Tucked in behind the Blue Jays’ five Top 100 prospects is Orelvis Martinez, ranked No. 6 in the system, and while he’s not on the same wave of hype as the others, that will soon change.

The lost 2020 season was particularly tough on a player of Martinez’s age (19). Having played just 40 games in the Rookie-level Gulf Coast League in 2019, Martinez should have been making the jump toward full-season ball, but that was delayed.

Now, the gifted teenager -- whom the Blue Jays signed for a $3.5 million bonus out of Santo Domingo, Dominican Republic, in 2018 -- is finally rolling. Martinez is hitting .269 with an .824 OPS in Low-A Dunedin, facing mostly older and more experienced pitchers, and he went 3-for-5 on Saturday with his third home run of the season.

Martinez’s bat has always been the main attraction. His raw power is as enticing as anyone’s in the Blue Jays system, and as he continues to mature physically, that’s showing up more in games. With a potentially game-changing bat and a strong arm from the left side of the infield, it's understandable why evaluators have likened the young Martinez’s playing style to one of Santo Domingo’s greats.

“Well, a lot of people compare me to Adrián Beltré. So, I want to be like him,” Martinez said through a club translator. “That’s a big compliment for me. When you talk about Beltré, you’re talking about a future Hall of Famer, a great ballplayer.”

Martinez's father, Orelvi, coaches young players in the Dominican Prospect League and sometimes works in winter ball. Martinez credits his father with pushing him as a young player to work hard and take his craft seriously, and also credits his mother, Miriam, for his success.

“She was the first one to take me to the field when I was young,” Martinez said. “My mom was huge in my career.”

Martinez’s development -- and his prospect stock -- is expected to take off now that he’s in full-season ball. There will be ups and downs, given his age and offensive profile, but it’s easy to envision Martinez being squarely in the conversation for a spot on the Top 100 prospects list by later this summer. Many within the Blue Jays’ organization have been buzzing about his potential, and even with the lost 2020 season, Martinez was invited to the club’s alternate site in Rochester, N.Y.

It was eye-opening for Martinez, then 18, to be facing pitchers with Triple-A and MLB experience. He vividly remembers a home run that he hit -- he thinks it came off a Triple-A pitcher, but he can’t remember the name -- later in his time at the alternate site. That gave him the confidence that, yes, he belonged.

He’s also been leaning on the guidance of the Blue Jays’ more established players. Growing up, Martinez says he always followed the Blue Jays because their lineup was so often stacked with Dominican stars like José Bautista and Edwin Encarnación, or José Reyes, one of his favorite players. Now, he’s able to turn to the Blue Jays’ young stars.

“Teoscar Hernández sat me down the other day and told me, ‘To get to the big leagues, you’ve got to respect the game,’” Martinez recalled in camp. ‘“You’ve got to have a lot of discipline and a lot of effort if you want to get there.’”

The latest on George Springer

There hasn’t been a major change in George Springer’s rehab, but this will get more interesting to track as the Blue Jays leave Dunedin for the final time this season following Monday’s game. Springer will travel with the club, manager Charlie Montoyo said, instead of staying back to rehab at the complex.

Montoyo says that Springer is improving from his right quad injury, but the word to watch with Springer is “sprinting.” Until he works up to a full sprint, it will be difficult to establish much of a timeline. A traditional rehab stint in the Minor Leagues is expected to be part of this process, too.