Tampa Bay Rays Rising Star Junior Caminero Joins Exclusive Club in MLB History Books
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The Tampa Bay Rays had already gotten all the runs they would need to close out their sweep of the Kansas City Royals on Thursday, but Junior Caminero made history by piling on the damage.
Brandon Lowe had just made it a 3-0 ballgame with a solo shot in the top of the sixth inning when Caminero golfed a 366-foot line drive to left. The ball cleared the fence, giving the Rays back-to-back home runs and a 4-0 lead.
That's where the score would stay, moving Tampa Bay to 46-35 on the season and an MLB-best 25-9 since May 20. As for Caminero, he is now batting .260 with 20 home runs, 17 doubles, 51 RBIs, an .824 OPS and a 1.5 WAR so far this year.
According to MLB.com's Sarah Langs, Caminero became the seventh player since 1920 to record at least 20 home runs and 50 RBIs in his first 76 games of a season prior to turning 22 years old. Cody Bellinger did so most recently in 2017, while the rest of the club is made up of Albert Pujols, Alex Rodriguez, Bob Horner, Eddie Matthews and Mel Ott.
Junior Caminero is the 7th player with 20+ HR & 50+ RBI in his first 76 games of a season at 21 or younger (RBI official since 1920), joining:
— Sarah Langs (@SlangsOnSports) June 26, 2025
2017 Cody Bellinger
2001 Albert Pujols
1996 Alex Rodriguez
1979 Bob Horner
1953 Eddie Mathews
1929 Mel Ott https://t.co/zlICGxtnnq
The former No. 2 overall prospect in baseball was a .246 hitter with seven home runs, 25 RBIs, a .708 OPS and a 0.8 WAR through his first 50 games in the big leagues between 2023 and 2024. His success in the Dominican Winter League this past offseason turned out to be a sign of things to come, though, as Caminero has taken some major steps towards superstardom.
Caminero ranks No. 3 in the American League in home runs, on top of ranking No. 5 in slugging percentage and No. 6 in RBIs. His average bat speed of 78.0 miles per hour is also in the 100th percentile across MLB.
Related Rays stories
- WANDER FRANCO SENTENCED: Franco was given a two-year suspended sentence, but reports indicate it will be hard for him to get a work visa in the United States. CLICK HERE
- RAYS SWEEP ROYALS: Tampa Bay got another brilliant start on Thursday, with Shane Baz pitching eight scoreless innings and allowing just three hits in the Rays' 4-0 win over the Kansas City Royals. CLICK HERE
- TAMPA BAY POSTSEASON HISTORY: The Tampa Bay Rays have made the postseason nine times since 2008, and have won two American League pennants. Here's a great history of what they've done every year in October. CLICK HERE
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Sam Connon covers baseball for "On SI'' on the Sports Illustrated platform and is also a senior writer on "Fastball on SI'' and ''Minor League Baseball on SI.'' He previously covered UCLA Athletics for "On SI's'' All Bruins site, among others.
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