Renato Rafael Núñez (born April 4, 1994) is a Venezuelan

professional baseball Professional baseball is organized baseball in which players are selected for their talents and are paid to play for a specific team or club system. It is played in leagues and associated farm teams throughout the world. Modern professional ...

third baseman A third baseman, abbreviated 3B, is the player in baseball or softball whose responsibility is to defend the area nearest to third base — the third of four bases a baserunner must touch in succession to score a run. In the scoring system us ...

for the

Toros de Tijuana The Toros de Tijuana (or Tijuana Bulls) are a Mexican Baseball team based in Tijuana, Baja California, Mexico. They are members of the Mexican Baseball League and play their home games at Estadio Chevron. Team history Original Attempt The fran ...

of the

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. He previously played in

Major League Baseball Major League Baseball (MLB) is a professional baseball organization and the oldest major professional sports league in the world. MLB is composed of 30 total teams, divided equally between the National League (NL) and the American League (AL), ...

(MLB) with the Oakland Athletics, Texas Rangers,

Baltimore Orioles The Baltimore Orioles are an American professional baseball team based in Baltimore. The Orioles compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the American League (AL) East division. As one of the American League's eight charter ...

, and Detroit Tigers and in

Nippon Professional Baseball or NPB is the highest level of baseball in Japan. Locally, it is often called , meaning ''Professional Baseball''. Outside Japan, it is often just referred to as "Japanese baseball". The roots of the league can be traced back to the formation ...

(NPB) for the

Hokkaido Nippon-Ham Fighters The are a Japanese professional Baseball in Japan, baseball team based in Kitahiroshima, Hokkaidō. They compete in the Pacific League of Nippon Professional Baseball, playing the majority of their home games at ES CON Field Hokkaido. The Figh ...

Career

Oakland Athletics

Núñez signed with the Oakland Athletics as an international free agent at 16 in 2010. He made his professional debut that season for the Dominican Summer League Athletics. In 2011, Núñez played for the

Arizona League Athletics The Arizona Complex League Athletics are a Minor League Baseball team based in Phoenix, Arizona, which plays as a Rookie-level team in the Arizona Complex League and has served as a farm team for the Oakland Athletics organization since 1988. T ...

, hitting .325/.403/.550 and four home runs over 42 games. He played for the Beloit Snappers in 2013. He hit .258/.301/.423 with 19 home runs in 128 games. Núñez played the 2014 season with the Stockton Ports. In July, he played in the All-Star Futures Game, where he singled. He finished the season hitting .279/.336/.517 with 29 home runs. After the season, the Athletics added Núñez to their

40-man roster A Major League Baseball roster is a list of players who are allowed, by league agreement, to play for a Major League Baseball (MLB) team. Each MLB team maintains two rosters: an active roster of players eligible to participate in an MLB game, an ...

. He played the 2015 season with the Double-A

Midland RockHounds The Midland RockHounds are a Minor League Baseball team based in Midland, Texas. The team, which plays in the Texas League, is the Double-A affiliate of the Oakland Athletics major league club. The RockHounds play in Momentum Bank Ballpark, w ...

before participating in the

Arizona Fall League The Arizona Fall League (AFL) is an off-season sports league owned and operated by Major League Baseball (MLB) which operates during the autumn in Arizona, United States, at six different baseball complexes. Arizona Fall League rosters are fille ...

. He played the entire 2016 minor league season with the Triple-A Nashville Sounds, and was called up to the Athletics on September 12. Núñez was assigned to Nashville for the 2017 season. He was selected to play in the 2017

Triple-A All-Star Game The Triple-A All-Star Game was an annual baseball game held from 1988 to 2019 between professional players from the affiliated Triple-A leagues of Minor League Baseball. These leagues were the International League (IL) and Pacific Coast League ...

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.

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. After appearing in 13 games and batting .167/.244/.278 with two RBIs in 36 at-bats, he was

designated for assignment Designated for assignment (DFA) is a contractual term used in Major League Baseball (MLB). A player who is designated for assignment is immediately removed from the team's 40-man roster, after which the team must within seven days, return the pla ...

by the Rangers when

Rougned Odor Rougned Roberto Odor () (born February 3, 1994), nicknamed "Rougie", is a Venezuelan professional baseball second baseman who is a free agent. He previously played in Major League Baseball (MLB) for the Texas Rangers, New York Yankees and Balt ...

was activated from the disabled list on May 11.

Baltimore Orioles

Núñez was claimed off waivers by the

on May 13, 2018 and outrighted to the Triple-A

Norfolk Tides The Norfolk Tides are a Minor League Baseball team of the International League and the Triple-A affiliate of the Baltimore Orioles. They are located in Norfolk, Virginia, and are named in nautical reference to the city's location on the Chesapea ...

two days later on May 15. 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 The Toronto Blue Jays are a Canadian professional baseball team based in Toronto. The Blue Jays compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the American League (AL) East division. Since 1989, the team has played its home games ...

at Rogers Centre that same night. His opportunity at becoming the regular third baseman was made possible by the

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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

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. He achieved his first-ever five-hit game in a 6–5 away defeat to the

New York Yankees The New York Yankees are an American professional baseball team based in the New York City borough of the Bronx. The Yankees compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the American League (AL) East division. They are one of ...

on August 14, 2019. The starting designated hitter in 109 games in

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, he ranked second on the team with 31 home runs and 90 runs batted in and third in doubles with 24. In 2020 for the Orioles, Núñez slashed .256/.324/.492 with 12 home runs and 31 RBI. Despite leading the team with 43 homers since the start of

, 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. 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 raise between $2 million and $4 million in his first year of arbitration eligibility.

Detroit Tigers

On February 10, 2021, Núñez signed a minor league contract with the Detroit Tigers organization that included an invitation to Spring Training. On March 27, 2021, Tigers manager

A. J. Hinch Andrew Jay Hinch (born May 15, 1974) is an American professional baseball coach and former player who is the manager of the Detroit Tigers of Major League Baseball (MLB). Hinch played catcher for the Oakland Athletics (–), Kansas City Royals ...

announced that Núñez was cut from the opening day roster. Núñez had three days to accept his minor league assignment or opt out of his contract and become a free agent. He chose the former on March 29, and was assigned to AAA Toledo. On April 11, 2021, Núñez was selected to the active roster after

Miguel Cabrera José Miguel Cabrera Torres (born April 18, 1983), nicknamed "Miggy", is a Venezuelan professional baseball first baseman and designated hitter for the Detroit Tigers of Major League Baseball (MLB). Since his debut in 2003 he has been a two-t ...

was placed on the 10-day injured list. On April 12 against the Houston Astros, Núñez hit his first home run as a Tiger. On April 21, Núñez was designated for assignment by Detroit after hitting just .148/.207/.444 with 2 home runs. On April 26, he was outrighted to the alternate training site. On August 11, 2021, Núñez was once again selected to the active roster after Derek Hill was placed on the 10-day injured list and Akil Baddoo was placed on the 7-day concussion injured list. On August 21, Núñez was once again designated for assignment by the Tigers. On August 23, he cleared waivers and was assigned outright to Triple-A Toledo. On August 27, Núñez was released by the Tigers.

Milwaukee Brewers

On August 30, 2021, the Milwaukee Brewers signed Núñez to a minor league contract and assigned him to the Triple-A Nashville Sounds. On October 13, Núñez elected free agency.

Hokkaido Nippon-Ham Fighters

On November 5, 2021, Núñez signed a one-year, $1.6 million contract with the

. In 2022, Núñez appeared in 63 games for the Fighters, mustering a .174/.228/.299 batting line with 4 home runs and 12 RBI.

Toros de Tijuana

On January 4, 2023, Núñez signed with the