Toronto Blue Jays option Alek Manoah to Triple-A

The Toronto Blue Jays have optioned starting pitcher Alek Manoah to the Triple-A Bisons, the club announced Friday.

The option comes as Manoah, 25, has had an up-and-down season that, in early June, saw him sent to the Blue Jays’ Dunedin lab to find his game. That came after he started the season posting a 6.36 ERA over his first 15 games.

Manoah spent a month working on his game and started games in the Florida Complex League, and in AA ball for the New Hampshire Fisher Cats. His return to the big leagues came in a July 7th game against the Detroit Tigers where he allowed one earned run off five hits while fanning eight batters.

Since then, Manoah’s game has been up and down allowing over three earned runs in four of five stars, but as a whole, his second stint has been much improved. He’s owned an unspectacular 4.91 ERA over that time throwing 29 and one-third innings allowing 16 earned runs off 25 hits and 17 walks. He’s struck out 31 batters over that time.

For Manoah, this option could be a good thing as over the next 11 days, the Jays have three off days and with a six-man rotation, it would’ve been easy for him to get lost in the fray.

The Triple-A Bisons, meanwhile, have their standard off days on Monday, so it will allow Manoah to potentially get up to two starts.

In a corresponding move, the Jays recalled 24-year-old RP Hagen Danner from the Bisons. Across 28 and one-third innings of AAA ball, Danner has posted a 3.81 ERA and .953 WHIP.

Zach Laing is the Nation Network’s news director and senior columnist. He can be followed on Twitter at @zjlaing, or reached by email at zach@oilersnation.com.