Alek Manoah gives incredible shoutout to his new wife for his slim new appearance

There's no denying the 2023 campaign was a complete disaster for Alek Manoah, both on and off the field. He performed worse on the mound than anyone would have predicted, while doing himself no favours with an attitude that went against the very essence of teamwork which is needed in the world of professional sports.

However, if there's one positive that's come as a result of this fall from grace, Manoah seems to have done a complete 180 in respect of his approach to baseball. From thinking he'd already made it and had nothing to prove, he has been suitably humbled to the point he's now taking his profession more seriously.

Perhaps the main example of this, is the right-handed pitcher's approach to his health. Whereas he showed up overweight for spring training last year, this time around he looks in much better shape.

A changed attitude

If this turns out to be a prelude to Manoah returning to his form prior to last season, Blue Jays fans will want to give a collective thank you to his partner Marielena. The two got married during December in Puerto Rico, and she is clearly having a positive impact on her husband's approach to pitching.

Manoah explained how his wife has been helping him, while speaking to the media in Dunedin on Friday. As per the Toronto Sun's Rob Longley, he said: "My wife is an accredited nutritionist and she’s been helping me a lot and my brother with his gym (in Miami) is pushing me hard. The offseason we had with the attention to detail on everything — throwing, stretching, nutrition, hydration. I’m super grateful for the support system I have and not only creating a plan but being able to execute it."

They do say the love of a good woman can help you in many ways, and the impact Mrs. Manoah seems to have had his undoubtedly encouraging for all concerned. Gone is the arrogance of the 2022 All-Star, replaced with a more hard-working and appreciative outlook on things.

Regaining trust a work in progress

Now of course Manoah still has plenty to do, to regain the trust of those both within and outside of the Blue Jays organization. This is still the same player who refused to report to Buffalo after his second demotion last year, essentially because of an ego that had him thinking he was too good to play in Triple-A.

Again though, it does seem as if the Homestead, Florida native's wife has helped him immensely with his mental mindset and acknowledgement of what he needs to do differently, As per Longley, he said: "I didn’t have the best [offseason] last year. When you have a really good offseason, you’re built up great and your body is super strong,” he said. “I felt like I came into camp still searching for things, went into the season still searching for things. We never got there."

Aside from his wife, Manoah is fortunate to still have the support of those that matter within the Blue Jays organisation. Despite speculation about him potentially being traded, the preference was to keep him around to compete for a spot in the 2024 rotation.

The Blue Jays rotation was one of the very best in the Majors last year which, among other things, ranked third in in ERA and second in strikeouts. And this was despite Manoah's poor stat line, which included a 5.87 ERA, 6.01 FIP and 1.740 WHIP.

If the 2022 All-MLB First Team selection can get back to somewhere closer to what he's shown previously, then the Blue Jays rotation stands to be even better. Along these lines, he is arguably the Blue Jays player with the most to prove this coming season.

Of course there's no way of knowing for sure, if Manoah will return to the form which saw him finish third in AL Cy Young voting in 2022. If nothing else though, he has an excellent chance thanks to an improved attitude and a strong foundation of love and support.

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