Renato Núñez

Renato Rafael Núñez (born April 4, 1994) is a Venezuelan professional baseball third baseman who is currently a free agent. He previously played in Major League Baseball (MLB) with the Oakland Athletics, Texas Rangers and Baltimore Orioles.

Renato Núñez
Núñez in 2018
Free agent
Third baseman
Born: (1994-04-04) April 4, 1994
Valencia, Venezuela
Bats: Right Throws: Right
MLB debut
September 12, 2016, for the Oakland Athletics
MLB statistics
(through 2020 season)
Batting average.248
Home runs52
Runs batted in147
Teams

Career

Oakland Athletics

Núñez signed with the Oakland Athletics as an international free agent at 16 in 2010.[1] He made his professional debut that season for the Dominican Summer League Athletics. In 2011, Núñez played for the Arizona League Athletics, hitting .325/.403/.550 and four home runs over 42 games.[2] He played for the Beloit Snappers in 2013. He hit .258/.301/.423 with 19 home runs in 128 games.[3] Núñez played the 2014 season with the Stockton Ports. In July, he played in the All-Star Futures Game, where he singled.[4][5] He finished the season hitting .279/.336/.517 with 29 home runs.[6] After the season, the Athletics added Núñez to their 40-man roster.[7] He played the 2015 season with the Double-A Midland RockHounds before participating in the Arizona Fall League. He played the entire 2016 minor league season with the Triple-A Nashville Sounds, and was called up to the Athletics on September 12.[8] Núñez was assigned to Nashville for the 2017 season. He was selected to play in the 2017 Triple-A All-Star Game in which he hit a three-run home run to help the Pacific Coast League defeat the International League, earning him the MVP Award for the Pacific Coast League.[9]

Texas Rangers

Núñez injured his left hamstring in the first week of spring training in 2018. He began the season on the disabled list and was sent to Nashville on rehabilitation assignment. Nearing the end of the assignment and out of options, Nunez was placed on waivers and subsequently claimed by the Texas Rangers on April 15.[10] After appearing in 13 games and batting .167/.244/.278 with two RBIs in 36 at-bats, he was designated for assignment by the Rangers when Rougned Odor was activated from the disabled list on May 11.[11]

Baltimore Orioles

Núñez was claimed off waivers by the Baltimore Orioles on May 13, 2018 and outrighted to the Triple-A Norfolk Tides two days later on May 15.[12][13] His contract was selected two months later on July 20, and he made his Orioles debut as the starting third baseman in a ten-inning 8–7 loss to the Toronto Blue Jays at Rogers Centre that same night.[14][15] His opportunity at becoming the regular third baseman was made possible by the fire sale trade of Manny Machado two days prior during the All-Star break. He played in 60 games and batted .275/.336/.445/.781 with thirteen doubles, seven homers and twenty runs batted in by the end of 2018.[16]

He achieved his first-ever five-hit game in a 6–5 away defeat to the New York Yankees on August 14, 2019.[17] The starting designated hitter in 109 games in 2019, he ranked second on the team with 31 home runs and 90 runs batted in and third in doubles with 24.[18]

In 2020 for the Orioles, Núñez slashed .256/.324/.492 with 12 home runs and 31 RBI.[19] Despite leading the team with 43 homers since the start of 2019, he was designated for assignment on November 20, 2020. The Orioles needed to create a spot on its 40-man roster to protect an additional minor-league prospect in preparation for the Rule 5 draft.[20] He was released five days later on November 25 after he cleared unconditional waivers and the Orioles were unable to trade him. He had been projected to get a $2-4 million raise in his first year of arbitration eligibility.[21]

See also

References
  1. Pashelka, Curtis (July 2, 2010). "Athletics Update: Venezuelan sensation Renato Nunez, 16, signs". Oakland Tribune. Retrieved September 20, 2015.
  2. "Minors' top lineups, league by league". MILB.com. April 4, 2013. Retrieved September 20, 2015.
  3. Dykstra, Sam (June 25, 2014). "Ports' Nunez shows off power potential". MILB.com. Retrieved September 20, 2015.
  4. "Two Former Snappers Named to MLB Futures Game". MILB.com. June 25, 2015. Retrieved September 20, 2015.
  5. Lee, Jane (July 13, 2014). "A's prospect Nunez notches hit in Futures Game". MLB.com. Retrieved September 20, 2015.
  6. Sickels, John (September 25, 2014). "Oakland Athletics Top 20 2014 PRE-SEASON Prospects in Review". Minor League Ball. SBNation. Retrieved September 20, 2015.
  7. Singer, Tom (November 20, 2014). "Athletics add infielder Nunez to 40-man roster". MLB.com. Retrieved September 20, 2015.
  8. Slusser, Susan (September 12, 2016). "A's call up prospects Matt Olson, Renato Nunez". San Francisco Gate. Retrieved September 12, 2016.
  9. Ravich, Jared (July 13, 2017). "Nunez slugs PCL to Triple-A All-Star win". Minor League Baseball. Retrieved July 14, 2017.
  10. Lee, Jane (April 15, 2018). "A's lose Nunez to Rangers on waiver claim". MLB.com. Retrieved April 15, 2018.
  11. "Rangers' Renato Núñez: Designated for assignment," CBSSports.com, Friday, May 11, 2018. Retrieved October 4, 2019
  12. "Orioles claim INF Renato Nunez off waivers from Rangers," Baltimore Orioles, Sunday, May 13, 2018. Retrieved October 3, 2019
  13. Meoli, Jon. "Infielder Renato Núñez clears waivers, Orioles outright him to Triple-A Norfolk," The Baltimore Sun, Tuesday, May 15, 2018. Retrieved October 3, 2019
  14. Kubatko, Roch. "Orioles DFA Chris Tillman, Renato Núñez in tonight’s lineup," Mid-Atlantic Sports Network (MASN), Friday, July 20, 2018. Retrieved October 4, 2019
  15. Harrison, Ian. "Diaz has winning hit as Blue Jays beat Orioles 8-7 in 10," The Associated Press (AP), Friday, July 20, 2018. Retrieved October 4, 2019
  16. Melewski, Steve. "A look ahead: Is Renato Núñez the choice for third base in 2019?" Mid-Atlantic Sports Network (MASN), Thursday, October 25, 2018. Retrieved October 4, 2019
  17. Trezza, Joe. "O's can't crack Yankees in last 2019 chance," MLB.com, Wednesday, August 14, 2019. Retrieved August 30, 2019
  18. Kubatko, Roch. "Núñez made it easy to slot him as designated hitter in 2020," Mid-Atlantic Sports Network (MASN), Thursday, October 3, 2019. Retrieved October 3, 2019
  19. https://www.mlb.com/player/renato-nunez-600524?stats=career-r-hitting-mlb&year=2020
  20. Trezza, Joe. "O's add 5 Top 30 prospects to 40-man roster," MLB.com, Friday, November 20, 2020. Retrieved November 25, 2020
  21. Trezza, Joe. "Orioles claim Shaw from SF, release Núñez," MLB.com, Wednesday, November 25, 2020. Retrieved November 25, 2020
This article is issued from Wikipedia. The text is licensed under Creative Commons - Attribution - Sharealike. Additional terms may apply for the media files.