Nelson Rafael Payano (born November 13, 1982) is a Dominican professional baseball pitcher, who plays for the Sultanes de Monterrey of the Mexican League. He played the 2009 season for the Chunichi Dragons of Nippon Professional Baseball (BPB). Payano began his professional career in 2003 with the Gulf Coast League Braves. Over the next several years, he moved up through the Atlanta Braves organization, and in 2008, while playing for the double-A Mississippi Braves, he was traded to the Seattle Mariners to complete an earlier deal in which the Braves acquired Greg Norton.