TORONTO - It once seemed that Alek Manoah was the future ace of the Toronto Blue Jays. That possibility has come to a surprising end.

Manoah was designated for assignment by the Blue Jays on Tuesday to make space on their 40-man roster for the return of veteran slugger Anthony Santander. Toronto general manager Ross Atkins spoke to media during the seventh inning of Toronto's 4-1 loss to the Boston Red Sox to explain what the thinking was behind Manoah's exit.

"These are always tough decisions," said Atkins in the press box at Rogers Centre. "This just came down to a roster crunch, and I was feeling like this is the best decision for us to hold depth and support for this staff as we push forward in very important weeks.

"We chose others over him, obviously. So it was very tough, a very

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