The Tampa Bay Rays referred to as up Junior Caminero on Tuesday to face the Houston Astros.
The No. 2 prospect in the 2024 class promptly displayed the ability set that makes him so coveted.
A 21-year-old third baseman, Caminero confirmed off his prowess on the sizzling nook on a success smoked down the road by Astros proper fielder Mauricio Dubón within the second inning. Caminero dove for the out on a ball that in any other case would’ve absolutely gone for additional bases and certain scored Jake Meyers from first.
As an alternative, it ended the inning.
On the plate, Caminero struck out in his first at-bat within the backside of the inning. However he secured his first big-league hit of the season in his second at-bat with one of many hardest-hit balls of the yr.
Junior Caminero’s first hit again in The Present comes at 116.3 mph, a high 50 exit velocity recorded throughout the MLB season.
MLB’s No. 2 prospect (@RaysBaseball) ranked second at Triple-A in avg. EV and hard-hit charge previous to his callup. pic.twitter.com/Fq92nf5wTX
— MLB Pipeline (@MLBPipeline) August 14, 2024
Caminero reached first on a single off starter Yusei Kikuchi that traveled 116.3 mph off the bat. Per Baseball Savant, solely 14 gamers this season have hit a ball more durable. He dug the ball out from beneath the strike zone.
Will Caminero’s energy assist Rays get again into playoff race?
The hard-hit ball tracks with Caminero’s scouting report. Per Rays Metrics, his 57% hard-hit charge with the Triple-A Durham Bulls was the second-best within the Worldwide League on the time of his call-up on Tuesday.
This is not Caminero’s first stint with the Rays, both. Tampa Bay referred to as him up for a short stint final season within the midst of a playoff race. He went 8-for-34 (.235) in seven regular-season video games with a house run and 7 RBI. He then went hitless in two postseason at-bats in Tampa Bay’s wild-card loss to the Texas Rangers.
This season’s call-up got here with 44 video games remaining and the Rays 5.5 games back in the AL wild-card race. It is a longshot for Tampa Bay to make the postseason, however Caminero’s call-up makes the race extra fascinating.
In 2023, he slashed .324/.384/.591 with 31 residence runs and 94 RBI, a giant purpose the Rays referred to as him up when the stakes have been their highest. Quadriceps accidents restricted him to 53 video games with the Bulls this season, however he has been productive when wholesome, slashing .277/.331/.498 with 13 residence runs and 34 RBI.
He additionally has some adjusting to MLB pitching to do. Caminero completed 1-for-4 on the plate with three strikeouts on Tuesday. He struck out on three pitches in every of his final two at-bats. However plate self-discipline wasn’t an issue; every of his swinging strikes was on a ball within the zone.
Houston received Tuesday’s game 3-2.
