Alek Manoah's poor start in minors leaves more questions than answers for Blue Jays fans

On June 5, Toronto Blue Jays starter Alek Manoah got absolutely blown out of the water by the Houston Astros. The 25-year-old surrendered six earned runs, including a Grand Slam, before he was mercilessly pulled from the game after 0.1 innings.

The very next day, Manoah was demoted to the Florida Complex League. The move represented a gigantic fall from grace for a man who posted a 2.24 ERA and finished third in AL Cy Young voting just a year prior.

On June 26, Alek Manoah got the ball for his first start in the FCL. With his tumultuous MLB stats cemented in his mind, the Toronto Blue Jays first-rounder wanted to put his best foot forward. Unfortunately, Manoah allowed 11 earned runs off of 10 hits in just 2.2 innings.

The nightmare appearance earned him an ERA of 37.13., which looks just as bizarre as it sounds on the scorecard. Fans took to Twitter to lambaste the young stud, who appears to have lost his way.

On the lowest rung of the North American minor league latter, the Florida Complex League is seen as one step above amateur baseball. Typically, MLB stars who are really struggling are sent there for a brief period of time.

During his dismal start against the Houston Astros, Alek Manoah was seen attempting to blow a bunt attempt from shortstop Jeremy Pena into foul territory. Predictably, the awful optics of the incident was not lost on fans.

In Alek Manoah's absence, the Toronto Blue Jays have posted some fairly impressive pitching numbers. With a starting ERA of 4.04, they are fifth in the AL the category. Their success has been compounded by starters like Chris Bassitt, Jose Berrios, and Kevin Gausman, who leads the American League in total strikeouts this season.

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What's next for Alek Manoah after the Florida Complex debacle?

It's hard to say where Manoah goes from here. Moreover, his tendency to feud with pitchers, such as Gerrit Cole of the New York Yankees, has made him a controversial name within the baseball world.

Now robbed of all notoriety, success in the FCL will need to come before any conversation about returning to a starting role with the Blue Jays. Otherwise, it might be time for him to join the Savannah Bananas.