possible.

Athletics: Luis Medina, Ken Waldichuk

Medina underwent Tommy John surgery in August and Waldichuk in May. Medina might miss the entire season while Waldichuk is likely to miss a few months at least.

Blue Jays: Angel Bastardo, Alek Manoah

The Jays grabbed Bastardo from the Red Sox in the Rule 5 draft in December, even though he had Tommy John surgery in June. Manoah also had Tommy John around that time and is hoping to be back by August.

Braves: Joe Jiménez

Jimenez had knee surgery in November with a timeline of eight to twelve months, so he might miss the entire season. Spencer Strider and Ronald Acuña Jr. are also possibilities, though those will be more borderline. Strider had internal brace surgery in April, so returning in May is somewhat possible. Acuña is recovering from a torn ACL last year and it’s possible he’ll miss the first month or so of the season. Given how important both of those players are, Atlanta probably won’t put them on the 60-day IL unless it’s 100% certain that they can’t come back in the first 60 days of the season.

Brewers: Robert Gasser

Gasser had Tommy John surgery in June and will be looking at a late 2025 return even in a best-case scenario.

Diamondbacks: Kyle Nelson

Nelson’s timeline is unclear, but he underwent surgery for thoracic outlet syndrome in May and missed the remainder of the 2024 season.

Dodgers: Gavin Stone, Brusdar Graterol, River Ryan, Kyle Hurt, Emmet Sheehan

Stone underwent shoulder surgery in October that will cause him to miss the entire year. Graterol also underwent shoulder surgery and isn’t expected back until the second half of 2025. Each of Ryan, Hurt and Sheehan required Tommy John surgery in 2024: Ryan in August, Hurt in July and Sheehan in May.

Guardians: Sam Hentges, David Fry, Shane Bieber, Trevor Stephan

Hentges required shoulder surgery in September, with an expected recovery timeline of 12 to 14 months. Fry underwent UCL surgery in November with a more fluid timeline. He won’t be able to throw at all in 2025 but could be cleared for designated hitter action six to eight months from that surgery. Bieber is perhaps a borderline case, as he underwent Tommy John surgery in April. Given his importance, the Guards may not transfer him to the 60-day IL until it’s assured that he won’t be back in the first 60 days of the season. Stephan underwent Tommy John surgery in March and perhaps has a chance to avoid the 60-day IL, depending on his progression.

Mariners: Matt Brash, Jackson Kowar

Brash underwent Tommy John surgery in May. Given the typical 14-month recovery timeline from that procedure, he would be looking at a midsummer return. However, it was reported in November that he’s ahead of schedule and could be back by the end of April. That’s an optimistic timeline but the Mariners will probably hold off moving him to the 60-day IL until the door is closed to an early return. Kowar underwent Tommy John in March, so an early return in 2025 is possible for him, depending on how his recovery is going.

Marlins: Braxton Garrett, Eury Pérez

Garrett just underwent UCL surgery last month and is going to miss the entire 2025 season. Pérez underwent Tommy John surgery in April of last year and will miss at least part of the beginning of the 2025 campaign.

Mets: Christian Scott

Scott required a Tommy John surgery and internal brace hybrid procedure in September and will likely miss the entire 2025 season.

Nationals: Josiah Gray, Mason Thompson

Gray required a Tommy John surgery and internal brace hybrid procedure in July, meaning he’ll miss most or perhaps all of the 2025 season. Thompson required Tommy John surgery in March, so he has a better chance to make an early-season return if his recovery is going well.

Orioles: Kyle Bradish, Tyler Wells

Bradish and Wells each required UCL surgery in June, so they’re both slated to miss the first half of the upcoming campaign.

Padres: Joe Musgrove

Musgrove had Tommy John surgery in October and will therefore miss the entire 2025 season. However, the Padres only have 36 guys on their 40-man roster at the moment, so they’ll need to fill those spots before moving Musgrove to the 60-day IL.

Pirates: Dauri Moreta

Moreta required UCL surgery in March, so an early-season return is possible if his rehab is going well, though he could end up on the 60-day if the club goes easy with his ramp-up or he suffers any kind of setback.

Rangers: Josh Sborz

Sborz underwent shoulder surgery in November and is expected to miss the first two to three months of the upcoming season.

Rays: Nate Lavender, Ha-Seong Kim

The Rays took Lavender from the Mets in the Rule 5 draft, even though he had Tommy John in May and will miss the start of the season. Kim’s status is more up in the air after he had shoulder surgery in October. Various reports have suggested he could return anywhere from April to July. The Rays made a sizable investment in Kim, their largest ever for a position player, so they probably won’t shelve him until they get more clarity on his status.

Red Sox: Patrick Sandoval, Garrett Whitlock, Chris Murphy

Sandoval had internal brace surgery in June of last year and should miss the first half of the season. Whitlock had the same surgery in May, so he could have a bit of a better chance to return in the first 60 days of the season. Murphy underwent a fully Tommy John surgery in April and will certainly miss the beginning of the upcoming season. Another possibility is Lucas Giolito, who had internal brace surgery in March, though he expects to be ready by Opening Day.

Reds: Julian Aguiar, Brandon Williamson

Aguiar underwent Tommy John surgery in October and Williamson in September, so both are likely slated to miss the entire 2025 season.

Tigers: Sawyer Gipson-Long

Gipson-Long underwent internal brace surgery in April. On top of that, he underwent left hip labral repair surgery in July, with the club hoping to address both issues at the same time. It seems likely that he’ll miss some of the early 2025 schedule, but his IL placement will depend on how he’s been progressing.

White Sox: Jesse Scholtens

Scholtens underwent Tommy John surgery in early March. Whether he goes on the 60-day IL or not will depend on how he’s progressed since then and when the White Sox expect him back.

Yankees: Jonathan Loáisiga

Loáisiga underwent internal brace surgery in April, so he could potentially be back on the mound early in the 2025 season. It was reported in December that the Yankees are expecting him to be in the bullpen by late April or early May, so he’ll only end up on the 60-day IL if he suffers a bit of a setback.

Alek Manoah Targeting August Return To Blue Jays

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After a brutal 2023 season, right-hander Alek Manoah returned to the Blue Jays’ rotation in early May with the hope of reestablishing himself as one of the game’s top young arms. Unfortunately, that goal didn’t even last a month as Manoah was sidelined after just five starts and wound up undergoing Tommy John surgery in early June. The righty’s timetable for return to the mound has been unclear since then, but recently Manoah himself provided an update to Mike Wilner of the Toronto Star as part of an interview for the Star’s “Deep Left Field” baseball podcast. During the interview, Manoah identified August as his target for a return to action.

“…to go be a deadline acquisition for the Toronto Blue Jays and just help as much as I can over the final two months of the season, that’s what I’m striving for,” Manoah said on the podcast. “I’m striving to get bullpens in March, to get to live BPs in June, and then get some rehabs going and hopefully be in a position to help this team down the stretch.”

That timeline would have Manoah returning to the mound in Toronto roughly fourteen months after first going under the knife. That’s hardly an atypical timeline for a pitcher in the right-hander’s situation given that rehabbing Tommy John surgery usually takes between 12 and 18 months, though Manoah acknowledged that “bumps in the road” down the line could complicate or delay the ideal timetable he laid out.

Of course, even a healthy return to the mound in early August would come with questions. The right-hander was last healthy and effective back in 2022, when he posted a sterling 2.24 ERA in 196 2/3 innings of work for the Jays en route to a third-place finish in AL Cy Young award voting and the first All-Star appearance of his career. That fantastic performance seemed to indicate that Manoah was ticketed for long-term success at the front of Toronto’s rotation, but the 2023 season threw that plan off the rails as he struggled to a 5.87 ERA with a 6.01 FIP in 19 starts and spent time in the minor leagues due to his poor performance.

Manoah’s return to the Jays’ rotation last May was something of a mixed bag. His 3.70 ERA across five starts was solid enough, while his 25.2% strikeout rate and 7.8% walk rate were essentially in line with his numbers from 2021 and ’22. With that being said, Manoah was getting crushed when batters did make contact with his pitches. He surrendered five homers in just 24 1/3 innings of work last year and posted a ghastly 10.8% barrel rate. That came in a sample size of just 65 batted balls, of course, and given the fact that Manoah underwent UCL surgery shortly thereafter it’s fair to question how indicative that performance will be of his abilities when he returns to the mound. It’s certainly far from impossible to imagine Manoah, still just 27, re-establishing himself as a quality rotation piece once he’s put rehab behind him and resumed pitching.

In the meantime, however, the Jays are constructing their 2025 rotation without expecting him to be a major part of the equation. As things stand, veterans Kevin Gausman, José Berríos, and Chris Bassitt stand as a trio of proven arms while Bowden Francis flashed high-end results late in the 2024 season. Yariel Rodríguez currently figures to round out the group with Jake Bloss available as a depth option at Triple-A. Right-hander Jeff Hoffman signed with the club on a three-year deal that guarantees him $33MM late last week, but despite speculation throughout the winter he could look to pitch out of the rotation with his next club the Jays have indicated they’ll be using him in the bullpen.

It’s a decent rotation mix even without Hoffman involved, but there’s clearly room for improvement. Gausman endured the worst season he’s had since breaking out during the 2020 campaign last year; he pitched to a 3.82 ERA (105 ERA+) with 21.4% strikeout rate that was down nearly ten points from the year prior. Berrios pitched to mid-rotation results last year but also had troubling peripherals, including a 19.5% strikeout rate and a 4.72 FIP. Both of those numbers suggest Berrios may profile more as a back-of-the-rotation arm if he can’t bounce back going forward, and that’s likely where Bassitt fits best as well after he posted a below-average 4.16 ERA in his age-35 season last year.

Given all the questions surrounding a rotation that is poised to enter 2025 hoping for Gausman to rebound and Francis to prove he’s capable of pitching at an above-average level over the course of a full season as a starter, it’s hardly a surprise that the club has been connected to a number of starters in free agency this winter. Both Corbin Burnes and Max Fried already landed elsewhere despite involvement from Toronto in both markets, but Jack Flaherty and Nick Pivetta remain available as potential upgrades the club has reported interest in.

Blue Jays Claim Easton Lucas

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The Blue Jays have claimed left-hander Easton Lucas off waivers from the Tigers and optioned him to Triple-A Buffalo, per announcements from both clubs. The lefty was designated for assignment by Detroit a few days ago. The Jays transferred right-hander Alek Manoah to the 60-day injured list to open up a 40-man roster spot.

Lucas, 27, made his major league debut with the Athletics last year. He had been in the Orioles’ system prior to that but went to Oakland in the July 2023 trade that sent righty Shintaro Fujinami to the O’s. This year, Lucas has found himself on the waiver wire a couple of times, getting claimed by the Tigers in May and now by the Jays.

Between the A’s and Tigers, he has 13 2/3 major league innings at this point in his career. He has allowed 14 earned runs to this point, leading to an unimpressive 9.22 earned run average in that small sample of work.

The interest from the Jays likely comes from his intriguing results in a larger sample of work in the minors. He has thrown 49 Triple-A innings this year with a 3.31 ERA. His 11.2% walk rate in that time is on the high side but he struck out 25.2% of batters faced. Last year, he threw 46 2/3 minor league innings with a 3.86 ERA, 25.8% strikeout rate and 8.6% walk rate.

Lucas is in his first of three option years and has less than a year of service time. That means the Jays can stash him in the minors until he’s ready for another look in the big leagues or they can simply bring him up whenever they next need a fresh arm. If his performance justifies his continued presence on the roster, he is still a ways away from qualifying for arbitration or free agency.

The Jays have recently been remaking a bullpen that let them down here in 2024. Jordan Romano has been on the injured list for much of the year and it’s unclear if he’ll be able to make it back before the campaign is done. Erik Swanson struggled enough to get sent to the minors for a while, though he has since returned. Tim Mayza’s struggles were strong enough that he was released and is now with the Yankees.

Last year, the club’s relievers had a collective 3.68 ERA, one of the ten best marks in the majors. This year, the group is at 4.22 and in the bottom ten. That undoubtedly played a role in the club falling from contention, which led them to further subtract from the group by trading Yimi García, Trevor Richards and Nate Pearson prior to the deadline.

As the season has gone along, they have picked up Ryan Burr, Tommy Nance, José Cuas, Yerry Rodríguez, Luis Frías and now Lucas, either through small trades or waiver claims. The club will undoubtedly be making more moves to address the relief corps in the offseason, but for now, the Jays can try them out either in the majors or Triple-A as they look to bolster the depth for next year’s club.

As for Manoah, he underwent UCL surgery in June and won’t be back until next summer at the earliest, so this move was an inevitable formality. He’ll stay on the IL for the rest of the year but will need to retake a 40-man roster spot in November as the IL goes away in the days after the World Series.

Alek Manoah To Undergo UCL Surgery

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Alek Manoah will undergo surgery to repair the UCL in his throwing elbow on June 17, Blue Jays manager John Schneider told reporters (X link via Shi Davidi of Sportsnet). Doctors won’t know whether he’ll need to undergo a full Tommy John or the slightly less invasive internal brace procedure, but either surgery will end his 2024 season and sideline him well into next year.

Manoah left his start against the White Sox on May 29 with elbow soreness. His velocity was down early in that appearance and he winced on his final pitch of the evening. TSN’s Scott Mitchell reported shortly thereafter that Manoah was headed for a second opinion — typically an ominous sign that initial evaluation suggested surgery could be necessary.

That’ll unfortunately come to pass, likely costing the former All-Star more than a year of game reps. A former first-round pick and top prospect, Manoah looked the part of a budding ace between 2021-22. Over his first season and a half in the majors, he turned in a 2.60 ERA while punching out almost a quarter of batters faced over 51 starts. Manoah finished third in AL Cy Young balloting during his sophomore campaign thanks to a sterling 2.24 mark in 196 2/3 innings.

The last two seasons have been far more challenging. Manoah couldn’t find his form in 2023. He was tagged for nearly six earned runs per nine over 19 starts, leading the Jays to option him to the minors on two separate occasions. While he’d been searching for a rebound in 2024, health intervened. Manoah was delayed by shoulder soreness in Spring Training and began the season on the injured list. He made his season debut on May 5 and was out to a decent start. In five outings, he worked to a 3.70 ERA with a 25.2% strikeout rate across 24 1/3 innings.

Manoah has between two and three years of major league service. He’ll be eligible for arbitration for the first time next offseason and is under team control through 2027. The internal brace surgery typically involves a roughly year-long rehab process. Tommy John procedures usually last 14-16 months. If he requires the latter operation, his ’25 season could be in jeopardy.

Toronto will need to figure out a solution for the fifth rotation spot. They’re fairly well set in the top four with Kevin Gausman, Yusei Kikuchi, José Berríos and Chris Bassitt. Righty Bowden Francis occupied the fifth starter role during Manoah’s season-opening IL stint. He was rocked in two starts and quickly moved back to the bullpen. Francis spent around six weeks on the injured list before returning this week. He tossed 3 1/3 innings of four-run ball behind Trevor Richards in a bullpen game.

The Jays used a few Richards-led bullpen games late last summer while Manoah was trying to work through mechanical issues. That doesn’t feel like a sustainable solution for a couple months. Offseason pickup Yariel Rodríguez could step back into the starting five. The Cuban right-hander has been on the IL since April 30 with thoracic spine inflammation. He’s on a rehab stint at Triple-A Buffalo, where he tossed three innings on Wednesday. Rodríguez has started four games in his first season in Canada but has yet to throw more than four innings or surpass 20 batters faced.

Toronto, which sits three games back in the AL Wild Card mix at 30-32, could find itself in the market for starting pitching at the deadline. They’d be joined by upwards of a dozen teams in that regard. If the Jays fall out of the playoff picture, they’d be in position to market one of the top rental arms (Kikuchi). They’re one of the more interesting borderline contenders to follow over the next six weeks.

Blue Jays Designate Joel Kuhnel For Assignment

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The Blue Jays announced that they have selected the contract of right-hander Ryan Burr. It was reported yesterday that they would be acquiring him from the Phillies for cash considerations. To get Burr onto the roster, the Jays placed right-hander Alek Manoah on the 15-day injured list with a right elbow sprain. To open a 40-man spot for Burr, righty Joel Kuhnel was designated for assignment.

Manoah was removed from Wednesday’s start with elbow discomfort. Scott Mitchell of TSN relayed on X earlier today that Manoah is going for a second opinion and likely to miss an extended period of time. Manager John Schneider informed reporters that the sprain is in Manoah’s ulnar collateral ligament and that the righty will meet Dr. Keith Meister on Thursday. Keegan Matheson of MLB.com was among those who relayed the info on X. Further details will undoubtedly be forthcoming on that, but the Jays will need a fifth starter behind José Berríos, Kevin Gausman, Chris Bassitt and Yusei Kikuchi.

Matheson relayed on X today that righty Bowden Francis is with the club. He is currently on the injured list but has been rehabbing, most recently throwing 60 pitches 3 2/3 innings for Triple-A Buffalo on Tuesday. If added to the roster at some point in the coming days, he could make a start for the Jays or at least throwing multiple innings behind an opener.

For now, Manoah’s roster spot will go to Burr. He signed a minor league deal with the Phillies in the winter and has looked great so far in Triple-A this year. Through 16 2/3 innings, he has a 2.16 earned run average, 43.3% strikeout rate and 7.5% walk rate.

That has inspired the Jays to give the Phillies some cash to bring Burr aboard and they will now see if he can continue performing well at the major league level. He pitched 75 big league innings with the White Sox over the 2019-22 period with a 4.08 ERA, 20.6% strikeout rate, 12.2% walk rate and 50.5% ground ball rate. He still has a couple of options and could perhaps be sent down to the minors when Francis is reinstated from the IL, though the Jays have some other optionable relievers as well.

To get Burr on the 40-man, the Jays are bumping off Kuhnel. The 29-year-old was just acquired from the Astros less than a month ago in a cash deal. He has since thrown 8 2/3 innings for Triple-A Buffalo with a 1.04 ERA. His 10.8% walk rate is high and his 2.7% strikeout rate incredibly low, but he’s managed to keep 56.3% of balls in play on the ground.

That has generally been Kuhnel’s recipe. In 85 2/3 major league innings, he has only struck out 19% of opponents but has gotten the ball pounded into the dirt at a 52.2% clip. The resulting 6.30 ERA isn’t pretty but that’s partially attributable to a .327 batting average on balls in play and 62.6% strand rate. Going back to the start of 2021, Kuhnel has a 4.28 ERA in 82 innings in the minors. He struck out just 15.7% of batters faced in that time but has generally kept about half of balls in play on the ground.

The Jays will have one week to trade Kuhnel or pass him through waivers. He still can be optioned for the rest of this year and could appeal to clubs looking for extra rotation depth. He has been outrighted previously in his career and would therefore have the right to reject another outright assignment in favor of free agency, if he passes through waivers unclaimed.

Alek Manoah Headed For Second Opinion, Likely Facing Lengthy Absence

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May 31: Manoah is headed for a second opinion on his elbow, reports TSN’s Scott Mitchell. His initial diagnosis isn’t yet known, but Mitchell adds that it’s expected Manoah will be sidelined for an “extended period of time.”

May 29: Alek Manoah left tonight’s start against the White Sox in the second inning. The team announced he experienced elbow discomfort. Manager John Schneider told the Toronto beat after the game that Manoah will get an MRI tomorrow (X link via MLB.com’s Keegan Matheson).

Manoah lost the first month of the season after battling shoulder discomfort during the spring. He was reinstated on May 5 and has taken the ball five times. The burly right-hander was out to an encouraging start to the season, working to a 3.70 ERA with 26 strikeouts and eight walks across 24 1/3 innings. Manoah wasn’t back to his Cy Young finalist form of 2022, but it was a substantial improvement over last year’s disappointing season.

There’s little to be done now beyond hoping that imaging doesn’t reveal any structural concerns. Manoah’s fastball sat in the typical 92-93 MPH range during the first inning. He didn’t top 90 MPH in the second inning until throwing Dominic Fletcher a 91.4 MPH sinker to start his at-bat. Manoah seemed to wince after releasing that pitch and departed the game following a mound visit (video provided on X by Sportsnet’s Shi Davidi). Trevor Richards came in for 3 1/3 scoreless innings of emergency relief to help Toronto to a 3-1 victory.

The Jays are working with limited rotation depth behind their front five of Kevin Gausman, Yusei Kikuchi, José Berríos, Chris Bassitt and Manoah. Offseason signee Yariel Rodríguez has been on the injured list since April 30 with back inflammation. Bowden Francis, who opened the season in the rotation when Manoah was on the shelf, has been out for the last month with forearm tendinitis.

Rodríguez and Francis are each on rehab stints with Triple-A Buffalo. While both pitchers should be back before long, they’ve each got questions about their viability as starters. Rodríguez barely pitched in 2023 as he went through the process of applying for free agency. He pitched out of the bullpen in Japan two seasons ago. Francis was rocked in his first two MLB starts this year and quickly kicked to multi-inning relief, where he had more success last season.

Paolo Espino, who has a 4.81 ERA over eight starts with Buffalo, is the only other traditional starter on the 40-man roster. Toronto brought back old friend Aaron Sanchez on a minor league deal earlier this month, but he has given up 17 runs in 10 2/3 Triple-A innings. Beau Sulser, another recent non-roster acquisition, has surrendered 12 runs in 14 1/3 Triple-A innings in a swing role. Top prospect Ricky Tiedemann is back on the minor league IL because of a nerve issue in his elbow.

If Manoah needs to go on the injured list, Espino seems the logical choice to hold the fort until Rodríguez is ready to return. Toronto’s rotation would look perilously thin in the event of any other injuries. While the Jays benefitted from remarkable rotation health last season,  they relied on Richards to kick off a few bullpen games last summer while Manoah was in the minors. Perhaps they’d look at that as another short-term solution, but starting pitching would likely be a deadline priority if the Jays are in the postseason picture in July.

Blue Jays Activate Alek Manoah From Injured List

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TODAY: The Blue Jays announced Manoah’s activation today, and optioned left-hander Brendon Little to Triple-A in order to make room for the righty on the active roster. Little, 27, has just four innings of work at the big league level under his belt from his time with the Cubs and Blue Jays and has surrendered seven runs in that time, with four strikeouts and two walks.

May 4: Alek Manoah is set to make his return to the majors on Sunday, as MLB.com’s Keegan Matheson (X link) reports that the Blue Jays will officially activate Manoah from the 15-day injured list.  Manoah will start against the Nationals in his season debut, and the right-hander is already in Washington and in the Jays’ clubhouse today in preparation.

Manoah hasn’t pitched in the Show since August 10, when he allowed four runs in four innings in a 4-3 Blue Jays loss to the Guardians.  He was optioned to Triple-A the next day, which was the second time that he was sent to the minors during his disaster of a 2023 season.  After struggling badly at the start of the season, Manoah was sent to the Complex League for a deeper dive on his mechanics, and he spent about a month working things out.  Toronto recalled him last July but the results weren’t much better, so Manoah was against optioned to Triple-A yet he didn’t actually pitch during the assignment.

These many months later, it still isn’t exactly clear why Manoah’s 2023 season came to such an abrupt end, amidst some rumors of a possible injury or service time-related displeasure over his demotion.  The questions continued in Spring Training when Manoah made just one (rough) appearance before being sidelined with shoulder problems, and he began the season on the 15-day IL in order to make up for that lost spring prep time.  The results were mixed at best over five rehab starts, as Manoah posted an 8.69 ERA over 19 2/3 innings.

Manoah’s most recent Triple-A outing, however, was easily his best.  On April 30, Manoah allowed a run on two hits and two walks over six innings, while recording 12 strikeouts.  Since the Jays had to make a decision anyway on Manoah since his rehab window was about to close, the righty’s strong start helped make things easier on the team, plus Toronto is also facing a rotation vacancy.

Yariel Rodriguez was placed on the 15-day IL earlier this week, and with Bowden Francis also on hurt, Manoah was the most logical option if the Jays didn’t want to opt for a bullpen game.  Because the Jays have four off-days within the first 16 days of May, they didn’t technically need a fifth starter, and could’ve just kept the other four starters on their usual turns.  Adding a fifth arm gives the others extra rest, and it also shows some faith on the team’s part that Manoah has overcome some of the problems that have inexplicably set back his career.

Manoah pitched really well as a rookie in 2021, and was even better in 2022 while posting a 2.24 ERA in 196 2/3 innings and finishing third in AL Cy Young Award voting.  All signs pointed to the former first-rounder becoming a staple of Toronto’s rotation, except his numbers suddenly plummeted downward in 2023.  Batters were suddenly making tons of hard contact against Manoah’s offerings (after he had some of the best hard-hit ball stats in the league in 2021-22), and his walk rate skyrocketed to 14.2%.

As surprising as it was to see Manoah sharply regress, it would be equally surprising to see him quickly revert to his ace form over the course of the 2024 campaign.  Just pitching well enough to stick in the majors would count as a nice sign of progress that Manoah was getting closer to being on track, plus that scenario would naturally be a huge help for the Blue Jays’ rotation depth.  If Manoah is able to last as a fifth starter, Rodriguez and Francis could be deployed as swingmen when healthy, adding enough length to keep the relief corps fresh over the course of the season.

In a more immediate Blue Jays roster move, Kevin Kiermaier was activated from the 10-day injured list today, with outfielder Nathan Lukes sent down to Triple-A.  Kiermaier ended up missing only a minimal amount of time due to hip flexor inflammation, which is a relief given how Kiermaier underwent hip surgery in 2022.  The IL trip might well serve as a reset on Kiermaier’s season, as he was hitting only .193/.246/.228 in 62 plate appearances before being sidelined.

Blue Jays Notes: Hernandez, Tiedemann, Manoah, Rodriguez

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After Friday’s 12-2 blowout loss to the Dodgers, the Blue Jays now have a 13-14 record over their first 27 games, and (via tiebreaker) sit in last place in the AL East.  While there has been plenty of inconsistency within the pitching staff, Toronto’s most glaring problem has been a lack of offense — the Jays rank 24th of 30 teams in runs (98), and their .197 average with runners in scoring position is the third-worst in the league.

This slow offensive start has only generated more questions (and second-guessing) about the Blue Jays’ offseason approach to upgrading the lineup, notwithstanding the team’s high-profile attempt at signing Shohei Ohtani.  This isn’t to say what the Jays check in with a number of other bats, including a notable former Blue Jay slugger in Teoscar Hernandez.

As Hernandez told Sportsnet’s Shi Davidi, the Jays made contact “at the beginning” of the offseason and “said to not forget about them.”  However, later talks didn’t yield much or any progress towards a deal, as “obviously when we exchanged numbers and years and all that stuff, they said they could not go that far.  That was about it.”

Hernandez blossomed into an All-Star over his six seasons in Toronto, hitting .263/.320/.503 with 129 homers in 2419 plate appearances for the Blue Jays from 2017-22.  Despite this production, the Jays dealt Hernandez to the Mariners in November 2022 in exchange for Erik Swanson and pitching prospect Adam Macko.  Hernandez was entering his final year of salary arbitration prior to free agency, plus the Jays felt a need to improve their outfield defense and contact hitting, as Hernandez struck out a lot and didn’t offer much in the way of glovework.

Considering that Swanson pitched well last season and Hernandez hit an underwhelming .258/.305/.435 in Seattle, Toronto’s logic in making the deal seemed sound.  The outfielder’s so-so numbers resulted in what was essentially a “prove it” type of contract in free agency, as Hernandez signed with Los Angeles on a $23.5MM deal (including $8.5MM in deferrals) covering just the 2024 season.  To date, Hernandez has bounced back quite nicely, to the tune of six home runs and a .267/.336/.486 slash line over his first 117 PA in Dodger Blue.

It is understandable why the Blue Jays might have been wary about committing $23.5MM to a hitter coming off such an average season, and all things being equal financially, it is also possible Hernandez might’ve preferred joining a star-studded L.A. lineup rather than return to a team that just traded him only a year earlier.  That said, Hernandez’s April numbers would’ve obviously been a huge help to the Jays’ lineup, and perhaps a more prudent investment than the $18MM in combined salary the team is paying Kevin Kiermaier and Isiah Kiner-Falefa this season.  Kiner-Falefa’s bat has been decent enough but he is one of several comparable infielders on Toronto’s roster, while Kiermaier has contributed next to nothing at the plate and is currently on the injured list dealing with inflammation in his hip flexor.

Ricky Tiedemann is another player on the mend, as the southpaw is on the seven-day injured list at Triple-A Buffalo.  Jays manager John Schneider provided some positive news on Tiedemann’s status Friday, telling MLB.com’s Julia Kreuz and other reporters that Tiedemann is dealing with ulnar nerve inflammation, and not any structural damage to his left elbow.  It isn’t quite clear yet when Tiedemann might be back on the mound for Buffalo, but he should start throwing again within 7-10 days.

Ranked as one of baseball’s top pitching prospects, Tiedemann hasn’t pitched all that much over three pro seasons, with just 130 2/3 total minor league innings under his belt.  That total includes only 44 frames (32 at Double-A) in 2023, as Tiedemann battles biceps and shoulder problems for much of the year.  Heading into this season, Tiedemann also had hamstring and calf issues during Spring Training, then tossed eight innings over three Triple-A starts before his IL placement.

Getting Tiedemann healthy is the Blue Jays’ top priority, and he’ll need to bank some quality innings at Triple-A before garnering consideration for his first big league call-up.  Some amount of extra pressure is perhaps unavoidable for Tiedemann given both the top-100 hype, and his outsized importance on a Jays team lacking in rotation depth.  In the event of an injury within the starting rotation, Paolo Espino might be the next man up by default, as Bowden Francis is on the 15-day IL and Alek Manoah’s status remains in question given his shaky rehab performances.

Yariel Rodriguez has pitched well over his first three career Major League starts, so for now, Rodriguez has solidified his claim to the fifth starter’s job.  As the Athletic’s Kaitlyn McGrath noted earlier this week, however, Rodriguez is on an unspecified innings limit since he didn’t pitch at all in 2023, and it remains to be seen how the Blue Jays might dole out those innings in the right-hander’s rookie season.  Rodriguez could be moved back to the bullpen at some point in order to limit his usage, but that would require someone else to step up for rotation work.

Manoah’s 11.85 ERA over 13 2/3 innings in his four rehab outings is hard to ignore, as even though rehab starts are more about health and figuring things out rather than results, Manoah is still being plagued by control problems and the home run ball.  The Jays placed Manoah on the 15-day injured list to begin the season as the right-hander was bothered by shoulder soreness during Spring Training, and as McGrath observes, the 30-day rehab window ends for Manoah on May 6.  He could be optioned to Triple-A at that point, or potentially become an option for the 26-man roster if he looks better in what should be two more rehab outings.  Manoah is also slated to throw a bullpen session in Toronto this weekend in front of the team’s big league coaching staff.

Blue Jays Place Bowden Francis On Injured List

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The Blue Jays announced today that right-hander Bowden Francis has been played on the 15-day injured list with right forearm extensor tendinitis. Left-hander Brendon Little was recalled in a corresponding move.

At first glance, the loss of Francis might not seem to be too significant since he was operating as the club’s long reliever. However, when combined with other details, it highlights the thin starting depth for the Jays.

The club has a strong five-man rotation at the moment in Kevin Gausman, José Berríos, Chris Bassitt, Yusei Kikuchi and Yariel Rodríguez. The latter is the least established of that bunch but he has looked solid so far, with a 3.86 earned run average through his first three starts, striking out 28.8% of batters faced.

But with Francis now on the shelf, it’s unclear who the club would turn to if any of those five suffered an injury. Mitch White was in the mix earlier this year but he was recently squeezed off the roster and traded to the Giants, so he’s no longer an option.

Alek Manoah is theoretically a possibility, but the Jays likely aren’t too excited about turning to him again. He was a borderline ace in 2021 and 2022 but struggled badly last year, with his ERA ticking up to 5.87. Here in 2024, he started the season on the injured list due to right shoulder inflammation.

He has been on a rehab assignment in the minors in recent weeks but hasn’t looked great, having allowed 18 earned runs in 13 2/3 innings. Reading the stat line on a rehab assignment can’t always tell you everything since a pitcher might simply be focused on getting the ball over the plate and staying healthy while caring less about the results. However, Scott Mitchell of TSN relays that the eye test was also not good during Manoah’s outing for Buffalo last night, with his velocity noticeably down.

Prospect Ricky Tiedemann had been throwing in Triple-A and could have been considered an option until recently, but he was sent for an MRI due to some discomfort in his throwing elbow. It’s still unclear what the next steps are for him but his last appearance was two weeks ago.

For now, the rotation is in okay shape but injuries are fairly inevitable. Even if everyone stays healthy, Rodríguez might hit a wall at some point. He didn’t pitch at all last year after the World Baseball Classic, as he didn’t return to his team in Japan while trying to be declared a free agent. Even prior to that mostly dormant season, he was working as a reliever in the NPB and will be challenged to suddenly shoulder a starter’s workload for all of 2024.

With Francis and Tiedemann hurt, White gone and Manoah struggling, the Jays will have to think about who is next up. Paolo Espino is on the 40-man roster but he is a 37-year-old journeyman. Adam Macko is also on the roster but he’s not yet reached Triple-A and only has three Double-A starts on his track record.

Given the sudden subtraction of depth, the Jays will likely keep a close eye on the waiver wire or perhaps make a small trade to add some veteran depth. If they want to turn to free agency, guys like Rich Hill and Noah Syndergaard are still out there, though they would need a few weeks to get into game shape after missing Spring Training.

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