What happened: Junior Caminero, 22, has gone deep nine times over his last eight games, an outburst that has made him one of baseball's hottest hitters. He has credited the run to opening up his stance more at the plate. The stretch drew a full breakdown segment on MLB Network, with Xavier Scruggs and Marc DeRosa examining the mechanical change behind the heater.
Why it matters: For a 22-year-old, sustaining this kind of power over a compressed stretch signals a hitter stepping into a middle-of-the-order role earlier than most. A tangible swing adjustment paying off this quickly suggests the surge is rooted in process rather than luck, which matters for how pitchers attack him the rest of the way.
By the numbers: Nine home runs across his last eight games headline the run, and it comes on the heels of the same Junior Caminero who has been trimming his chase rate while his hard contact climbs toward the 100-homer milestone.
What to watch: Watch whether Caminero holds the opened-up stance as opposing pitchers adjust, and whether the power keeps translating once he sees a steadier diet of breaking balls off the plate.