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Radio host apologizes to Alejandro Kirk, Alek Manoah for comments about catcher's body

thomas hall
Contributing Writer
·3 min read
Alek Manoah has never been shy to come to the defense of his teammates, whether it's on the field or on social media. (Getty Images)
Montreal radio host Matthew Ross has issued an apology to Toronto Blue Jays stars Alejandro Kirk and Alek Manoah after making comments about the catcher's weight on Twitter last week. (Getty Images)

Matthew Ross, the host of Weekend Game Plan on TSN 690 in Montreal, has issued an apology for comments he made on social media about Alejandro Kirk's body on Tuesday.

"The words were harsh, the sentiment was out of bounds and I deeply regret it," he wrote.

While tweeting about a play from the doubleheader versus the Tampa Bay Rays, Ross criticized the fanbase’s admiration of Toronto Blue Jays catcher Alejandro Kirk’s hustle as he scored from first base.

"It's cute and all, but it's also embarrassing for the sport," Ross said in a since-deleted tweet. "Giving guys like this prominence feeds negative [baseball] stereotypes."

Among the backlash Ross immediately faced, pitcher Alek Manoah, Kirk’s teammate and batterymate, also took to Twitter to defend his close friend. And the 6-foot-6 hurler didn’t pull any punches, either.

Manoah went off on Ross’ body shaming comments, and rightly so. Baseball players come in all shapes and sizes, which the 285-pound right-hander made sure to mention.

Ross then doubled down on his initial comments, saying that he was attempting to defend the sport.

"You're too narrow-minded to see that I am DEFENDING baseball," he replied. "Ratings, attendance and interest in younger demographics are down. And the image of the athletes, and who is marketed to the masses, matters.

"Imagine how much better he'd be if he were in better shape."

Manoah responded that Kirk - a 5-foot-8, 245-pound catcher - was selected by fans to his first career All-Star Game in July.

Justice was served in the end as Manoah and Blue Jays Twitter overwhelmed Ross’ mentions, ultimately causing him to delete his profile.

Manoah has never been shy about his appreciation for Kirk, who’s served as his personal catcher all season. Their relationship was on full display during July’s All-Star Game at Dodger Stadium when the first-time All-Star was wearing a microphone in his outing.

The 24-year-old has been a workhorse for the Blue Jays this season, logging a career-high 177.2 innings across 28 starts. He owns a 2.43 ERA and has been worth 3.5 fWAR in 2022.

Most importantly, though, the young righty always defends his teammates, on and off the field.

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