KANSAS CITY -- Junior Caminero wasted no time making history on Wednesday night.
Caminero swung at the first pitch he saw from Royals starter Seth Lugo, an inside sinker, and blasted it out to left field for a two-run homer in the first inning at Kauffman Stadium. It was Caminero’s sixth straight game with a home run, matching the franchise record set by Carlos Peña from June 6-12, 2010.
The Statcast-projected 425-foot blast also made Caminero the youngest player since at least 1900 to go deep in six straight games. That distinction previously belonged to Ken Griffey Jr., who was 23 years and 246 days old when he homered in his sixth straight game (amid his record-tying eight-game run) on July 25, 1993.
Meanwhile, Caminero won’t even turn 23 until Sunday.
After that at-bat, Caminero was hitting an even .500 (14-for-28) with nine homers and 20 RBIs in his last eight games. That's the most home runs in an 8-game span at age 22 or younger since at least 1900.
Coincidentally, Caminero started this home run binge against Lugo last Thursday at Tropicana Field, as he took the veteran right-hander deep twice during the first three-homer game of his career.
Before Caminero, the last player to hit a home run in six straight games was Rafael Devers from May 15-20, 2024.