The Los Angeles Angels trotted out Alek Manoah after their openers failed big, and the results were mostly positive.
The Los Angeles Angels finally got to see newly-signed right-hander Alek Manoah in a regular season game last night, and while the results weren’t pretty, Manoah did give the Angels five scoreless innings after their bullpen openers gave up seven runs in three innings against the Cleveland Guardians as the Halos dropped a 7-2 decision.
Manoah needed 91 pitches to post those goose eggs as he walked five hitters, but manager Kurt Suzuki wasn’t splitting hairs about the results after the game as he chose to focus on the length his pitcher provided.
“He grinded and gave us everything that we needed," Suzuki said in a followup piece written by Henry Palatella of MLB.com.
Manoah also worked his way out of a couple of jams, including one in the fifth when the Guardians had runners on second and third with just one out. He was able to get a pop up followed by a ground out, and Suzuki focused on that aspect of Manoah’s performance as well.
“Guys that are successful execute pitches when they have to, and he did a good job of that tonight,” Suzuki said.
The pitch mix looked different, though. Manoah used his changeup extensively in this outing, throwing it 43 times as it became his most reliable pitch when it became clear that his velocity was way down.
“They have a bunch of lefties, and it really comes down to whatever the catcher is calling,” Manoah said. “I feel like I was able to keep them off balance.”
He also had a different job in this outing. The Angels bullpen has been throwing a lot of not-very-good innings, and Manoah was aware of what the expectations were going in.
“My job was to get in there, eat innings and save the bullpen, and I feel like I was able to do that,” Manoah said.
Whether his effort represents good news or not is a matter of interpretation. The Guardians hit plenty of loud fouls, and in a tight game this outcome might have been very different. Manoah now becomes a candidate to join the Angels rotation, as Suzuki and pitching coach Mike Maddux continue to conduct open auditions for a spot at the back end.
The Angels haven’t listed a starter for Sunday’s finale back in Anaheim against the Los Angeles Dodgers, so it’ll be interesting if Manoah replaces “tbd” as the starter in that one. Suzuki could also slot Manoah into the spot starter/long reliever going forward, but at least the manager has a somewhat positive option after a grim, desultory performance against Cleveland.