A rough first go with the A’s for the new reliever
Morning all! Our victim for today’s Season In Review series is a brand new name who just joined the organization. Right-handed reliever Eduarniel Nuñez was one of the more intriguing players that the A’s acquired in the Miller/Sears trade and was the only one to make his debut with the Green & Gold. What will the rookie righty have in store for the coming season?
How Was He Acquired?
Originally an international free agent signing by the Chicago Cubs, Nuñez spent eight years in their system before hitting free agency at the end of the 2024 campaign. He inked a minor league deal with the Padres and impressed enough that he eventually made it to the big leagues on July 1st of this past season, his first call up to the majors. He’d only make four appearances for San Diego before he found himself on the move at the deadline as part of the Padres’ package for closer Mason Miller and starter JPSears, joining Leo De Vries, Braden Nett and Henry Baez as the newest Athletics youngsters.
What Were The Expectations?
When Nunez arrived to his new organization he was immediately brought up to the big leagues to take Miller’s seat in the bullpen. At the time he’d been looking good in Triple-A with the Padres and with a strong fastball the hope was that maybe he could be the next hidden gem that the front office discovered. And perhaps he could even take over for Miller at the backend of the bullpen down the line given enough time and coaching.
2025 Results
Nunez’s first two appearances with the A’s went about as bad as one could imagine. He allowed a couple hits, a couple walks and a home run in his first appearance in the Green & Gold (but miraculously only allowed one run) before getting torched for four earned runs in his next outing. That prompted a quick demotion back to Triple-A where Nunez could get some more work done in a less pressurized environment.
He only made four appearances for the Aviators during his first stint with them, allowing two runs in five innings of work but also displaying his strikeout ability with 10 punchouts. That got him another shot with the big league squad as the A’s brought him back up near the end of August. His second stint went better than the first but he was still getting knocked around a bit and would find himself back in Vegas by the end of the month. Nunez then spent the rest of the year with the Aviators. He finished his season with a 2.51 ERA across 39 minor league outings but posted an ugly 9.00 ERA across six big league contests with the A’s.
2026 Outlook
One of the main goals from the front office this offseason has been shoring up the depth in the bullpen. That was a major problem for the A’s last year and it’s been a priority so far this winter. They’ve only made one major league addition to the bullpen so there’s still spots but they’ve made lots of other additions to bring in competition. Nunez is more likely ticketed to start the year with the Aviators now at this point. That’s not to say that the team won’t eventually bring up the fireballer but the 26-year-old looked like he needed some more seasoning in the minors. At #15 he’s the top-ranked relief prospect in the organization and as one of the return pieces for Miller we should all have high hopes that Nunez can make an impact for the team this coming year and down the line.
Category: General Sports
