22-year old Rainer Núñez of the Estrellas Orientales was named on Monday, 26 December 2022 the Rookie of the Year of the 2022-23 Dominican Republic Professional Baseball League (Lidom) Championship.
Núñez had a tremendous first season in the league, one that did not go unnoticed by the jury of 69 members of the national press, who voted overwhelmingly in his favor.
The La Romana native will receive a cash incentive from Lidom and another from the National Federation of Professional Ballplayers (Fenapepro).
The starter and designated hitter of the Estrellas received 49 votes to beat Jerar Encarnación of the Águilas Cibaeñas, who received 15 votes, and Elly De La Cruz, of the Tigres del Licey, who got the vote of five.
Núñez played in 37 games with the Estrellas during the regular season batting a league-leading seven homers. He scored 18 runs and drove in another 20. His batting average was .263, with an OBP of .303 and a slugging of .445.
Núñez belongs to the Toronto Blue Jays in Major League Baseball.
Núñez’s seven home runs broke the record for a rookie on the All-Stars, a mark held by Luis Jiménez, who had hit five home runs in the 2011-12 contest. He also became the third first-year player to lead the league in homers to join Marcell Ozuna (2012-13) and Ramon Torres (2016-17), both playing for the Gigantes del Cibao.
The Estrellas qualified for the Round Robin in fourth place in the standings with a 23-27 record.
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Lidom
27 December 2022