Caminero launches 463-foot homer, Rays sweep D-backs

Caminero’s 463-foot – Tampa Bay’s 22-year-old third baseman hit a Statcast-projected 463-foot home run Sunday afternoon at Tropicana Field—his fourth straight game going deep—powering the Rays to a 5-1 win over the D-backs and completing a 5-0 homestand run into first place in the

The first thing people noticed wasn’t just that Yandy Caminero had another homer.

It was how far it carried—clearing the center-field fence and landing onto the concourse above the Daiquiri Deck at Tropicana Field—while the stadium seemed to pause mid-cheer.

In the Rays’ 5-1. sweep-sealing win over the D-backs on Sunday afternoon. Tampa Bay’s superstar slugger sent an 0-1 cutter from D-backs starter Merrill Kelly into a moonshot zone. Statcast projected the solo home run at 463 feet. the longest of Caminero’s young career and tied for the fourth-longest homer in the Majors this season.

“How far did he think it went?” he was asked.

“Far,” Caminero said, smiling.

For Cedric Mullins, the distance translated into disbelief. “That was the type of ball that made everyone go quiet. Instead of cheering, we’re all just looking at each other like, ‘Jesus Christ.’ Special kind of power out of him.”

The hit wasn’t just a highlight—it was the exclamation point on a week that has turned into something bigger than a streak. The 463-foot blast tied for the fourth-longest homer in the Majors this season. and it also became the 7th-longest home run at Tropicana Field since Statcast began tracking batted-ball data in 2015.

It was the Rays’ second-longest homer since 2021, behind only a 467-foot shot hit by Jonathan Aranda in Baltimore exactly a year ago.

Tampa Bay is riding the momentum into the standings. The homestand itself has been terrific—Tropicana Field gave the Rays a 7-3 stretch and vaulted them back into first place in the American League East, capped by five straight wins.

Caminero’s power has been the engine. He became the 10th player in team history to homer in at least four straight games, the first since Brandon Lowe in April 2023, and the youngest Ray ever to do so.

Only three players his age or younger have had a longer home run streak since at least 1900: Ronald Acuña Jr. (2018), Brian McCann (2006) and Jack Clark (1978), each of whom went deep in five straight games.

When Kevin Cash looked at what Caminero is doing right now, he didn’t try to make it complicated. “Special player doing special things,” the manager said. “I mean. he came into his own here on this homestand where he’s really seeing the ball well. getting pitches he can handle and not missing them and hitting them a long way.”.

Even the numbers inside the streak are rare. Caminero has gone deep six times during the four-game stretch—something no Ray has ever done. He’s also hit seven homers in his last six games. matching only Carlos Peña (June 6-12. 2010) for the most Tampa Bay has seen from a hitter over a six-game span. And those seven homers in the span are tied for the most by a hitter age 22 or younger since at least 1900. matching Bryce Harper in 2015. Willie Horton in 1965 and Boog Powell in 1964.

Pitchers who have faced him are starting to sound like they can’t believe the calendar is moving normally. Drew Rasmussen—who lowered his ERA to 2.45 by pitching six scoreless innings in the series finale—called it the kind of dominance you don’t picture when you imagine what “young” usually means. “I couldn’t imagine being that good at 22. That’s unbelievable,” Rasmussen said. “And he’s out here doing it like nobody’s business. It’s really cool.”.

Caminero now has 22 home runs on the season, trailing only Yordan Alvarez and Byron Buxton (25) among AL hitters. The conversation around his ceiling isn’t theoretical anymore. Last year. he hit a career-high 45 home runs. and with the way this surge is accelerating. it’s not out of the question that he could match or exceed that total.

“I feel very, very good and comfortable,” Caminero said. “That’s the point, very comfortable.”

The shift has been visible at the plate, too. Caminero recently opened his stance. giving him more of a chance to hit inside pitches and get the ball in the air. He had gone through a 29-game stretch from May 19-June 22 where he had only two homers and more ground balls than he’d like—but the adjustment has brought the old results back.

“The talent is off the charts, but to see the execution and just his ability to go out there and find success, it’s a huge spark for us,” Rasmussen said.

Sunday’s game had the usual ingredients from a Caminero night, but with a different timing. He had homered in the first inning in each of his previous three games. including Thursday’s three-homer performance against the Royals. Kelly kept him in the yard in the first inning of Sunday’s series finale.

Still, Caminero didn’t disappear. He went 3-for-3 with a walk and got the Rays on the board with an RBI single to left-center field. His longest homer this time didn’t come until the fifth inning.

It was a reminder that even when he’s not blasting early, the damage is still coming. His longest homer in the Majors had been a 450-foot shot. and the longest recorded homer of his professional career was the 454-foot. championship-winning missile he hit before his lengthy trot around the bases in LIDOM Serie Final Game 7.

Rasmussen said the difference felt almost physical. “I don’t think I’ve ever seen a ball hit that far,” he said. “Not here, up on the concourse over there. That’s different.”

The week has also carried a promise—and now, the question is whether it will keep turning into reality. Caminero told his agent, Rafa Nieves, and Cash last Monday that he would be this week’s AL Player of the Week. Over the following six days, he went .500 (11-for-22) with seven homers and 15 RBIs.

After Sunday’s blast, he seemed ready to let the next day answer the rest. “We’ll see tomorrow,” he said, laughing.

Yandy Caminero Rays D-backs Tropicana Field 463-foot home run Cedric Mullins Merrill Kelly Statcast AL Player of the Week Kevin Cash