Orelvis Martinez suspended for 80 games

He was suspended for 80 games on Sunday after testing positive for the performance-enhancing drug clomiphene, Major League Baseball announced.

Martinez learned of the suspension on Saturday night and immediately informed Blue Jays general manager Ross Atkins and manager John Schneider.

“Extremely disappointed and surprised,” Atkins said before the game in Cleveland. “We fully support the program and want a level playing field, and we’ll work with him to make sure he learns from this. Obviously a big mistake. We’ll support him in his return and through the process.”

Martinez said in a statement that he was prescribed a fertility drug by a doctor in the Dominican Republic during the offseason, which led to the positive test. Atkins said he believes the test took place before Martinez joined the Blue Jays in Toronto earlier this week.

“…I have taken full responsibility for my actions and accepted my suspension,” Martinez said. “I want to apologize to my teammates in Buffalo and Toronto, the Blue Jays organization and most importantly, the fans who have supported me throughout my career.”

The Blue Jays, like any other baseball team, work with both MLB and the MLB Players’ Association to educate international players about the league’s policies on performance-enhancing drugs and banned substances. The Blue Jays also have their own internal program that provides additional education on both topics.

“I feel like there’s a lot of that in place to make sure Orelvis has everything downloaded,” Atkins said. “I think that actual experience is the real learning for him, but I think it’s continuing to focus on ways he can improve as a person, a player and a teammate, and there’s a lot of opportunity for that throughout our structure.”

The suspension comes at the worst possible time for the Blue Jays, who entered Sunday’s game six games under .500 after losing seven of their last nine games. The team hoped that Martinez, who had a .260 batting average with 14 home runs and 46 RBIs in Triple-A, would provide some much-needed momentum to a lineup that has hit the second-fewest number of home runs in MLB.

“In difficult times you see a lot of finger-pointing and excuses. Fortunately, we haven’t experienced that, which gives us confidence that we can still do it,” Atkins said. “We’ve had a big setback in the last five days and have dug ourselves into an even deeper hole. We still have time to turn things around; that obviously depends on a winning streak, but we’re still capable of doing that.”

Schneider added: “We all prepared for this – whether coach or player. It is frustrating that we did not meet our expectations.”

Schneider described his reaction to Martinez’s suspension as “surprised and disappointed,” but said he was pleased with the maturity the 22-year-old showed in response to the suspension.

“He knows he made a mistake and we’re going to support him,” Schneider said. “The fact that he’s taken responsibility for it is a good first step. … He’s a young guy, but he understands he made a mistake.”

During his suspension, Martinez will not be able to play for any of the affiliate teams and will spend time at one of the Blue Jays’ facilities. His suspension ends on September 23rd – five days before the end of the regular season.

While Atkins addressed the media, a Progressive Field clubhouse employee packed up Martinez’s bag of equipment and disappeared into the depths of the stadium. Five days ago, the arrival of that equipment in Toronto was a hopeful sign for the future.

“We know how disappointed the fans are and we share that,” Atkins said. “It’s a very difficult time when you have those expectations and they’re not met.”