Why Carlos Pena is pulling for Junior Caminero to break his Rays record

TAMPA, Fla. — Carlos Pena is OK with making room in the Rays’ 40-home run club.

For 17-plus seasons, since hitting a team-record 46 homers in 2007, Pena has had the place to himself.

But Junior Caminero joined Pena by hitting No. 40 on Tuesday. And with three weeks still to play, the 22-year-old has a chance to take over the top spot.

Pena is pulling for him.

“It’s pretty cool to see him do this,” Pena said from Chicago. “He’s a good kid, A fun kid to watch. ...

“I don’t want to take anything away from him. So that’s why I’m like, ‘I’m good.’ I’m secure. I feel really good about my place in Rays history, let’s say. I feel like I’m part of it. So I’m enjoying every bit of (what Caminero is doing). I’m like, ‘Oh, my God! Oh, my God!’ It’s pretty cool, man. I’m so happy for him.”

Beyond the Rays history they now share, Pena keeps up with Caminero’s accomplishments for many reasons.

Part is for work, as Pena has broadcasting gigs with MLB Network, the Tigers and the Cubs — and will be around Wrigley Field next weekend when the Rays visit.

Part is for his new offseason job, taking over as general manager of the Escogido team in the Dominican Winter League that Caminero plays for and in January hit the 454-foot, ninth-inning homer that led the Leones to the championship.

And part is to keep harmony with 15-year-old son Nico in their Orlando-area home.

“Caminero is my son’s favorite player,” Pena said. “How cool is that? He’s crazy about him. It’s awesome to see.”

When the Tigers visited Steinbrenner Field in June, Pena made a point to introduce himself to Caminero. Both are Dominicans from Santo Domingo, and Pena wanted to get a better sense of Caminero. Both enjoyed the chat.

“I watched him hit, I watched him go through his routine,” said Pena, who is 47 but looks like he could still play. “He was most gracious and respectful.

“It’s so crazy to think this — I’m twice his age! More than twice his age! He is so young. It’s insane to me what he’s been able to do and to do it at this young age. So I’m truly excited for him. Couldn’t happen to a greater kid. So everyone is pulling for him. The entire country is. And so am I."

Pena was always a deep thinker when he played for the Rays from 2007-10, and again in 2012, playing a big part in their 2008 transformation from one of the majors’ worst teams to among the most successful.

So it’s fitting he found some kind of cosmic connection with Caminero.

“It’s very cool for me that the team I am now the GM of is the Leones de Escogido. He played for the Leones de Escogido and hit the big home run for our team,” Pena said. “Now he’s doing it in the big leagues. And I’m the one holding the (Rays) record.

“So it’s kind of like a cool coincidence, like a super cool happenstance. I just think it’s awesome.”

Pena’s record-setting 2007 season was somewhat of an amazing tale itself.

He spent the previous season in Triple A and over the course of the year was released by the Tigers, Yankees and Red Sox.

Pena, 28 at the time, signed a minor-league deal with the Rays, who were coming off a 101-loss season in their first year under Joe Maddon. Pena initially didn’t make the team but then was recalled when Greg Norton sustained a knee injury at the end of spring training. About three weeks into the season, Pena took over as the everyday first baseman.

He then made arguably the most any player has of such an opportunity — setting team records with the 46 home runs and 121 RBIs, winning American League Silver Slugger and Comeback Player of the Year awards, finishing ninth in the MVP voting and signing a three-year, $24.125-million contract.

He also played a key role on the field and in the clubhouse as the Rays made their remarkable run to the World Series in 2008 and won the AL East again in 2010.

Pena was a force from 2007-09, averaging 39 homers and 108 RBIs with a .935 OPS. He dropped off a bit in 2010 (28, 84, .732), signed in 2011 with the Cubs (28, 84, .732) then returned to the Rays in 2012 but didn’t do nearly as well (19, 61, .684). He bounced around after that, and by July 2014 his 14-year major-league career was over.

In September 2015, Pena came back to Tropicana Field to sign an honorary contract and excitedly retire as a Ray, having spent the most time, and having had the most success, with them of the eight teams he played for.

“This is just a dream come true to end my career in such a way,” Pena said that day. “And I wouldn’t have it any other way. The Rays, it was the most fun I ever had playing baseball — including Little League.”

The admiration is mutual, and Pena — who ranks seventh on the franchise all-time WAR ranking (18.1 per baseball-reference.com) — seems likely to someday have a spot in the Rays Hall of Fame.

Just as Evan Longoria surpassed his franchise home run record of 163, Pena is good with Caminero eclipsing his single-season mark, “very secure” of his place in team history. He also noted he still holds a dozen other team records, such as career at-bats per homer (14.9), and single-season walks (103), OPS (1.037) and offensive WAR (6.4).

“Maybe I’m being sort of romantic when I say this, in a sense, but it’s kind of cool to see that I was part of building this legacy,” Pena said. “I take a lot of pride in that, like, man, ‘I was part of building the Rays.’ We had the name change. We had the uniform change. We had kind of like an identity change. And we go to the World Series, etcetera, etcetera, etcetera.

“And ever since then, the Rays have been a successful team. I feel like I’m part of opening that door. So I don’t feel at all in a negative way. I’m not threatened. It’s just that number, the home run number. So it’s so cool for him.”

If anything, Pena said he now feels a kinship with Caminero and wants to see him go on to do many great things.

“Obviously you see the talent that he’s got. It’s undeniable. Like, you cannot not recognize it. So now the key for him is that consistency. He’s got all the tools necessary for us to be talking about him for years to come as an absolute superstar. Because he’s playing like a superstar right now,” Pena said.

“However — I say this with a lot of humility; I’m from his country, we’re Dominican — I take a deep breath, I’m like, OK, you almost want to protect him. I want to protect him. You want to make sure that he is taking care of himself, that he stays consistent with his training, that he stays healthy the whole entire time. Because you want to see that talent play out for the next 15 years."

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