CARACAS.- Third baseman Renato Núñez closed a historic regular season on Saturday in the baseball of his native Venezuela, in which he tied the record of home runs in a season, with 21 full return hits.
Núñez, 30, had a batting average of .311 in 51 games played with the Navegantes del Magallanes in the Venezuelan Professional Baseball League (LVBP), with 59 hits in 190 trips to the plate, 11 doubles, 21 homers, 63 runs RBIs and 37 runs scored. His team advanced to the playoffs.
The third baseman equaled the mark of 21 home runs set by Alex Cabrera in the 2013-2014 season, along the way becoming only the third player to reach two dozen home runs in the circuit. Baudilio Díaz opened the club when he shot 20 in the 1979-1980 harvest.
“A few years ago I thought about breaking this record. I knew I could achieve something like this,” Núñez commented, with confidence, in statements published on the LVBP website. “The seasons passed and for this one I prepared very well,” added the player with experience in the Major Leagues with the Oakland Athletics, Texas Rangers, Baltimore Orioles and Detroit Tigers.
Núñez also touched the freight record. He was only four away from the 67 RBIs that Jesús Guzmán collected in 2008-2009.
A detail that underlines the value of the numbers that Núñez left with Magallanes: the regular phase of the LVBP currently includes 56 games per team, while 63 were carried out in the campaigns of Alex Cabrera and Guzmán’s brands.
“It’s incredible what Renato Núñez has done,” said his manager Eduardo Pérez. “His numbers have been impressive from day one. It is not easy to see a player doing what he has done in this league, because this circuit is strong.”
The moment of glory
Home run 21 came last Friday: Núñez, with two teammates on the bases and two outs on the board, sent the ball into the stands against a delivery from Jorgan Cavanerio and decided an 8-6 victory for Magallanes against the Tigres de Aragua.
It took a few seconds for the celebration to break out.
Patrolman Leobaldo Cabrera jumped and almost took the ball out of the air. Núñez, in fact, thought his rival had done it and crashed his helmet against the ground, but frustration gave way to joy.
“They threw me hard pitches and I missed them in the first three at-bats, but baseball always gives you a chance,” he celebrated after the feat.
