Toronto Blue Jays prospect Orelvis Martinez made his Major League Baseball debut on Friday, but he has now been suspended for almost the remainder of the 2024 season.
MLB announced on Sunday that Martinez has been suspended 80 games for violating the league’s performance-enhancing drug policy. The 22-year-old tested positive for clomiphene, which is a fertility drug that is on MLB’s banned substances list.
Martinez said in a statement that he was prescribed a fertility drug at a clinic in his native Dominican Republic because he and his girlfriend have been trying for two years to have a child.
“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,” Martinez said, via ESPN’s Jeff Passan. “Therefore, I made the mistake of not disclosing this to my team or the MLBPA.
“With that said, I took full responsibility for my negligence and accepted my suspension.”
Blue Jays executive vice president and general manager Ross Atkins said the team is “both surprised and disappointed” that Martinez has been suspended but that Martinez “has our support.”
Martinez, who signed with the Blue Jays as an international free agent in July 2018, was called up to the majors last week and made his debut against the Cleveland Indians on Friday. He went 1-for-3 in the game. Martinez had shown tremendous power in Triple-A prior to being called up with 16 home runs in just 63 games.
With the 80-game suspension, Martinez will not be eligible to return until September. The Blue Jays entered Sunday with a record of 35-41 and in last place in the AL East, so they are unlikely to be playing in October.
