Spring Training Tracker: The Fifth Starter's Job is Wide Open

It makes all the sense in the world to sign a former All Star to a low salary deal and hope he rebounds. It is foolish to count on that rebound and not have any alternatives.

Perry Minasian brought in Alek Manoah hoping for that rebound. He should have brought in a reliable arm as well. Given Manoah's continued struggles, it is time for the Angels to realize he will not be the team's fifth starter and look for an alternative. Fortunately, there look to be a couple in Angels camp.

Manoah entered camp with an inside track to a Major League job but he is simply not up to Major League caliber at this time. He can be optioned to the minors, however, to continue to work on his craft.

With multiple bad outings, Manoah has opened the door to the Opening Day roster. Somebody will fill that spot, it just will not (or at least should not) be Manoah.

Manoah had his second consecutive bad outing today.

Pitching stats don't matter for guys like Yusei Kikuchi or Jose Soriano this time of year. They are going to make the team and could be working on new grips or pitches.

For a guy like Manoah, each outing is an audition for a job. For the second time in a row, Manoah failed that audition. Look at his pitching metrics for today.

Alek Manoah continues to struggle this spring both in terms of stuff and command. He has seemingly made no changes to his arsenal since joining the Angels and his struggles finding the zone persist

This is not an MLB-quality pitcher pic.twitter.com/xMAiNjxsA0
— Thomas Nestico (@TJStats) March 5, 2026

All that blue is bad. The darker the blue, the worse it is. In this case Manoah's pitching grades look like a shiner the day after a good scrap. In this case there's no "you should see the other guy" bravado, though.

The other guy today was Austin Hays who took Manoah yard for a three run bomb in the first inning. It was an ugly day for Manoah who gave up 4 runs on 8 hits in only 4 innings. 2 of those hits left the yard for home runs.

Today was the extension of a trend.

Manoah's struggles this camp are proof the Angels need another arm in the rotation. I his last start against the A's Manoah walked 5 batters while struggling with velocity and command. Coming into today he had walked 8 batters in 7.1 innings while surrendering 5 runs.

The numbers will look worse once today's outing is factored in. Overall it paints a picture of a player who is simply not up to MLB level much less his former form.

Which means there is a competition for a rotation spot.

I've already gone out on a ledge and predicted George Klassen will earn the spot. His combination of upside and career trajectory are hard to ignore. He'll have his ups and downs but at this stage of his career pairing him with Mike Maddux could be massive.

Sam Aldegheri looked great in the World Baseball Classic. Jack Kochanowicz is looking decent in camp. Mitch Ferris has added significant velocity.

As of yet the Angels are not tipping their hand. But Angels fans have a new reason to follow the Cactus League. Alek Manoah's struggles have created a camp battle for an Opening Day roster spot.