A former WVU baseball pitcher has had a rocky road in his professional career, but recently signed a free agent contract to get a second chance at being a top-level starter in Major League Baseball.
Alek Manoah signed a one-year $1.95 million deal with the Los Angeles Angels on Tuesday, which will be his third MLB organization that he has pitched for in his career (Toronto Blue Jays and Atlanta Braves). The one-year $1.95 million deal is fully guaranteed, according to MLB insider Jeff Passan, and was accepted after Manoah was non-tendered by the Braves, allowing him to sign a new free agent deal.
Right-hander Alek Manoah and the Los Angeles Angels are in agreement on a one-year, $1.95 million contract, a source tells ESPN. Manoah, 27, was non-tendered by Atlanta and lands with the Angels on a fully guaranteed big league deal.
— Jeff Passan (@JeffPassan) December 2, 2025
Coming back from Tommy John surgery in June 2024, Manoah has not pitched in the MLB since May of that same year, when he was playing for the Toronto Blue Jays. Now, the former Mountaineer will have a chance to crack the starting rotation for the Angels out of spring training, with the potential to be moved to the bullpen as an arm who can eat innings.
Alek Manoah and the Angels have agreed to a one-year deal worth $1.95 million, per @JeffPassan.
— Just Baseball (@JustBB_Media) December 2, 2025
His last MLB start was in May of 2024 with the Blue Jays. pic.twitter.com/DTVKtANOOt
Before his Tommy John surgery, Manoah finished third in Cy Young voting in his second season pitching for the Blue Jays in 2022, placed behind Houston’s Justin Verlander and Chicago White Sox’s Dylan Cease. Posting a 16-7 record with a 2.24 ERA and 180 strikeouts over 196.2 innings pitched, Manoah recorded an impressive 6 WAR (wins above replacement). Along with his third-place finish in the Cy Young award, Manoah was also an American League All-Star in 2022 for the Blue Jays.
According to FanGraphs' projection, Manoah will slot in as the fifth starter for the Angels, even after the Angels acquired injury-plagued young star Grayson Rodriguez in a trade with the Baltimore Orioles in November. Manoah will have a prime chance to compete for a place in the starting rotation when Spring Training rolls around for the Halos.
While representing WVU for three seasons (2017-2019), Manoah pitched to a 13-10 record with a 2.81 ERA, adding 249 strikeouts over 218 innings pitched for WVU. The Miami, Florida, native also only allowed opponents to hit a low .212 against him over his 218 innings in a WVU uniform. After his three years in Morgantown, Manoah was selected with the 11th overall pick in the 2019 MLB Draft by the Toronto Blue Jays.
WVU baseball fans are thrilled to see one of the best players in program history get another chance at being a starter in the MLB. Manoah has the entire WVU baseball fanbase, along with many others, rooting for him in his new journey in Los Angeles.