Blue Jays part ways with hitting coach Guillermo Martinez

The Toronto Blue Jays have parted ways with hitting coach Guillermo Martinez, according to two industry sources, their first change after a season of disappointment.

Martinez was hired as the club’s hitting coach ahead of the 2019 season. He was promoted after a year as the minor-league hitting coordinator, during which time he helped groom Vladimir Guerrero Jr. and Bo Bichette, among many others.

Eventually, he helped oversee their transition to the big leagues, too, with the offence being among the best in the game in 2021 and ’22 before taking steps back the past two seasons amid significant personnel changes.

This season, the Blue Jays ranked 23rd in the majors with 671 runs while undergoing a partial teardown. But Guerrero, with whom he worked closely, also had one of the best seasons of his career, batting .323/.396/.544 with 30 homers and 103 RBIs.

Martinez was part of a layered hitting group that also included offensive coordinator Don Mattingly and assistant coaches Hunter Mense and Matt Hague.