Orelvis Martinez Making a Name for Himself in Minors
Hitting multiple home runs in one game is a hard enough feat at any level of professional baseball, but on Saturday night, Orelvis Martinez did it for the second time in four days.
The Blue Jays No. 7 prospect went 4-for-6, crushed three homers, and finished the evening with nine RBIs in Low A Dunedin's 17-6 win over the Clearwater Threshers. Martinez now has six longballs in his last five games.
There’s no words 🤫
— Dunedin Blue Jays (@DunedinBlueJays) July 18, 2021
Home Run number 3 for Orelvis! 💥 pic.twitter.com/pbo1maCmy3
The 19-year-old infielder is crushing Low A pitching this year. Through 58 games, Martinez is batting .292/.375/.579 with 15 home runs and 56 RBIs. His 157 wRC+ ranks fifth among all A-ball players 20 years and younger.
Martinez was signed out of the Dominican Republic in 2018 and projects to play shortstop later in his career, though a transition to third base is also possible. Power is Martinez's biggest plus-tool (ranked 60 on the 80-grade scale) and he's shown plenty of it since joining the organization. The youngest invitee to Blue Jays Spring Training this year, Martinez went 4-for-11 in spring games and cranked a 415-foot home run off Phillies high-leverage reliever Hector Neris.
Orelvis has left the building 💣
— Toronto Blue Jays (@BlueJays) March 29, 2021
Martinez just CRUSHED his first @MLB (spring) homer! pic.twitter.com/KNm7rEM3Py
Toronto has one of the deepest farm systems in baseball and is expected to use some of that prospect depth to bolster its major league roster at the upcoming trade deadline. Certain youngsters such as Gabriel Moreno or Austin Martin will likely be off limits, but if Martinez continues to rake as he climbs the minor league ranks, he'll become a player the Blue Jays will want to hold onto as well.
Further Reading
Watch: Mark Shapiro talks adding talent ahead of July 30 Trade Deadline
Ethan Diamandas is a contributing writer who covers the Toronto Blue Jays for Sports Illustrated. He also writes for Yahoo Sports Canada and MLB.com. Follow Ethan on Twitter @EthanDiamandas