ST. PETERSBURG -- Junior Caminero has spent much of the past season showing that the bigger the stage gets, the more comfortable he seems to become.
There was the World Baseball Classic, where the 23-year-old third baseman launched three home runs for the Dominican Republic, including one off Pirates ace Paul Skenes in the semifinals at loanDepot park. There was Sept. 11 at Tropicana Field, when Caminero sent the Rays to the postseason with a two-run walk-off homer against the Astros.
Now comes another opportunity, and perhaps his most meaningful one yet.
“Playing in the World Baseball Classic is a different stage,” Caminero said in Spanish. “Now, here with the team is another different scenario, but it’s the same game. Nothing changes. But for me, this is very important with the team. It is the team I belong to and, in all honesty, for me and for us, we are a team [where] it is very important to win a World Series.
“In the other stages I have been, it is very beautiful to represent [my] country and play for the Dominican, but to play with this team that you are a part of in the Major Leagues is more special.”
After the Santo Domingo native established himself as one of baseball’s premier young sluggers in 2025, Caminero followed with 42 homers and 101 RBIs this season while making strides with his plate discipline and defense. The result was a second consecutive 40-homer, 100-RBI campaign and a place among the leading candidates for the AL MVP Award.
Astros slugger Yordan Alvarez emerged as the frontrunner in MLB.com’s final MVP poll, but Caminero finished second in the voting after helping lead the Rays to the best record in the American League. Now, Tampa Bay's cornerstone will look to carry that production into the ALDS beginning Saturday, when the Rays host the Yankees in Game 1 at Tropicana Field.
The AL East rivals finished with the top two records in the American League and will meet in the postseason for only the second time. Their only previous playoff matchup came in the 2020 ALDS at Petco Park (due to the COVID-19 pandemic), where the Rays eliminated the Yankees in five games. Tampa Bay went 7-6 against New York during the 2026 regular season.
But Caminero's growth this season extended beyond his power, particularly at third base.
His defense was once a question about how his long-term profile would fit alongside his elite power, and he acknowledged that he struggled early in both 2025 and '26. But he credits continued work with third-base coach Brady Williams and the Rays staff for helping him become more comfortable at the position.
“It’s the confidence above all,” Caminero said. “It’s no secret that last year and this year, at the start of the season, I didn’t have a great defense.
“Since the start of the season, I have [made] many errors that are part of the game. Believe me, I don’t want to commit a lot of errors, but it’s things that happen, and that is also why we are here, to learn more every day. Thank God that we have been able to keep working, and the team has given me the chance to go out and finish out nine innings.”
That opportunity was one Caminero rarely surrendered. He started all 162 games at third base this season, providing the Rays with an everyday presence to go along with his production at the plate.
Even as Caminero cooled down the stretch, batting .227 (15-for-66) over his final 18 games, his power remained one of the driving forces behind Tampa Bay’s run to October.
The postseason is also not entirely new to him. Caminero got his first taste as a 20-year-old rookie in 2023, when he was called up late in the season and appeared in the Rays’ Wild Card Series against the Rangers.
“Junior is a special player, special teammate,” manager Kevin Cash said. “He's been incredible and would expect that just as he's done every single stop throughout his career, whether it's playing winter ball or coming up, he's going to be very excited, motivated, and we'll rise to the occasion.”