Toronto Blue Jays second baseman Orelvis Martinez has been suspended for 80 games without pay after violating Major League Baseball's performance-enhancing drug policy, the league announced on Sunday morning. He tested positive for Clomiphene, a drug that is commonly "used as a fertility medicine in some women who are unable to become pregnant," according to the Mayo Clinic. (Other players have tested positive over the years for using female fertility drugs, including Manny Ramirez.) Martínez, for his part, has said that the test stems from a drug his girlfriend was prescribed by a fertility clinic as they attempted to start a family:
The Major League Baseball Players Association issued the following statement on behalf of Orelvis Martinez: pic.twitter.com/67MIRF4T2k
— MLBPA Communications (@MLBPA_News) June 23, 2024
Top Blue Jays general manager Ross Atkins said in a statement that he was "surprised and disappointed" by the news. "We will do everything in our power to ensure Orelvis has learned from his mistake," the GM said. "Orelvis has our support and we know he will get through this."
The Blue Jays have played 76 games this season, meaning that Martínez won't be eligible to return until the final week of the campaign.
Martínez, 22, only just made his big-league debut on Friday. He went 1 for 3 with a strikeout against the Cleveland Guardians. Martínez had previously spent the season in Triple-A, where he had hit .260/.343/.523. Coming into the season, CBS Sports ranked Martínez as the third-best prospect in the Blue Jays system. Here's what we wrote at the time:
Martinez, who received a signing bonus worth more than $3.5 million in 2018, repaired his stock last season by homering 28 times combined between Double- and Triple-A. Martinez's main issues have been his hit-tool projections and his long-term defensive home. He's still prone to an overly aggressive approach that results in a high whiff rate, but it's notable that he posted a career-high walk rate in 2023. The Blue Jays seemed to concede that he's not going to be a shortstop, instead giving him a lot of burn at second and third base. Martinez's chances of sticking on a MLB roster are going to be made or fade based on how often he can tap into his power against big-league pitching. We should start to find out the answer to that question at some point in 2024.
The Blue Jays recalled Martínez earlier this week after starting shortstop Bo Bichette suffered a strained calf that required a stint on the injured list. With both unavailable, the Blue Jays will likely continue to use Isiah Kiner-Falefa at short with Spencer Horwitz and Ernie Clement staffing second base.
