Blue Jays just DFA'd a nightmare target for Angels, Perry Minasian

From 2009 until 2016, Perry Minasian was an employee for the Toronto Blue Jays. He served as their director of professional scouting, and he very likely kept tabs with his former organization for many years after he left Toronto alongside Alex Anthopolous to join the Atlanta Braves. Minasian is known for making myriad trades and scooping up many discarded Braves players as the head honcho of the Angels.

Blue Jays just DFA'd a nightmare target for Angels, Perry Minasian

Alek Manoah did not overlap with Minasian, as the pitcher was drafted a couple years after the now-Angels general manager departed Toronto for Atlanta. However, it feels like such a Minasian move to scoop up the once-promising Blue Jays starting pitcher after his recent DFA. He loves players from his former orgs, and Arte Moreno loves big names players who lack substance.

Manoah was dynamite for the Angels American League counterparts from 2021-2022. In those two seasons combined, Manoah made 36 starts and posted a 2.60 ERA, 3.51 FIP, 1.01 WHIP and a 25-9 record. However, from 2023-on he struggled with his weight and injuries and has been largely irrelevant ever since. He did pitch well in his seven Triple-A starts that were both rehab assignments and outings after he was activated off the 60-day injured list and optioned to Buffalo. However, he feels like a player that would sign with the Angels and immediately become terrible again.

This would be such a classic move by the Angels. The Angels definitely need starting pitching and the 27-year-old Manoah does fit the bill. Moving forward, the Angels have Yusei Kikuchi, José Soriano...and maybe Reid Detmers in their starting rotation? Kyle Hendricks is expected to retire, Tyler Anderson is going to be a free agent and Jack Kochanowicz is in Siberia.

There's Caden Dana? Sam Aldegheri? Mitch Farris? Víctor Mederos? Claiming Manoah off waivers (or signing him after a potential release given his bloated arbitration salary) would provide depth, and the 40-man roster has a whole lot of dead weight on it in the form of guys like Connor Brogdon, Sammy Peralta, José Ureña, Hunter Strickland and several impending free agents too. He still has minor league options remaining as well.

Claiming Manoah would be intriguing, but ultimately feels like a nothing acquisition that fans would forget about in a short time. It might be worth a try, but the Angels do not have a lot of cap flexibility right now and perhaps they'll see him for what he is -- a player who is well past his prime.

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