It’s awards week in Major League Baseball, and the week will culminate with the American League and National League Most Valuable Players being named on Thursday, November 11.
It’s expected that it will be Yordan Alvarez of the Houston Astros and Pete Crow-Armstrong of the Chicago Cubs; the Tampa Bay Rays have an MVP candidate of their own in Junior Caminero, who will likely finish in 2nd place in the voting.
In a weird development the day before the award will be announced, Junior Caminero’s agent decided to get on social media and throw some shade at the Rays organization.
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Junior Caminero’s Agent Makes Feelings Clear with Strange Message
Junior Caminero’s agent is Rafa Nieves of Republik Sports.
Nieves wrote (via X.com) on 11/11:
“I want to let people know, as we prepare for the lockout, that adidas paid Junior Caminero more money than the Tampa Bay Rays this season ///”
Per Spotrac.com, Caminero earned 794K in base salary in 2026, which is apparently lower than his brand deal with Adidas*.
Junior Caminero is undoubtedly one of the bright young stars in MLB, and perhaps this is a strategic play by Nieves to get the Rays to ink Junior to a long-term deal before the upcoming lockout. It could also hurt Caminero’s stock going forward, as his agent is clearly stating he has a slight problem with the way the Rays are treating his client.
There have been reports that Junior Caminero is open to an extension with the Rays, but Tampa Bay is one of the lower payroll teams in MLB, so it may take a while before the 2X All-Star infielder gets paid.
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Junior Caminero’s MLB Career Thus Far
Junior Caminero has played in parts of 4 MLB seasons, all with the Tampa Bay Rays.
Across 366 total games, he has hit 94 home runs, with 87 of those coming in the last two seasons.
Over 1417 total at-bats, his batting average is .267, and his lifetime OPS+ sits at 132.
In the full seasons he’s played (2025 and 2026), Caminero has clearly proven he’s one of the best infielders in Major League Baseball.
Junior Caminero’s Agent Throws Major Shade on Tampa Bay Rays Organization