Renato Núñez

Renato Rafael Nunez

• Bats Right, Throws Right
• Height 6' 1", Weight 220 lb.

• Debut September 12, 2016

• Born April 4, 1994 in Valencia, Carabobo, Venezuela

BR page

Biographical Information

Infielder Renato Nunez played in the 2014 and 2015 Futures Games. He received brief ;looks with the Oakland Athletics in both 2016 and 2017, but went a combined 5 for 30. He was claimed off waivers by the Texas Rangers early in the 2018 season and again failed to do much, hitting .167 in 13 games. Placed on waivers again, he was claimed by the Baltimore Orioles and finally found some regular playing time with the last-place team. He ended up seeing more time than anyone else at third base with the Orioles that season, hitting .275 with 7 homers and 20 RBIs in 60 games, making him one of the few bright lights on a wretched team.

In 2019, he played 151 games and hit .244 with 31 homers and 90 RBIs, for an OPS+ of 101. He was mostly the team's DH, but also played a few games at first base and third base. He was second on the team in both homers and RBIs, both times behind Trey Mancini. However, Mancini missed all of 2020 as he was undergoing treatment for cancer, and as a result, Nunez became the team's leader in homers, with 12, and was one off the pace in RBIs, with 31, with Rio Ruiz and Anthony Santander both getting 32. He was the team's primary first baseman and hit .256 in 52 games during the abbreviated season, increasing his OPS+ to 121 while the team was much improved over the previous two seasons. This looked like it should have made him an important part of the team going forward, but on November 20th he was designated for assignment as the Orioles wanted to clear a spot on their 40-man roster to protect a better prospect: indeed, they added six players without major league experience to their roster that day. He was also eligible for arbitration, and the Orioles dreaded that he would win a significant salary increase, given his solid production over his last two seasons.

Notable Achievements

• 20-Home Run Seasons: 1 (2019)
• 30-Home Run Seasons: 1 (2019)

Related Sites

• Renato Nunez on mlb.com