Rookie right-hander Alek Manoah of the Toronto Blue Jays was suspended five games and issued a fine for throwing at Baltimore Orioles third baseman Maikel Franco over the weekend, causing a benches-clearing altercation. MLB also announced that Blue Jays manager Charlie Montoyo received a one-game suspension. Montoyo served the ban Tuesday when his team played against the Miami Marlins, while Manoah decided to appeal his suspension.
Manoah was ejected from Saturday’s game against the Orioles for hitting Franco with a pitch after giving up back-to-back home runs in the fourth inning. Manoah plunked Franco on his left shoulder on the first pitch of the at-bat, triggering the benches and bullpens to empty, causin the umpires to eject Manoah from the game.
Manoah said after the game: “I tried to get that fastball in, and it slipped awayI was confused by [Franco’s] reaction. I was questioning, ‘What’s going on? What’s wrong?’ Those were my hand gestures as I was walking toward him. I didn’t understand the frustration there.”
The 23-year-old Manoah has a 1-0 record and 4.18 ERA over five starts for the Blue Jays, earning 27 strikeouts and nine walks this season.
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