Junior Caminero debut: Rays promote top infield prospect to majors amid battle for AL East title

The Tampa Bay Rays are selling infielder Junior Caminero to the majors, the group introduced Friday. Caminero, 20, shall be skipping over the Triple-A degree after showing in simply 81 Double-A contests. In a corresponding transfer, outfielder Luke Raley was once positioned at the IL with a cervical pressure and reliever Trevor Kelley was once designated for project.

Caminero hit .309/.373/.548 with 20 house runs and 62 RBI in 351 journeys to the plate. He basically seemed at 3rd base, even though the Rays additionally gave him publicity at shortstop to support his versatility and their optionality.

CBS Sports ranked Caminero the seventeenth prospect within the minors again in June. Rest confident, he would rank a lot upper now after organising that the worries about his method had been flawed. Here’s what we wrote on the time:

We known Caminero, who the Rays at the start got from the Guardians for journeyman Tobias Myers, as a breakout candidate prior to the season. He’s delivered up to now, posting a ludicrous batting line in opposition to High-A contest that is three-plus years his senior. Caminero has one main worry dealing with him now that the topic of his long-term defensive house has been settled (he is most commonly performed 3rd this 12 months), and that is the reason with appreciate to his method. His strikeout fee has higher this 12 months whilst his stroll fee has remained static. Make no mistake about it: Caminero’s formative years and talent to affect the baseball bode neatly for his long term possibilities. We simply suspect he’ll face extra of a problem in Double-A till he turns into extra selective. 

It’s to be observed how precisely the Rays deploy Caminero, who they at the start got in a business from the Cleveland Guardians. In concept, he may just see motion at 3rd base and shortstop (if the Rays are at ease along with his glove there in spurts) in addition to at designated hitter, the place they have got in recent years deployed a rotating solid, together with infielder Jonathan Aranda and injured outfielder Luke Raley.

The Rays will input Friday with a 1.5-game deficit within the American League East via distinctive feature of getting received on Thursday whilst the Baltimore Orioles misplaced.