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Junior Caminero is the best player on the chronically underrated Tampa Bay Rays. At 23 years old, he is one of the brightest young stars in the game. And like so many greats before him, Caminero has raised his game to meet the biggest moments.
The third baseman showed a penchant for clutch hitting as the Rays took control of the American League Championship Series, taking three straight against the Cleveland Guardians to earn a World Series berth. He’ll now get the opportunity to shine on the biggest stage.
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MORE: Updated World Series schedule immediately announced: Rays win 2026 ALCS
Those unfamiliar with his game will soon learn that he plays with immense confidence and passion. He’ll do something amazing on the field and then make sure everyone knows about it, as is his right.
Oct 19, 2026; St. Petersburg, Florida, USA; Tampa Bay Rays third baseman Junior Caminero (13) reacts after hitting a home run during the seventh inning against the Cleveland Guardians at Tropicana Field. Mandatory Credit: Kim Klement Neitzel-Imagn Images
Caminero’s historic home run trot
For evidence, look no further than his exploits on Monday night. Caminero roped a two-run homer in the seventh inning to double Tampa Bay’s lead en route to a 7-3 victory.
Then he took his sweet time rounding the bases.
Caminero took every chance to celebrate and savor the moment with a trot that clocked in at 38.66 seconds. Only one player has taken a more leisurely trip in the Statcast era.
It takes some work to take that long to travel 360 feet. The key to encroaching on 40 seconds on the ol’ stop watch is to take a few breaks along the way. Let Caminero’s majestic and glacial pace serve as a reminder to the next player who blasts a clutch dinger. Everything you see is a potential character in the story. Every time you stop to fire up anything along the way, well, the clock just keeps on running.
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Interrogating my own soul watching this delightful clip reveals something interesting. It feels like at every point prior in history a trot like Caminero put on display would bring a lot of hand-wringing from the baseball purists and diehards. I can say that because I used to be one of them. Five years ago this bit of showmanship would have gotten under my skin.
So it’s refreshing to look around at the marketplace of ideas and conclude that we’re all sort of past the need to complain and moan about a guy making a meal of his home run trot. Along the way it became clear that we simply do not need to clutch pearls.
And it’s better. It’s great to just enjoy things and to let a slugger enjoy the fruits of their titanic blast without rushing to pen a thinkpiece or chastise them for not playing the right way.
Heck, take longer next time. It’s fine.
