DUNEDIN, Fla. — It was a nine-month sentence, much of it the pitcher’s version of solitary confinement and Alek Manoah went through the full array of emotions associated with recovery from elbow surgery.
There was pain. There was self-doubt. There was frustration and there was tedium.
But the sun finally shone through much of that on an idyllic Florida morning when the big right hander finally threw off a mound for the first time since his 2024 season was shut down due to injury requiring a form of Tommy John surgery to repair his shot right elbow.
Sure, it was just 25 pitches and he’s still month away from resuming his once sky’s the limit career, but it was a huge step for the 27-year-old nonetheless.
“I just thank God for the nine-month journey that it took to get back on that mound and all the work that we’ve put in to prepare for it,” Manoah said, the smile never leaving his face in a nine-minute chat with reporters here. “It’s just a whirlwind of emotions, but it feels amazing right now.”
The journey has had its checkpoints — and will have many more before he gets back into game action, a reality he’s open will arrive in the second half of the season.
Even with the light work count on Friday, a number of his fastballs popping loud in the mitt of Jays catcher Alejandro Kirk. And the big man was thrilled after.
“The first time you play catch, it feels like Christmas Day,” Manoah said. “And then that three-month process, you work on so many things to get back to where you need to be. And the last thing missing is like, ‘Man, I need the slope. Give me the slope.’ So it feels really good to get back out there on the mound.”
With a gallery of his fellow Jays starters — Kevin Gausman, Chris Bassitt and Bowden Francis were all among the onlookers as were relievers Chad Green and Erik Swanson — Manoah was clearly pumped.
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“It was just 15 fastballs, but to be able to enjoy and attack it,” Manoah said. “Those guys (fellow pitchers) know how hard I’m working to get back out there and help the team and just do anything that I can to be a part of this. Most of them have helped me throughout my journey as well, to get to this moment. So just awesome to have their support.”
The Jays pitching staff is littered with players who have gone through the same procedure and offered him advice and encouragement along the way.
The personal support staff included his wife Marielena and his parents plus his brother who he trains with. There some dark moments, sure,
“My wife is an unbelievable human being, she’s been amazing,” Manoah said. “My brother trains me at home so he was kicking my ass every time he need to throughout the rehab and workouts.
“Anybody that’s been through it will tell you, you know, I’ve had very frustrating days. Having that group of people there that kind of just keeps me level headed.”
The Tommy John reconstructive elbow surgery syndrome that is such a blight on baseball hits different pitchers in different ways. Manoah didn’t have the dramatic blowout of his right arm, but believes a number of other factors were stacked against him.
“I’ve been playing baseball since I was three years old and it was just time to go, or, (maybe) heavy workload, early on in my career, or my arm care routine,” Manoah said, listing the potential causes. “It could be a lot of things. The ligament that’s lasted me 24 years (of playing baseball), and I’m grateful for it. And now we’ve got a new one in there, hopefully it will last me another 24.”
There’s still a long road ahead to building the arm strength back to game condition. But barring a setback, Manoah believes that attacking the recovery with his usual vigour has been critical.
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“I’ve been ahead of everything (in his recovery) and that’s really encouraging for me,” he said. “I’ve been attacking (the rehab) and that’s kind of the mindset I’ve had through the whole process. I feel like every step of the way when things are supposed to get really hard, I’m able to weather it because of how hard I’ve been working.
“I would rather be a guy that needs to be held back than a guy who (people) feel, hey, we need to get this moving. So every time I hear a coach say ‘Hey, let’s hold it back,’ I know I’m throwing the sh*t out of it and that’s a good thing.”
While no pitcher wants to go through the TJ ordeal, Manoah hopes that the tumult of his last three years will result in a player with elite potential have more than just a stronger arm.
“I feel like it’s making me stronger,” Manoah said. “It’s making me better. The fact that I was able to come back, you know, in the beginning of last year and kind of show myself and that the stuff that happened in ’23 is of the past and was a fluke and obviously then the elbow blows out … you kind of feel tested again. And that’s OK. I’ve been here before.”