A few weeks ago, Matthew Ross, who is known to be involved with the city’s English-language Montreal radio (TSN 690), was talked about for the wrong reasons.
He cited a tweet from the Blue Jays where catcher Alejandro Kirk was seen running from first base to home plate and criticized that it was “sports embarrassing” to see such footage circulating. Why? Because Kirk (5’8, 245 lbs.) is bigger than average and not exactly a rocket on the trails when he runs.
Alek Manoah, who works with Kirk every five days, saw the tweet and got angry. He said it was embarrassing to see Ross not having played in the Majors, but still wanting to control baseball stereotypes.
He released a message to say that it was quite nice to see Kirk being able to inspire young people by being a role model for all.
Ross has since quit social media, posted a letter of apology…and he’s been heavily criticized. His name is circulating massively on Twitter, but not for the right reasons.
Manoah had therefore managed to get people talking and he, despite himself, opened a debate on the subject.
And clearly, he had more impact than he thought. Why? Because he was awarded a $100,000 award (in Canadian dollars) by Dove Men+Care for showing good sportsmanship in defending his teammate.
This is a first for this price and Manoah himself retweeted the news.
Interestingly, Manoah, who is making US$730,000 this year, donated the entire scholarship (which represents 10% of his annual salary) to a non-profit organization in Canada (KidSport).
KidSport gives children the opportunity to participate in organized sports in Canada.
Recall that Manoah is an American from Florida (and that Kirk is Mexican) and it is therefore very good to see how well the pitcher has integrated into Canadian culture.
Yes, the future of the Blue Jays is in good hands with all these young people who want to play in Toronto.
