Blue Jays sign Alek Manoah insurance in the form of a familiar All-Star

Despite the fact that he had an 8.59 ERA in five starts for AAA Buffalo, the Toronto Blue Jays let themselves think that one good start meant he was ready to return to the majors. To the surprise of nobody with the exception of maybe GM Ross Atkins, Manoah's return did not go splendidly.

The right-hander allowed seven runs (six earned) in four innings pitched against the Washington Nationals on Sunday. Despite his struggles, Manoah is staying in the rotation. It makes some sense for the Jays to give Manoah more than one game to re-prove himself, but it has more to do with the lack of rotation depth.

Both Bowden Francis and Yariel Rodriguez are on the IL. The only other starting pitcher in AAA on the 40-man roster is Paolo Espino, who is not an exciting option. Seeing this lack of depth, Atkins made a move to address it. He brought in a familiar face Blue Jays fans can get behind.

Blue Jays bring in much-needed Alek Manoah insurance

Aaron Sanchez. Yes, that Aaron Sanchez, was signed to a minor league deal by the Blue Jays on Monday. Hard to believe.

Sanchez spent the first six seasons of his career with the Blue Jays and was at one point one of the best pitchers in the American League. In the 2016 season he went 15-2 and led the AL with a 3.00 ERA. He made 30 starts, threw 192 innings, and finished seventh in the AL Cy Young balloting. That was in his first full season as a starter.

Unfortunately, Sanchez never quite matched that outstanding season. He had all sorts of blister problems which limited his ability to take the ball consistently, and when he was healthy enough to pitch, he wasn't very good. He had short stints with the Astros, Giants, Nationals, and Twins in a four-year stretch, but could never re-gain his All-Star form.

Last season, the right-hander made 22 appearances (20 starts) in AAA splitting time in the Twins and Diamondbacks organizations, but he had a 5.54 ERA. He hasn't thrown a pitch in professional baseball this season.

No minor league deal can be considered a bad deal as there's zero risk, but if the Blue Jays actually have to rely on Sanchez, something has gone horribly wrong. Even Manoah seems like a better gamble at this point. His good season was six years after Sanchez's.