Jays’ Manoah has UCL sprain, to see specialist

Toronto Blue Jays right-hander Alek Manoah has been placed on the 15-day injured list with what has been diagnosed as a UCL sprain in his right elbow, the team announced Friday.

Manoah underwent an MRI after leaving Wednesday’s game vs. the Chicago White Sox in the second inning due to discomfort in his elbow.

Blue Jays manager John Schneider told Sportsnet 590 The Fan that Manoah will visit Dr. Keith Meister next week to get a “better understanding in feel and plan going forward.”

The 26-year-old Manoah is 1-2 with a 3.70 ERA in five starts after starting this season on the injured list with shoulder inflammation.

“Kind of just felt really pinchy,” Manoah said after Wednesday’s game. “At that point, like mentally, I was just like, ‘Do I keep grinding through this and maybe make it worse, or just hand the ball to somebody else?'”

Manoah was a breakout star for Toronto in 2022, going 16-7 with a 2.24 ERA in 31 starts. He made the AL All-Star team and finished third in AL Cy Young Award voting. But he struggled last year, going 3-9 with a 5.87 ERA in 19 starts. He was optioned to the minors twice.

In other moves Friday, the Blue Jays have acquired right-hander Ryan Burr from the Philadelphia Phillies in exchange for cash considerations and Burr will be active for Friday’s game vs. Pittsburgh. Right-hander Joel Kuhnel was designated for assignment.

Burr was 2-1 with a 2.16 ERA in 15 games with Triple-A Lehigh Valley.

The Associated Press contributed to this report.