South Dade Ace Signs With The Mets

Susana Manoah sat in her car on the side of the Florida Turnpike, bawling by her own admission, no doubt a curious sight for a passerby.

At the same moment, several hours north, her son Erik was rounding the bases in a game for the Florida Legends baseball team, reaching second base.

Suddenly, the dugout erupted as Manoah’s teammates began screaming for him.

When the inning was over, Manoah rushed to his phone to see what the commotion was about.

Indeed, the phone had rung, and the caller was the New York Mets.

First Contact

“This has been his dream ever since he was a kid,” recalled Susana. “When someone would ask him what he wanted to be when he grew up, his answer was always a baseball player. Eventually I told him you have to start looking at this seriously if you want to achieve that, and he did.”

Erik arrived on the radar of the New York Mets early on in the school year, throwing a gem in a Florida Diamond Club game in October.

Cesar Aranguren, area supervisor for South Florida and Puerto Rico for the New York Mets, was in attendance, and immediately took notice.

“He threw really well,” said Aranguren. “He threw a lot of strikes, a really good breaking ball, and a really good change up. He has a lot of projection in his arm. He was just a bulldog on the mound.”

From that moment, Manoah was on the Mets’ radar.

As the year progressed, Manoah’s talent began to shine as he continually shut down opposing offenses.

Pitching Coach Philip Smith would email major league scouts before each game, letting them know when he was throwing to get him exposure.

“There’s not a whole lot you can do to prepare for it,” said Smith of playing in front of pro scouts. “You just have to go out there and play well and hope they like what they see.”

By the time the FHSAA playoffs arrived, Manoah was primed to go on a historic tear, one that would seal his fate with the Mets organization.

“I followed him pretty well,” recalled Aranguren. “I was there for the state semi-final game [against DeLand] where he pitched.”

Indeed, with the Mets scouting director in attendance as well, Manoah threw a 7-inning, 12-strikeout shutout to secure South Dade’s place in the state finals.

After the game, Aranguren says the performance left the Mets “really impressed” and wanting more.

Draft Day Arrives

When the MLB draft began, Manoah sat patiently, waiting for his name to be called.

His mother would keep his family updated, while head coach Fred Burnside waited to hear his ace’s name called.

“We all thought he was going to be drafted a little higher honestly,” said Burnside. “I was constantly checking to see what round they were on [in the MLB Draft]. I’ve seen a lot of hearts broken in the draft and I knew deep down that even though he wouldn’t come out and say it, this is what he wanted.”

After the first twelve rounds passed and Manoah went undrafted, doubt began to set in.

“By Saturday around 11am, I didn’t think it was going to happen,” said Susana. “I let him go to Vero Beach to play [with the Florida Legends]. I stayed home and cleaned and did my normal thing. I was going to go have some brunch with some friends and I was on the turnpike when Cesar called.”

The moment had come for Manoah.

Aranguren held the phone up to the speakers for Susana to hear her son’s name called in the MLB Draft.

“I remember pulling over and [Aranguren] said ‘just be quiet and listen’ and all I heard was starting right handed pitcher from South Dade Senior High Erik Manoah and I just started bawling.”

Immediately, Susana’s phone blew up with messages of congratulations.

After the inning was over, Erik was pulled from the game, no longer being able to call himself an amateur.

What Lies Ahead

At home among friends, Manoah looked to the future, while little brother Alek, also a player for South Dade, poked fun at his brother one final time.

“You know one time last year he scored and messed his pants,” he told some friends. “He came into the dugout and we had get paper towels and everything.”

Clearly the sibling rivalry isn’t going away any time soon.

On Monday, in front of over 50 family and close friends, Erik Manoah put pen to paper.

Aranguren drove down to Homestead with the official paperwork, making the deal official.

Deciding between attending college at FIU where Manoah already had a full athletic scholarship and turning pro was a family decision.

“My mom understands what my dream is,” said Manoah. “I was treated right in the draft and I’m going to take my opportunity and go on to the next level. This wasn’t only my decision. This was a family decision.”

While post players worry about their lives after baseball, Manoah can consider himself lucky, having four years of college already paid for by the Mets after his career is over.

“We are going to send him into our Gulf Coast League team in Port Saint Lucie,” said Aranguren. “He’s going to start working with our pro coaches over there, get him some rest, get him on a management program for the arm, and start building him up.”

For Erik Manoah, this is just the next step in a world full of potential.

“I’m just going to go out there with hunger and heart,” said Manoah. “I’m going to prove to people who I really am at the next level.”