Rays Option Junior Caminero

The Rays optioned prime infield prospect Junior Caminero to Triple-A Durham amongst their camp cuts this afternoon, writes Marc Topkin of the Tampa Bay Instances. That takes him out of the combination for an Opening Day roster spot.

Caminero all the time appeared like a protracted shot to safe a season-opening large league job. The Rays promoted the 20-year-old instantly from Double-A final September. Caminero performed in seven common season video games and was out there off the bench for the staff’s Wild Card sequence in opposition to the Rangers. Whereas that a minimum of put him on the radar for a possible Opening Day spot, the likelier final result has been that he’d head to Durham for the primary time.

Tampa Bay added a pair of shortstops over the winter. Commerce pickup José Caballero will get the beginning nod, whereas the Rays took a $1.5MM flier on Amed Rosario as a right-handed hitter who can bounce across the diamond. Isaac Paredes ought to get the vast majority of the third base reps with Yandy Díaz on the reverse nook. Curtis Mead is one other righty bat who can transfer across the infield. Mead isn’t but established on the MLB degree however turned in a wonderful .294/.385/.515 slash line over 61 Triple-A contests a yr in the past.

Whereas Caminero is mild on higher degree expertise, he has destroyed opposing pitching by Double-A. The correct-handed hitter owns a .316/.383/.555 mark in three minor league campaigns, together with a .324/.384/.591 line between Excessive-A and Double-A a yr in the past. Baseball America, FanGraphs, The Athletic’s Keith Legislation and ESPN’s Kiley McDaniel all rank him among the many sport’s 5 most proficient prospects.

Caminero has expertise in any respect 4 infield positions. Most scouting stories point out he’s greatest suited to third base. Which will ultimately lead the Rays to think about commerce potentialities with Paredes, whom they management by way of arbitration for one more 4 seasons. That’s not one thing with which they’ll must concern themselves earlier than Opening Day.

The minor league project is prone to have an effect on Caminero’s service trajectory. He accrued 10 days of MLB service after his September promotion. Caminero would have to be on the MLB roster for 162 days if he’s to surpass the one-year threshold in 2024. Spending various weeks in Durham would stop him from reaching that mark (except he performs his approach right into a full service yr with a top-two end in Rookie of the Yr balloting). That’s not a sign the Rays are gaming Caminero’s service time — there’s clearly reputable developmental cause to get him time in Triple-A — but it surely’s a notable impact all the identical.