Blue Jays No. 2 prospect Orelvis Martinez suspended 80 games for PED

We’re talking about a rocky start! Orelvis Martinez made his MLB debut on Friday. Two days later, the league handed him an 80-game suspension for violating its doping policy.

Martinez, a potential shortstop for the Toronto Blue Jays, tested positive for clomiphene, a fertility drug on MLB’s banned substance list.

In a statement, Martinez said he was prescribed Rejun 50 (clomiphene pill) after visiting a fertility clinic in his native Dominican Republic. According to the National Institutes of Health (NIH), clomiphene can be used to treat male infertility by increasing testosterone and sperm counts. Martinez said he and his girlfriend have been trying to start a family for two years.

“We wanted to keep this a secret, even from our family, and we trusted the doctor who assured us that no performance-enhancing drugs were used in the treatment,” Martinez said. “Therefore, I made the mistake of not disclosing this to my team or the MLBPA.

“That said, I have taken full responsibility for my negligence and have accepted the suspension.”

Toronto general manager Ross Atkins said the Blue Jays were “surprised” by the positive test result.

“The Blue Jays fully support Major League Baseball’s Joint Drug Prevention and Treatment Program and believe strongly in maintaining a level playing field,” Atkins said. “We were both surprised and disappointed to learn of Orelvis Martinez’s suspension. We will do everything in our power to ensure that Orelvis learns from this mistake. Orelvis has our support and we know he can handle it.”

Martinez signed with the Blue Jays for $3.5 million in 2018 and has become one of the top pitching prospects in the minor leagues. Before his major league debut, Martinez hit 16 home runs in 63 games for the Triple-A Buffalo Bisons. Over the previous three seasons, he hit 86 home runs and scored 257 runs scored.