Just two days after his Major League Baseball debut, Toronto Blue Jays infielder Orelvis Martínez was suspended for 80 games by MLB on Sunday following a positive test for the performance-enhancing drug Clomiphene, a fertility drug on the league’s banned substance list.
Per ESPN, Martinez, 22, is the Blue Jays’ top hitting prospect and was called up last week after shortstop Bo Bichette was placed on the injured list. Martínez signed with Toronto in July 2018 for a $3.51 million bonus and climbed his way up the Blue Jays’ minor league system. He hit .260 with 16 homers, 46 RBIs and an .867 OPS in 63 games this season at Triple-A Buffalo. He has been on the Blue Jays’ 40-man roster since November 2022. He went 1 for 3 with a strikeout on Friday at Cleveland.
As a result of Martínez’s suspension, he will lose about half his salary (his contract calls for $740,000 while in the major leagues and $120,600 while in the minors, both the minimum). Martínez is eligible to return for the final six games of the regular season but is ineligible for any postseason games this year.
Martínez said in a statement released by the players’ association: “For the past two years, I have been trying to start a family with my girlfriend. During the offseason, we visited a fertility clinic in the Dominican Republic and after getting lab work done, we were prescribed a treatment, which included a medication called Rejun 50. Unfortunately, Rejun 50 contains a banned substance called Clomiphene. We wanted to keep this matter private, even within our family, and trusted the doctor who assured us this treatment did not include performance-enhancing drugs. Therefore, I made the mistake of not disclosing this to my team or the MLBPA. With that said, I took full responsibility for my actions and accepted my suspension. I will learn from this experience and come back to the field in September.” Blue Jays executive vice president and general manager Ross Atkins said in a statement: “We were both surprised and disappointed to learn of Orelvis Martinez’s suspension. We will do everything in our power to ensure Orelvis has learned from his mistake. Orelvis has our support, and we know he will get through this.”
Blue Jays manager John Schneider added: “Orelvis was upset, disappointed and pretty honest for a young kid when he told us. He’s obviously humbled and knows he made a mistake. We’re going to support him through the process.”
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