Alek Manoah is heading west, signing a one-year, $1.95 million deal with the Los Angeles Angels as he looks to reboot a once-promising career that’s been derailed by injuries and inconsistency. Once the centerpiece of Toronto’s pitching future, Manoah now gets a fresh start in Anaheim, joining a staff that desperately needs stability after finishing 2025 with the third-highest ERA in the majors.
This move is as much about potential as it is about necessity. The Angels are betting that Manoah, still just 27 and turning 28 in January, can rediscover the form that made him one of the most electric young arms in baseball just a few seasons ago. And for Manoah, it’s a chance to reset, to prove that the All-Star version of himself from 2022 wasn’t a flash in the pan.
Let’s rewind for a second. Manoah was the Blue Jays’ first-round pick in 2019 and wasted no time climbing the ladder.
By May 2021, he was making his big-league debut, and he didn’t disappoint. That rookie year saw him go 9-2 with a 3.22 ERA over 111 2/3 innings, racking up nearly 3 WAR and finishing eighth in AL Rookie of the Year voting.
The stuff was electric, the presence was undeniable, and it looked like Toronto had found its ace of the future.
Then came 2022 - Manoah’s breakout. He was dominant from start to finish, posting a 2.24 ERA across 196 2/3 innings, striking out 180, and finishing third in the AL Cy Young race.
He was the guy you wanted on the mound in October, and the Blue Jays handed him the ball in the Wild Card round. He gave them 5 2/3 innings in that start, capping off what looked like the beginning of something special.
But 2023 was a different story. Manoah struggled out of the gate, his command vanished, and his ERA ballooned to 6.36 through 13 starts.
The Blue Jays sent him to the minors - a stunning move for a pitcher who had been one of the game’s best just a year prior. His time in the minors was uneven, and though he returned to the bigs in July and showed some flashes, he was back down again by August.
He didn’t pitch again in the majors that season.
In 2024, he came into spring training trying to claw his way back into the rotation. He started the year in the minors, got a call-up in May, but after just five starts, he left a game with a UCL sprain. That led to Tommy John surgery - the latest setback in a career that had already taken a sharp turn.
Manoah did return to the minors late in the 2024 season, but by the final week of the regular season, the Blue Jays designated him for assignment. The Atlanta Braves took a flier, claiming him off waivers, but he never appeared in a game for them and was DFA’d again before hitting free agency.
Now, he lands with the Angels - a team in transition, a rotation in need of upside, and a perfect landing spot for a pitcher looking to prove he still belongs. For the Angels, it’s a low-risk, high-upside play. For Manoah, it’s a shot at redemption.
There’s no sugarcoating the road ahead. Coming back from Tommy John is never easy, and Manoah’s command issues predated the injury.
But the raw tools - the size, the velocity, the moxie - they’re still in there. If the Angels can help him tap back into the version of himself that dominated in 2022, this could be one of the more intriguing comeback stories of the 2026 season.
It’s a gamble, sure. But it’s one worth taking - for both sides.