Martin critical of Jays for manipulating Vlad Jr.'s service time

Russell Martin never got a chance to play a regular-season game with star prospect Vladimir Guerrero Jr. Traded from the Toronto Blue Jays to the Los Angeles Dodgers in January, the veteran backstop missed the phenom's arrival to the bigs by mere months.

The catcher was blunt when asked on Friday about Toronto delaying Guerrero's big-league debut, even though the 20-year-old has seemed ready to make the jump from Triple-A for a while.

Martin chalked it up to a pure business decision.

"They can say whatever they want," Martin said, according to Bill Shaikin of the Los Angeles Times. "They try to make smart decisions. Whether they want to admit it or not, it is a business move, right? Whether we criticize it or not, they have a purpose to what they do."

When the club delayed Guerrero's promotion to the majors, the Blue Jays postponed his exposure to free agency by a year. Instead of hitting the open market after the 2024 season, he now won't be eligible until following the 2025 campaign.

The Blue Jays' front office has denied it tried to manipulate Guerrero's service time, a common strategy throughout baseball. Martin doesn't buy or like it, but he understands the practice.

"They’re trying to find the time where they’re going to have the best window," Martin said. "That’s just what it is."

Still, preventing a player from reaching the majors even when he's ready bothers the four-time All-Star who debuted in 2006 at the age of 23.

"If somebody is good enough to play, they should play," Martin said. "The business side gets in the way of that sometimes."

Guerrero delivered in his long-awaited debut. He went 1-for-4 with a double, hitting the ball hard even while making outs.

Martin will get a good look at Guerrero later this season when the Blue Jays travel to Los Angeles for a three-game set in late August.