The Rays optioned top infield prospect Junior Caminero to Triple-A Durham among their camp cuts this afternoon, writes Marc Topkin of the Tampa Bay Times. That takes him out of the mix for an Opening Day roster spot.
Caminero always seemed like a long shot to secure a season-opening big league job. The Rays promoted the 20-year-old directly from Double-A last September. Caminero played in seven regular season games and was available off the bench for the team’s Wild Card series against the Rangers. While that at least put him on the radar for a potential Opening Day spot, the likelier outcome has been that he’d head to Durham for the first time.
Tampa Bay added a pair of shortstops over the winter. Trade pickup José Caballero will get the starting nod, while the Rays took a $1.5MM flier on Amed Rosario as a right-handed hitter who can bounce around the diamond. Isaac Paredes should get the majority of the third base reps with Yandy Díaz at the opposite corner. Curtis Mead is another righty bat who can move around the infield. Mead isn’t yet established at the MLB level but turned in an excellent .294/.385/.515 slash line over 61 Triple-A contests a year ago.
While Caminero is light on upper level experience, he has destroyed opposing pitching through Double-A. The right-handed hitter owns a .316/.383/.555 mark in three minor league campaigns, including a .324/.384/.591 line between High-A and Double-A a year ago. Baseball America, FanGraphs, The Athletic’s Keith Law and ESPN’s Kiley McDaniel all rank him among the sport’s five most talented prospects.
Caminero has experience at all four infield positions. Most scouting reports indicate he’s best suited for third base. That may eventually lead the Rays to consider trade possibilities with Paredes, whom they control via arbitration for another four seasons. That’s not something with which they’ll need to concern themselves before Opening Day.
The minor league assignment is likely to have an impact on Caminero’s service trajectory. He accrued 10 days of MLB service after his September promotion. Caminero would need to be on the MLB roster for 162 days if he’s to surpass the one-year threshold in 2024. Spending more than a few weeks in Durham would prevent him from reaching that mark (unless he plays his way into a full service year with a top-two finish in Rookie of the Year balloting). That’s not an indication the Rays are gaming Caminero’s service time — there’s clearly legitimate developmental reason to get him time in Triple-A — but it’s a notable effect all the same.
They screw-in dat boy. Just hope he ain’t screw-in teenagers while he down dere in Durham
Why is this news?
Top 5 overall prospect. It’s in the story.
So a top 5 overall prospect who is 20 years old and not ready for the majors… gets sent back to the minors and that’s supposedly news?
To people that actually care about baseball, sure. To people living out weird conflict via internet comments? I guess not
He is ready for the majors, dude. There just ain’t room for him, plus they probably don’t want to start his service clock back up.
You needn’t ask the question if you bothered to read beyond the header, sport.
He was under consideration to make the team, that’s why. And now that teams have an incentive to let top prospects start the season in the majors, it might happen more often…making it all the more worth keeping an eye on.
He’s on par with Elly De La Cruz, Jackson Chourio and Jackson Holiday as the next incoming generation of star potential talent. That’s why.
Kris Bryant situation? he seems fine to me
He completely skipped AAA and wasn’t THAT great at the big league level last year. Could he have started the year with the team and been fine? Probably yes, but even if there was an opening for him it wouldn’t have been a slam dunk, and with the depth the Rays have in front of him meaning there WASN”T an opening, that made it much, much less likely. The Rays would need to trade one of their current infield starters for them to seriously consider carrying him, since there’s no way he starts his career off the bench.
Galer18, everything you offer is absolutely true. Well done! But for some on this particular theme you brought too many words to make your point. I believe the intended recipient of your effort is both a troll and one who lacks in the most basic reading comprehension.
True, you’re probably not wrong. But somebody had to say it before too many other people chimed in in agreement.
@ceruleandrew
did someone hurt you? all I asked was a simple question, galer18 answered it completely perfectly, and you just had to ruin it and be miserable. i wasn’t even trying to troll it was an honest question but damn
He barely played at the big league level, so you can’t really judge him off of a small sample of plate appearances. The fact that he made it there at all at age 20, when most players aren’t even near the majors, should tell you that he’s a special talent.
He’s better off where he can play everyday.
You may remember his father, Senior Caminero.
TB delaying his service time. Not the first time or last.
The Rays aren’t calling him up simply for him to ride the bench.
He’s not ready. Needs some AAA at bats. If you can’t see that, I don’t know what to tell you. He didn’t exactly tear up Spring training. Back by June.
Or maybe he simply wasn’t ready?
So would his dad eventually become Senior Senior Caminero once Junior Caminero has a kid of his own?