Orelvis Martinez Sent To Minors After Serving Suspension
The Toronto Blue Jays optioned infield prospect Orelvis Martinez to the rookie-level Florida Complex League on Monday after he finished serving his 80-game suspension. Martinez will now return to the team's spring training complex to close out the year after being suspended for 80 games due to performance-enhancing substances. The team's No. 2 prospect, per MLB Pipeline, made his big-league debut this year but played in just one game. In 74 games at Triple-A Buffalo, he hit .267/.346/.523 with an .869 OPS, 17 home runs, 49 RBI and 54 runs scored in 319 plate appearances. The 22-year-old Dominican will likely stick at either second or third base at the next level and has great power despite his shorter stature. Martinez has already shown impressive improvement in the plate-discipline department and seems likely to have a regular role in the big leagues in 2025 for a team looking for more offense.
Toronto Blue Jays infield prospect Orelvis Martinez, the team's No. 2 prospect per MLB Pipeline, has been suspended for 80 games by Major League Baseball for violating the league's drug prevention and treatment program. Martinez tested positive for clomiphene, a performance-enhancing substance. The move comes shortly after the 22-year-old received made his major-league debut on Friday. While Martinez could return later this season when his suspension is up, fantasy managers in single-year formats that picked him up after his promotion can now safely drop him. In his only game played for Toronto on Friday, he went 1-for-3 with a strikeout. The 5-foot-11, 200-pounder out of the Dominican must remain stashed in all dynasty/keeper leagues for his plus power at a middle-infield position.
Toronto Blue Jays infield prospect Orelvis Martinez is making his major-league debut on Friday against the Cleveland Guardians and right-hander Carlos Carrasco, starting at second base and batting eighth. The Blue Jays' No. 2 prospect, per MLB Pipeline, will be playing for the first time since he was called up from the minors earlier this week. The 22-year-old Dominican has impressive pop for a middle infielder, but he has a tendency to swing and miss a lot and could rack up the strikeouts in the early going in the big leagues. Martinez got the call to Toronto by hitting .260/.343/.523 with an .867 OPS, 16 homers, 46 RBI and 46 runs scored in 63 games for Triple-A Buffalo this year. The power is enticing in fantasy, but it doesn't look like he's going to be playing regularly and could be sent back to the farm at any time.
Toronto Blue Jays infield prospect Orelvis Martinez has been struggling at the plate over the last two weeks in Triple-A Buffalo. In 43 plate appearances, he's gone 4-for-37 with only three walks and 16 strikeouts. Interestingly, each of his four hits has been for extra bases (two doubles and two home runs). While he's had trouble making contact, he's been noticeably unlucky when he puts the ball in play. During this stretch, Martinez has a .100 BABIP. The league average BABIP is generally around .300, suggesting that some of his woes resulted from misfortune. Despite this recent slump, he's still having a solid year. In 192 plate appearances, Martinez is slashing .240/.325/.515 with 10 doubles, 12 home runs, and 36 RBI.
Toronto Blue Jays infield prospect Orelvis Martinez was 1-for-3 with a three-run homer and a walk on Sunday against the Worcester Red Sox. Over the previous five games, he had managed only one hit and three walks in 17 plate appearances. Despite a cold spell, Martinez has been excellent in Triple-A. Through 36 games with the Buffalo Bisons, he's hitting .277/.362/.569 with 10 home runs, 30 RBI, and 31 runs scored. Positionally, he spent his first 22 starts at second base. However, two of his last six starts have seen him at third. It may be that Martinez is taking reps at the hot corner in preparation for his major league debut. According to MLB.com, that debut should come sometime this year.
Toronto Blue Jays infield prospect Orelvis Martinez continued to hit on Sunday for Triple-A Buffalo, going 2-for-4 with an RBI, putting his season slashline at .296/.367/.574. If there is a question as to whether or not Martinez is ready to face major league pitching, his RBI single was a liner to left field off of Pirates pitching prospect Paul Skenes, who is about as close to major league pitching as you'll find in the minors. The 22-year-old doesn't have much left to prove in the minors after hitting at least 28 home runs in each of the last three seasons between the ages of 19 and 21, and tallying eight so far in 2024. His promotion to the big league club feels more or less imminent, so managers in need of some power production should consider stashing him ahead of time if possible.
Toronto Blue Jays infield prospect Orelvis Martinez had an incredible week for Triple-A Buffalo. Martinez, 22, went 10-for-28 with five home runs and 13 RBI. The young budding star has been on a tear this season and overall has hit an astounding .333 with 6 six homers, 18 RBI and a 1.073 OPS over his first 18 games. Martinez has done enough offensively to prove his point to the Blue Jays front office, but it is his defense that it appears the club wants to be certain on with Martinez as he already has five errors. Martinez was brought up as a shortstop, but has exclusively played second base for Buffalo with Bo Bichette set at the shortstop position for the Blue Jays. Martinez is currently on the 40-man roster and offers much more upside than the currently second base operation of Davis Schneider and Cavan Biggio. If Martinez continues to tear the cover off the ball, he may force the Jays hand very soon. As of now, he is worth a speculative add in deeper formats and should already be rostered in dynasty leagues.
Toronto Blue Jays shortstop/second base prospect Orelvis Martinez launched his third home run of the season in the top of the ninth inning, which eventually served as the game-winner. The 22-year-old went 2-5 in Thursday's game and is batting .305/.359/.576 across the young part of the season. Martinez is doing much better in Triple-A this season compared to last year, where he hit for a .263/.340/.507 slash line with 11 home runs. Martinez is making quite a case for a promotion and should come up as a second baseman, since Bo Bichette will continue to serve as the team's shortstop. The second-ranked prospect in the Toronto system is worth stashing in deeper leagues for now.
Toronto Blue Jays infield prospect Orelvis Martinez launched a 469-foot grand slam on Wednesday for Triple-A Buffalo. It was the only hit he had in the game, but it was a big one as it put the Bisons ahead in extra-innings and extended his hitting streak to 11 games. The 22-year-old is making his best case for a promotion, hitting .296 with six doubles, two home runs, 10 RBI, and 13 runs scored over 14 games in 2024. Bo Bichette has him blocked at shortstop though, so he'd have to play third or second base. Wherever he ends up, he'll bring plenty of pop with his 60-grade power.
Toronto Blue Jays shortstop prospect Orelvis Martinez went 3-for-5 with three runs and a double for Triple-A Buffalo on Sunday. Martinez is now hitting ,296 on the young season. The 22-year-old hasn't homered yet, but the power should come as he has 28 or more in the past three seasons on the farm. With Bo Bichette entrenched at shortstop, Martinez has been playing second base and provides some added competition to Cavan Biggio and Davis Schnieder at the big-league level. Martinez has always shown plenty of power and his upside is much greater than Schnieder and Biggio. Should the Blue Jays feel comfortable with him defensively at second base and the later two struggle, it wouldn't be a surprise to see Martinez make his big-league debut in 2024. Martinez should already be rostered in dynasty leagues and is a name to keep an eye on in redraft formats.
