Anthony

Nunez

Nunez struck out six batters over five scoreless innings this spring and looked like a strong candidate to make Baltimore’s season-opening bullpen. The 24-year-old came over from the Rays in the Cedric Mullins trade last July and figures to reach the big leagues at some point later this year.

Nunez came over from the Mets in the Cedric Mullins deal at the trade deadline and has now been added to the club’s 40-man roster to protect him from next month’s Rule 5 Draft. The 24-year-old posted an impressive 2.06 ERA and 83/24 K/BB ratio across 56 2/3 innings over 49 appearances last year across three minor-league levels.

Nunez was the Mets’ 14th-ranked prospect, according to MLB Pipeline. The 24-year-old began his professional career as a two-player but switched to pitching full time in 2022. This season, he has a 1.58 ERA, 0.80 WHIP, and 60/17 K/BB ratio in 40 innings split between High-A and Double-A. It’s a solid return for the Orioles for two months of Cedric Mullins.