ST. PETERSBURG -- Back in the tranquil days of Spring Training, Rays manager Kevin Cash watched on TV as Junior Caminero put on a show for the Dominican Republic on the global stage of the World Baseball Classic.
Early one March morning, after seeing Caminero blast the ball around the park the night before, Cash delivered a simple observation: “We need to get him to the postseason. It could be pretty exciting to watch him, because he certainly brightens up the brighter the lights [get].”
Caminero sent the Rays to the postseason on Friday night by launching the first walk-off home run of his career, clinching Tampa Bay’s first playoff berth since 2023. Five days later, he did it again.
With the Rays and A’s tied in the bottom of the ninth, Caminero laced another walk-off shot down the right-field line -- his American League-leading 41st homer of the season -- off reliever Elvis Alvarado, then celebrated all the way around the bases to finish Tampa Bay’s 2-1 victory on Tuesday night.
“That man's unbelievable,” Cash said. “... Hopefully, a lot more of that to come. But man, he rises up in the biggest moments for his team and celebrates the heck out of 'em.”
Another preview of what’s to come in October, perhaps?
“He seems like he's someone that really thrives off the moment and loves the energy,” said starter Griffin Jax, who pitched five scoreless innings. “Excited to see what he looks like when the whole world's watching.”
Caminero has more immediate concerns, like helping the Rays win the AL East and completing his strong case for the franchise’s first AL MVP Award. His walk-off blast helped the first cause by keeping the Rays 3 1/2 games ahead of the Yankees in the division race.
As for his argument for MVP? Just ask his teammates.
“I told him two months ago that he was going to win MVP,” left fielder Chandler Simpson said. “So the fact that he's continuing to do so, he's definitely making a strong case, for sure.”
But yes, it’s safe to say he’s prepared for the postseason spotlight.
“I want to play in October,” Caminero said. “In October, the energy is different and the fans, too. So we've got to play in October, and we're pretty ready right now.”
He looked that way as he stepped to the plate in the ninth inning. He took a 100.2 mph fastball from Alvarado for a first-pitch strike, then fouled off a slider in the zone. The next pitch came in hot at 100.4 mph, in almost the exact same spot as the previous, and Caminero didn’t miss this time, as he rifled it to the right-field corner.
Watching the ball sail over the fence, Caminero stepped out of the batter’s box and stared into the Rays’ dugout as he walked about halfway down the first-base line. He finally tossed his bat out of his left hand and started trotting around the bases, though he had a message for his teammates who gathered around him before he took off.
“I say, 'Wait for me, my guys. Let me have a little bit of time right here,’” he said, smiling.
The 23-year-old’s 40.65-second trip was the slowest tracked by Statcast on an undisputed homer/trot, according to MLB.com’s Sarah Langs, but he eventually made his way around the bases and hopped home as the Rays rained down gum and mobbed him at the plate.
“He's our face,” Simpson said. “He's the one that we count on the most, and the fact that he’s stepping up to the plate and he's performing when the lights are brightest, it means everything, for sure.”
Caminero became the fifth player in franchise history to hit two walk-off homers in the same season, with Brandon Lowe being the last to do it in 2023, and he’s the first Rays player to ever hit multiple walk-off homers during the same homestand. The last big leaguer to hit multiple walk-off home runs in the same homestand is Colton Cowser, who did so for the Orioles in back-to-back games May 24-25.
“We feel so confident when he's at the plate, for sure,” Cash said. “He's getting some big reps right now heading into [October] and then certainly postseason baseball, getting these at-bats where there's a lot on the line. And he's coming through in such a huge way for us.”
Funnily enough, it was shaping up to be a frustrating night for Caminero before the dramatic finish. In the first inning, he crushed a line drive to center field with an exit velocity of 107 mph and a 29-degree launch angle. According to Statcast, it was projected to travel 409 feet.
Based on the Rays’ metrics, Cash said, it should have been a home run. Based on Caminero’s reaction, he thought it was one. But Henry Bolte caught it just in front of the wall, and Caminero walked back into the dugout in disbelief.
By the end of the night, that feeling had turned into something else.
“The plan of God is perfect,” Caminero said. “If I hit the first homer, I'm not hitting the last one.”