Are Alek Manoah's struggles being caused by the pitch clock? Blue Jays ace sent down after seven poor starts

Alek Manoah was just demoted to the Florida Complex League. The Toronto Blue Jays ace has been absolutely putrid this season following a third-place Cy Young finish in 2022. He's been a shell of himself this year, routinely struggling to get hitters out.

After Alek Manoah recorded one out and six runs on seven hits against the Houston Astros, the Blue Jays front office had seen enough. They sent their former ace down to figure things out while he can't hurt their playoff chances.

The popular theory is that the pitch clock might have hurt him. Many pitchers struggled to adjust and the year-to-year stat change is startling. It's impossible to tell what's causing his downfall, but it definitely can't be ruled out.

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Comparing Alek Manoah's stats before and after the pitch clock

In 2022, Alek Manoah's ERA was 2.24 and his xERA was 3.31. This year, it has ballooned to 6.36. His xERA of 6.42 is even worse. His peripherals aren't good, either.

Manoah has struggled this year.

In 2022, the Blue Jays star was in the 92nd percentile of hard-hit percentage. He was in the 80th percentile for barrel percentage and 73rd for average exit velocity. Those numbers don't suggest elite production, but they are solid.

This year, for comparison, he's in the 26th percentile for hard hit percentage, 44th for barrel rate, and 42nd in exit velocity. His walk percentage is in the fifth percentile, too.

Put simply, Manoah is getting hit way harder this year than last and he also can't throw strikes. Whether it's because he's being rushed or not remains to be seen.