The Toronto Blue Jays have released top prospect Orelvis Martinez, according to his transaction log on MLB.com.
Martinez was designated for assignment by the Blue Jays last week as the team needed to clear a 40-man roster spot. Now, after clearing waivers, he’s been released to free agency in a disappointing turn of events for the 23-year-old prospect.
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The Blue Jays originally signed Martinez in July 2018 with a signing bonus of $3.5 million, the second-highest signing bonus given to an international free agent in Blue Jays history behind Vladimir Guerrero Jr. ($3.9 million). He rose through the prospect ranks, and was the team’s No. 2 overall prospect in 2024. He was the team’s No. 12 prospect this season, per MLB Pipeline.
Martinez made his MLB debut last season, appearing in one game where he went 1-for-3. Across 74 games at Triple-A last season, he slashed .267/.346/.523 with 17 home runs, 49 RBIs and an OPS of .869.
Unfortunately, that success didn’t continue into this year.
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Martinez played 99 games at the Triple-A level this season, slashing .176/.288/.348 with 13 home runs, 32 RBIs, 112 strikeouts and an OPS of .636. He was placed on the minor league injured list with an undisclosed injury last week, and could have been moved to the 60-day injured list which would have opened a roster spot. Anthony Franco of MLB Trade Rumors revealed just how telling this decision from Toronto was:
“Toronto could have placed Martinez on the MLB 60-day injured list rather than designating him for assignment in the first place. That also would have opened a 40-man roster spot but would have required paying him the prorated major league minimum salary for the final two weeks of the regular season,” Franco write. “That the Jays preferred to release him rather than pay the roughly $70K to keep him on the IL is a testament to how far his stock has fallen. There’s a good chance they intended to run him through outright waivers at the beginning of the offseason.”
Martinez will now head to free agency, where he’ll look for his next home. At just 23 years old, the infielder could look for a potential change of scenery to get his once promising career back on track.
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