Angels: Alek Manoah heard his manager say he wasn’t guaranteed a spot in the rotation

Alek Manoah has had an eventful 2025.

After all, the Blue Jays decided to cut ties with him once he was ready to return to the Majors following his Tommy John surgery. The Braves picked him up before saying goodbye. And finally, he signed with the Angels.

Because he has always been a starter, signed a Major League contract, and the Angels are not overflowing with resources on the mound, it's understandable that he has a good chance of being in the rotation.

But Kurt Suzuki, the manager there, wanted to set the record straight: only Yusei Kikuchi, José Soriano, and Reid Detmers are currently guaranteed a spot in the rotation. Grayson Rodriguez and Alek Manoah will have to earn it and be healthy if they want to be in the rotation.

#Angels manager Kurt Suzuki said Yusei Kikuchi, José Soriano, and Reid Detmers are locks for the rotation. Grayson Rodriguez will have to prove he's healthy and earn it. Same with Alek Manoah.

— Rhett Bollinger (@RhettBollinger) February 10, 2026

In the case of Rodriguez, who was traded for Taylor Ward, he will have plenty of opportunities.

In my opinion, the manager is right to take this approach with Manoah. After all, even though he has had success in the past, the former Blue Jays player still has a lot to prove for the rest of his career.

Publicly challenging him to surpass himself and show the baseball world that he can still be a good pitcher in the Majors is surely the best way to get the most out of Manoah, who can't afford to rest on his laurels.

We'll see in the coming weeks what he's made of and what he's capable of doing this spring. He'll be under pressure… even if, according to him, pressure is only good for inflating tires.

This content was created with the help of AI.