Junior Caminero's 8th-inning homer saves Rays from sweep by Angels
Junior Caminero had been doing some other things to help the Rays as they struggled over the last three weeks, but not what he does best and enjoys most - hitting home runs.
After posting just one, and driving in only three runs, during the rough 18-game span in which the Rays lost 12 times and fell out of first place in the American League East, Caminero delivered a key blast on Sunday.
His two-run homer in the eighth regained a lead the Rays had lost, sending them to an 8-3 victory that saved them from being swept by the Angels.
"(Manager Kevin Cash) told me that at-bat, ‘Hey man, we need you,' and I said, ‘I've got to protect my team, I've got to put it in play, I've got to do something in this inning,'" Caminero told Ryan Bass in the Rays.TV on-field interview.
He did plenty, sparking a five-run, eighth-inning outburst and putting a good finish on what had been a rough weekend for himself (1-for-11 with six strikeouts to that point) and the team, losing twice to one of the American League's worst clubs.
"He's such a huge part of our offense and he delivers a bunch, but I know he was starting to really want to come through for us," Cash told reporters at Angel Stadium in Anaheim, Calif.
"I'm happy that he did. The dugout got excited. It was a huge homer - 3-3 ballgame in the eighth inning ... and things haven't gone our way. It felt like after that hit, it started to go our way."
The Rays improved to 41-27, staying within one game of the Yankees, and headed for a short bus ride north to open a three-game series against the Dodgers on Monday night.
Before he helped the Rays win the game, Caminero had a hand in them losing a 3-1 lead in the fifth inning.
Ian Seymour, who took over in the second for opener Casey Legumina, started the fifth by allowing a leadoff homer to Donovan Walton, then walking Logan Porter. Seymour got two outs, then walked ex-Ray Jose Siri to put two on.
Jo Adell bounced a ball toward short, and Caminero, as he has previously, was too aggressive in trying to make what would have been a tough play. And by cutting in front of Ben Williamson, he screened the shortstop from being able to make the play, too.
"He cares a lot," Cash said. "He's trying to make every play, trying to come through in every moment for us. And he comes through a ton."
Caminero made a similar move earlier this season with usual slick-fielding shortstop Taylor Walls on the field. Cash said at the time the better move is to let Walls field the ball.
Down 1-0 early, the Rays scored two in the third, loading the bases when Victor Mesa Jr. walked, Jonathan Aranda singled with one out and Cedric Mullins was hit by a pitch.
That ended the day for Angels starter Grayson Rodriguez, who left with back tightness and was replaced by Chase Silseth. After Caminero struck out, Chandler Simpson came up with the kind of key hit the Rays have been lacking, a two-run single.
A homer by Ben Williamson, his first as a Ray and second as a big-leaguer, made it 3-1 in the fourth.
After the Angels tied it in the fifth, it stayed 3-3 until the eighth.
Mullins started the rally off Sam Bachman with a walk, his fourth time on base.
Caminero then lofted an inside slider a modest, by his standards, 374 feet with a 96 mph exit velocity, over the low wall in the leftfield corner. It was his 15th homer of the season, though his first in 11 games and second in 22.
"Cami's been battling, trying to get things right, and that was a big swing from him," Mullins said in the clubhouse.
The Rays added on, which is something else that has been lacking during their rough couple of weeks.
A Richie Palacios double, a two-out RBI single by Hunter Feduccia and a two-run homer by Mesa, who also had a good overall day, extended the lead to 8-3.
Also a welcome change, the bullpen, though making it briefly uncomfortable, kept the lead.
Veteran reliever Craig Kimbrel, who had a big hand in Saturday's 8-0 loss, loaded the bases to open the home eighth by hittign one batter and walking two.
But Garrett Cleavinger, who also faltered Saturday, did the job on Sunday, striking out pinch-hitter Trey Mancini with a 99 mph sinker, and Oswald Peraza, and Bryan Baker finished.
Cash praised the pitching and the hitting.
"There were a lot of (big at-bats), and we needed it," Cash said. "We'll take a win however we can get it after the first two games here."
Notes
• Yandy Diaz walked in the eighth inning, extending his on-base streak to 27 games, the longest active streak in the majors and matching the second longest of his career.
• Monday's game against the Dodgers was chosen for ESPN's national package, so there will be no Rays.TV coverage.
• Cash said on the radio pregame show the Rays are "confident" they can manage the blister issue on Griffin Jax's right hand going forward. Jax told reporters after his Saturday outing the blister was a factor in him leaving after five innings. Cash said Jax aggravated it on a throw to first on the last play of the fifth, and it "kind of ripped the nail a little bit."
• The Rays won't face either of their former teammates in Los Angeles, as both Tyler Glasnow and Blake Snell are on the injured list.
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This story was originally published June 14, 2026 at 7:42 PM.