Mariners' Catcher Cal Raleigh Continuing to Climb Impressive List in Baseball History

After hitting 30 homers a season ago, Seattle Mariners' catcher Raleigh is on pace for 26 homers this year. With that kind of power output, he's on a rather impressive list in baseball history.
Seattle Mariners catcher Cal Raleigh (29) is congratulated after he hit a home run against the Tampa Bay Rays during the fourth inning at Tropicana Field on June 24.
Seattle Mariners catcher Cal Raleigh (29) is congratulated after he hit a home run against the Tampa Bay Rays during the fourth inning at Tropicana Field on June 24. / Kim Klement Neitzel-USA TODAY Sports
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The Seattle Mariners lost on Tuesday night to the Tampa Bay Rays and have now dropped six of eight games on this current nine-game road trip.

Catcher Cal Raleigh had a single in that loss, but he had a massive home run in Monday's loss which put him on an exclusive list in baseball history.

Per @MarinersPR on social media:

Most Home Runs by a Catcher through first 4 seasons, @MLB history:

92 -- Mike Piazza
88 -- Rudy York
87 -- Johnny Bench
83 -- Earl Williams
72 -- CAL RALEIGH
72 -- Will Smith

That note was originally put out before Tuesday's game but since neither Raleigh nor Smith homered in their games, it's still in tact heading into Wednesday's slate.

One of the most powerful hitting catchers in the league, Raleigh hit 30 bombs in 2023 and has 13 thus far in 2024. Though he's hitting for power, Raleigh is struggling to hit for average, and he's hitting .202 this year with a .669 OPS. He does have 46 RBI and always seem to provide in the moments where the M's need him most. In addition to his offense, he also is the maestro of the M's pitching staff defensively which makes him incredibly valuable to the roster as a whole.

The 27-year-old out of Florida State was drafted in the third round of the 2018 draft. He made his major league debut in 2021 and was integral in helping the M's break the playoff drought in 2022.

The M's will take on the Rays again on Wednesday afternoon with first pitch at 9:10 a.m. PT.

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