Unable to find a trade partner for Renato Núñez after designating the slugger for assignment last week, the Orioles on Wednesday released N¨²?ez after he cleared unconditional waivers. N¨²?ez is now a free agent.

Additionally, the Orioles claimed outfielder/first baseman Chris Shaw off waivers from the Giants, designating right-hander Thomas Eshelman for assignment in a corresponding move. The O¡¯s have seven days to trade, release or place Eshelman, who pitched to a 3.89 ERA in a swingman role in 2020, on outright waivers. He can remain with the organization if he clears waivers.

Shaw, 27, was designated for assignment by San Francisco last week in a roster crunch to protect prospects from the Rule 5 Draft. The Giants¡¯ first-round Draft pick out of Boston College in 2015, Shaw hit 45 home runs at Triple-A Sacramento between 2018-19 but just .153 with one homer in 38 big league games over the past two seasons. He is a left-handed hitter with defensive experience at both corner outfield spots, third base and first base, and he has one Minor League option remaining.

The Orioles acquired N¨²?ez on a waiver claim from the Rangers in May 2018, and after a trial run at third base down the stretch, penciled him in as their everyday designated hitter the following year. N¨²?ez, 26, then emerged as one of the bright spots of their rebuild, hitting .247/.314/.469 with a team-high 43 homers and 121 RBIs across 203 games from 2019-20.

But with N¨²?ez projected to earn between a $2-4 million raise in arbitration as a first-time eligible player and the O¡¯s facing a logjam of bat-first corner types, Baltimore designated him while clearing room for six prospects on the 40-man roster rather than wait for the Dec. 2 non-tender deadline. If another team were to acquire N¨²?ez, it could control him via arbitration through 2024.

What that team would get is a player who saw his streaky power weighed down by below-average on-base skills (7.3 percent career walk rate) and lack of a true defensive home. He is viewed as a strong thrower but poor fielder overall at both first and third, where he combined to make 65 appearances over the past two seasons. It¡¯s a skillset that suddenly looks redundant on a roster planning to welcome back Trey Mancini and cycle several young players through its DH spot in 2021.

All told, N¨²?ez hit .253/.319/.464 with 50 homers, 141 RBIs and a 108 OPS+ in 263 games over parts of three seasons with the Orioles.

"It was a very difficult decision because he¡¯s been such a productive member of our lineup, and he¡¯s been an important member of the club here for the past couple years,¡± Orioles general manager Mike Elias said last week. ¡°Ours is not the ideal roster for him in terms of a fit.¡±