Analysis: How Valuable Has Cal Raleigh Been For Mariners?

Cal Raleigh has surprisingly been one of the most important players on the Mariners in 2022. Not only has he been valuable in comparison to his teammates, but he ranks among the most valuable catchers in the game.

Coming into the 2022 season, Cal Raleigh was expected to be a player who needed a ton of seasoning at Triple-A. Nevertheless, the Florida State alum started the year with the Mariners' big-league club, though he was sent down at the end of April after a woeful first month.

That trip to Tacoma wouldn't last long after Tom Murphy suffered what proved to be a season-ending shoulder injury. Recalled on May 7, Raleigh had made some swing adjustments that allowed him to be more compact, creating more consistent contact. 

Raleigh implemented a toe tap, as well as a little bit of a choke-up on the bat. While he still swings and misses at a high rate (seventh percentile in whiff percentage), he drives the ball better than most.

The Mariners backstop ranks in the 92nd percentile in barrel percentage and the 81st percentile in average exit velocity, per Baseball Savant. With a round-tripper in Monday night's win over the Tigers, the 25-year old is tied with Royals catcher Salvador Pérez for the most home runs by a catcher in the American League.

He has been able to do that by improving his swing and handling velocity. The switch-hitting catcher is slugging .447 on fastballs and .713 on sinkers. Both of these figures are huge improvements over his rookie campaign. 

Cal Raleigh leads all MLB catchers in Home Runs. pic.twitter.com/cMMGUUXqU0

— Ben Ranieri (@BenRanieri10) August 30, 2022

Raleigh has simply been fantastic overall, and his ranking across the American League leaderboards prove it. With 2.8 fWAR on the 2022 campaign, he is tied with Twins utility man Luis Arráez as the 30th-most valuable player in the AL.

He has also been the fifth-most valuable catcher in the AL and the 10th overall. He has been firmly the third-most valuable position player on the Mariners' roster, ranking just behind Julio Rodríguez and Eugenio Suárez. 

You can make a case for Raleigh being the Mariners' MVP this year, based on importance of the position and their lack of impact depth. Seattle would arguably not be in the position it's in without the performance of its catcher.