Red Sox outfielder Alex Verdugo had strong words for Blue Jays ace Alek Manoah, but the pitcher had a blunt NSFW response to the critique.
As AL East rivals, there’s never going to be any love lost between the Toronto Blue Jays and Boston Red Sox. But on Tuesday, Red Sox outfielder Alex Verdugo took it to another level when he got Jays pitcher Alek Manoah in his crosshairs.
Manoah, of course, is known for his fiery antics on the mound that, frankly, can get under opposing players’ skin. And Verdugo is definitely not a fan. The Boston outfielder laid into Manoah, saying that the Blue Jays ace goes about celebrating the wrong way and adding “that s**t pisses me off” and calling it “disrespectful” behavior.
Of course, a player like Manoah who has never been one to hold back did no such thing in this instance.
Speaking with the Toronto Sun, Manoah had a succinct NSFW response to Verdugo’s NSFW rant about the Blue Jays star.
“Coming from him? I don’t give a s**t,” Manoah said.
Alek Manoah on Alex Verdugo’s harsh criticism: ‘I don’t give a s**t’
Well, that should make for some fun matchups this season with Verdugo at the dish against Manoah.
Of course, they weren’t exactly friendly appearances for the Blue Jays ace with the Red Sox a year ago. On multiple occasions, Manoah stared down Boston players after different instances and appeared to be adding gasoline to any fire between the AL East rivals, which is what Verdugo clearly took exception to.
Clearly, though, it’s not going to stop Manoah from his antics, and Verdugo almost surely won’t be the last player to say something about it.
And for those interested, the Blue Jays will visit Boston on May 1 for the first meeting between the clubs in the 2023 season.