TORONTO – The Toronto Blue Jays went for pitching with their top pick in the 2019 draft, selecting right-hander Alek Manoah 11th overall.
Listed at six-foot-six and 260 pounds, the West Virginia product has a fastball in the 94-97 m.p.h. range that misses lots of bats, according to MLB Pipeline. Baseball America describes his slider as a potential plus pitch, while his change-up’s more of a work in progress.
On a conference call with reporters, amateur scouting director Steve Sanders said the Blue Jays believe that combination of plus pitches and durability should help Manoah become a quality big-league starter.
Manoah split his first two college seasons between the rotation and bullpen but emerged as a legitimate starter last summer in the Cape Cod League. He impressed as a full-time starter this season, posting a 2.08 ERA with 144 strikeouts compared to just 27 walks in 108.1 innings.
The Blue Jays have a total draft bonus pool of $8,463,300 thanks in large part to the $4,547,500 recommended for Toronto’s first-round pick.
This is the third year on the job for Sanders, who took over from Brian Parker in the fall of 2016. Back in 2017, Sanders chose Logan Warmoth and Nate Pearson in the first round. Last year the Blue Jays went with Jordan Groshans, a high school shortstop.
[relatedlinks]
