Rays 13, Rockies 9: Junior Caminero's Two Homers Survive a Coors Field Rally

August 3, 2026 - Denver - Coors Field does what Coors Field does, and for three innings, the Tampa Bay Rays made sure that meant runs for them and nobody else.

Junior Caminero opened the scoring with a two-run homer in the first, and Tampa Bay never let up from there, scoring in each of the first four innings to build a lead that swelled to 7-0 before the Colorado Rockies managed a real answer.

Four innings, seven runs, one clear direction

Caminero's first-inning shot set the tone, but Taylor Walls kept it rolling with a two-run knock in a four-run second inning that turned a manageable deficit into a laugher in progress. By the time Caminero added a solo homer in the fourth, his second of the night, Tampa Bay had built the kind of cushion that lets a bullpen breathe even at altitude.

Ian Seymour made sure that cushion held for six innings. He struck out nine, walked nobody, and allowed just two runs on seven hits, a start that looked more like a division-clinching outing than a Monday night in a stadium built for offense.

The rally that made it interesting

Colorado never stopped swinging. Ezequiel Tovar went 4-for-4 with a home run, and Mickey Moniak added his 18th homer of the season as the Rockies chipped away across the middle innings. It came together in the bottom of the ninth, four runs in the final frame, cutting what had been an eight-run deficit down to a final margin that at least looked competitive on the scoreboard.

It wasn't enough. Tampa Bay's early work had built too much room, and the Rockies simply ran out of innings before they ran out of fight.

What it means for a Rays team still adding

Two days removed from adding starter Freddy Peralta at the trade deadline, Tampa Bay looked like a club with real offensive punch to match its newly deepened rotation. This is the profile that's made the Rays a habitual overachiever: get a lead early, let a starter who isn't a household name go deep into the game, and let the bullpen mop up. It worked again on a night when Coors Field tried its best to make it not work.

AthX Engine angle

Caminero's two-homer night was worth 12 hitting fantasy points, part of a Rays offense that spread damage across the lineup. Seymour's start was even more valuable on the mound: 18 pitching FP on nine strikeouts, third-best pitching line of the night across all eight games, behind only Logan Webb's 24 and Brandon Pfaadt's 19.66. Tampa Bay's 20 AthX Engine team fantasy points ranked second on the slate, trailing only St. Louis's blowout win over the Yankees. Colorado's late rally salvaged respectability on the scoreboard but still left the Rockies at just 4 team FP for the night, a reminder that AthX Engine rewards the innings that decide a game, not just the ones that make a final score look closer.

Track Junior Caminero, Ian Seymour, and the Rays and Rockies boards on the marketplace. Information only; not financial advice.

What it means

Tampa Bay keeps doing what it's done all year: win with pitching depth and timely power, even on the road at one of the sport's toughest parks to protect a lead. Colorado's late fight is a small consolation in a season that's mostly been about individual performances rather than team results.

*Sources: MLB.com gameday final, ESPN recap, AthX Engine daily scoring for August 3, 2026. Information only; not financial advice.*