Cal Raleigh Boosts Home Run Derby Rating: Historic Victory!

The Home Run Derby on Monday night experienced a notable increase in its audience, driven in part by Cal Raleigh’s outstanding performance.According to Nielsen audience data, Raleigh’s victory, competing for the Mariners, generated a 5% increase compared to the 2024 event.The final showdown between Raleigh and Junior Caminero of Tampa Bay drew an average audience of 5,729,000 viewers. This represents a significant increase compared to the 5,451,000 viewers who tuned in to the event in 2024, when Teoscar Hernández of the Los Angeles Dodgers took the victory.The combined audience of ESPN and ESPN2 peaked at 6,307,000 viewers at 9:30 p.m. ET, making the Home Run Derby one of the most-watched programs of the day, surpassing cable and broadcast television programming.Raleigh’s father, Todd, was his personal pitcher during the event, while his 15-year-old brother, Todd Jr., acted as catcher. Raleigh’s father has experience as a coach in Tennessee and Western Carolina.At 28 years old, Raleigh leads the Major Leagues with 38 home runs and 82 RBIs. In addition, he was selected as the starting catcher for the American League for Tuesday night’s All-Star Game.Raleigh became the second Mariners player to win the title, following in the footsteps of Ken Griffey Jr., who was present at the event taking photos.