Junior Caminero, great pitching leads Rays to first spring training win

The Rays seemed to put it all together yesterday afternoon as a close replica of the potential Opening Day lineup took the field against the Atlanta Braves. Offense and pitching executed really well, but as usual, there were a few players that stood out for their effort.

Junior Caminero recorded his first hit of the spring in yesterday's contest in a big way as the 21-year old phenom homered off of Braves relief pitcher Grant Holmes. The solo blast cleared the left center wall by a large margin and extended the Rays lead to 2-0. In five spring training at-bats thus far, the Dominican infielder is hitting .200. That homer could be a great catalyst for the rest of his spring.

Australian infielder Curtis Mead also broke out in yesterday's exhibition. Mead made only his second career appearance at first base for the Rays and he made the most of it, as he went 3-for-3 and still carries a 1.000 batting average so far.

Unfortunately, it's hard to perceive a situation where the 24-year old cracks the Opening Day roster, purely due to the depth of the Rays infield. However, if Mead continues hitting at this level, he may force Cash's hand.

On top of his great on-field play, Curtis Mead has bulked up since last season. The third baseman is noticeably stronger this year as he gained about 20 pounds in muscle over the offseason. That impressive change in stature could be the difference for him going into the 2025 season.

Even more significant than the offensive output, the Rays pitching performed very well against a formidable Braves lineup. Everyday starters Austin Riley, Matt Olson, Marcell Ozuna, Michael Harris II, and Orlando Arcia were held scoreless as Atlanta didn't drive in a run until the late innings when their prospects were playing.

Left-handed reliever Joe Rock started yesterday's game and gave up only two hits and no runs in two innings of work. The rest of the hurlers gave up no more than two hits and one run. In fact, there were four Rays pitchers that completed their outings without allowing a hit.

One of those was former Oriole Cole Sulser. The 34-year old right-hander is currently a member of the 40-man roster, but few would say that he has locked up a role on the Opening Day roster. Yesterday's gem was definitely a step in the right direction.