Seattle Mariners catcher Cal Raleigh made history with his power bat in 2025, passing Mickey Mantle, tying Ken Griffey Jr., and now chasing Team USA captain Aaron Judge as the 2026 World Baseball Classic approaches. WBN writer Julian Guilarte reported this story on assignment, originally published for Latino Sports.
Image Credit: Francisco Rodriguez/Latino Sports
Kansas City, MO — Cal Raleigh of the Seattle Mariners grew up learning switch-hitting from his father Todd, who taught him about Mickey Mantle at Yankee Stadium. Years later, Raleigh has etched his own name in the record books by surpassing Mantle’s long-standing mark.
On Tuesday night at Kauffman Stadium, Raleigh hit his 55th and 56th home runs of the season against the Kansas City Royals. Mantle’s record of 54 home runs in 1961 had stood as the single-season high for a switch-hitter. Raleigh wasted no time in the third inning, launching a 419-foot drive from the left side at 109.5 mph.
“It’s crazy, just not a lot of words to describe it and I’m pretty grateful for that,” Raleigh told Latino Sports after the game in Kansas City.
Adding to the storybook season, Raleigh’s father pitched to him at the 2025 Home Run Derby in Atlanta, where he won the crown.
His second blast of the night came in the fourth inning, this time from the right side. He squared it up at 106.1 mph, sending the ball 425 feet to dead center.
By the end of the night, Raleigh had not only passed Mantle but also tied Ken Griffey Jr.’s Mariners single-season mark of 56, set in 1997 and 1998. It has been a historic ride for the catcher known as “The Big Dumper.”
Cal Raleigh admires Royals catcher Salvador Pérez, who recently reached 300 career home runs and 1,000 RBIs —Image Credit: Bill Menzel/Latino Sports
The Kansas City setting carried extra meaning. Raleigh also surpassed Royals legend Salvador Pérez, who set the single-season record for home runs by a catcher with 48 in 2021.
“That’s somebody I look up to and to see a catcher hit 300 home runs, that’s incredible,” Raleigh said of Pérez. “You definitely want to honor those people that do it the right way and he has always done that.”
Raleigh’s home runs are not empty numbers. The Mariners have ripped off 10 straight wins and lead the American League West over the Houston Astros and Texas Rangers. Raleigh tops Major League Baseball with 56 home runs, leads the AL with 118 RBIs, and is slashing .247/.361/.590 over 554 at-bats. His fWAR is 8.4, trailing only Shohei Ohtani at 8.5 and Aaron Judge at 8.8.
The MVP race is now in focus. Judge has stronger numbers in most categories, but Raleigh’s historic power surge is impossible to ignore. With 11 games left, Raleigh is seven shy of Judge’s American League single-season record of 62 home runs, set in 2022.
“I feel like I don’t belong on the list with all of those great players hitting these home runs and I never expected any of this to happen,” Raleigh said.
With 11 games left to play, seven more long-shots might seem like a stretch, but it’s getting challenging to count out Raleigh.
