Alek Manoah released by Angels

Manoah has been removed from Los Angeles’ 40-man roster after posting a disastrous 9.82 ERA and 5/8 K/BB ratio across 7 1/3 innings over three relief appearances for the Angels earlier this season. It’s safe to assume his days as a relevant fantasy contributor are over.

The 28-year-old hurler actually pitched well in his first two outings for the Halos, firing six scoreless innings with a 1.17 WHIP and a 3/5 K/BB ratio. He should get another opportunity with the big league club in the near future.

Johnson was put on the injured list back on April 6th with a viral infection, but then was pulled from his rehab start the next week with a hamstring strain. He restarted his rehab assignment at the beginning of the month and will now return to a spot on the Angels’ active roster, with Drew Pomeranz headed to the IL. Johnson will be an option for the final spot in the rotation that’s currently being held by Alek Manoah, who has been pitching in bulk relief.

It’s challenging to draw any conclusions from this outing since Manoah entered the contest with Los Angeles trailing by a touchdown in the fourth inning. He notched only two strikeouts and walked a staggering five batters. Amazingly, he managed to put five goose eggs on the scoreboard in the one-sided affair. His fastball velocity is starting to trend in the right direction, but he’s not close to being a fantasy-relevant option yet. He’s in line to take the ball on Sunday against the Dodgers. He’s not a recommended fantasy option in that spot.

It’ll be Manoah’s second appearance for the Angels after he threw a scoreless inning Friday against the Blue Jays. He gave up five earned runs in 4 1/3 innings in his one minor league start before being activated from the injured list last week.

Manoah will be active out of the bullpen on Wednesday, and it remains to be seen if he’s an option to take Yusei Kikuchi’s (shoulder) place in the rotation. The 28-year-old Manoah has been working his way back from a finger contusion he suffered in spring training and will pitch in his first MLB innings since 2024 when he does get into a game.

The 28-year-old right-hander is working his way back from a right middle finger contusion that he sustained during Cactus League play. He has already worked his way up to 90 pitches in simulated games, so it’ll be interesting to see how many rehab starts he’ll require before he’s an option to help out the Halos.

Manoah had been on the injured list with a right finger contusion for the last month, but this has also given the Angels a chance to continue to work with him and build up his arm strength. Manager Kurt Suzuki said that Manoah was “nearing a rehab assignment,” which could begin as soon as next week.

Manoah failed to make Los Angeles’ season-opening rotation after posting a bloated 9.39 ERA across 15 1/3 innings during Cactus League action. It’s fair to assume that the 28-year-old is completely finished as a fantasy-relevant option but the Angels are probably going to let him try to work things out in the minors over the next couple weeks.

It’s unclear how much that issue has impacted his poor performance his last couple of starts — or how much time (if any) Manoah may miss. The 28-year-old hurler is tentatively expected to open the season in the Angels’ rotation, but if he continues to struggle the leash there could ultimately be very short.