SEATTLE — In a season where records seemed to have reached their limits, Cal Raleigh — the Seattle Mariners’ starting catcher — just did the unthinkable: becoming the first player in MLB history to hit 60 home runs in the regular season and at least three more in the postseason. A milestone that sent the baseball world into a frenzy and made Raleigh a legend in the Northwest.
“I never thought I’d get to this point,” Raleigh said after the game. “I just want to help the team win, and the records… they come as a gift.”
Just a few years ago, Cal Raleigh was considered an inconsistent “power hitter” – someone who could hit a 450-foot homer, but also strikeout three times in the same game. But the 2025 season has made all of that a thing of the past.
With an OPS over 1.000, a slugging .620, and a blistering September performance, Raleigh has become the soul of the Seattle Mariners’ quest for a postseason berth.
“He’s the heart of this team,” coach Scott Servais said. “Not just offensively, but the spirit and the temperament that Cal brings to the field.”
Raleigh didn’t just break records – he shattered the skeptics. 60 home runs in a season is a number that has traditionally belonged to legends like Barry Bonds, Mark McGwire, and Aaron Judge. But unlike them, Raleigh did it as a catcher – a position where few can maintain their power and stamina to the end of the season.
According to MLB Network, Raleigh has played in 147 games, starting 122 of them – and in that stretch, he has missed only three games due to minor injuries. “Raleigh’s toughness is phenomenal,” said analyst Ken Rosenthal. “He’s a machine – and the Mariners are running on the power of that machine.”
In the locker room, his teammates call him “Big Dumper” – a nickname Raleigh adopted in the 2023 season, and it has become a trademark. Every time he steps onto the field, the T-Mobile Park crowd chants “DUMPER! DUMPER!” as if it were a sacred ritual.
Once considered “outsiders,” the Mariners have become the most formidable force in the American League, and Cal Raleigh is a symbol of that transformation.
“He reminds me of Mike Piazza in his prime,” former player Alex Rodriguez said on Foul Territory. “But maybe Cal is more complete.”
When asked about MVP or Silver Slugger, Raleigh just smiled:
“If Seattle can reach the World Series, that would be the biggest reward.”
In a city that has endured so much disappointment, Cal Raleigh has brought the most precious thing: faith.
And tonight, when he raised his fist after his 63rd homer flew over the fence, the Seattle sky lit up – not just because of the stadium lights, but because a new era was beginning:
The era of Cal Raleigh – “Big Dumper,” the living legend of the Mariners.
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