Raleigh Imposes Power: 33 HRs and MVP Shouts in Mariners Victory

In an emotional night in baseball, Cal Raleigh, star player for the Seattle Mariners, continued his impressive power streak by hitting his 33rd home run, leading Major League Baseball, in the 6-2 victory against the Kansas City Royals. Raleigh’s hit, which opened the seventh inning against reliever Daniel Lynch IV, unleashed “MVP! MVP!” chants from the home crowd. With this home run, Raleigh tied legends like Ken Griffey Jr. and Sammy Sosa, placing him in third place historically in terms of home runs hit before July in MLB.

Everyone is amazed by what he has achieved this season.

Randy Arozarena

Randy Arozarena, teammate, who also hit two home runs in the game, totaling 100 in his career, praised Raleigh. In addition to his power, Raleigh also drove in a run with a sacrifice fly in the fifth inning. With 71 RBIs, he leads MLB in this department, becoming the Mariners player who has reached this figure the fastest since Bret Boone in 2003. The switch-hitter dominates the American League in slugging from both sides of the plate, with .763 from the right and .600 from the left. This last home run, connecting at the end of June, gave him the third historical place in home runs before August for a switch-hitter.

Mariners manager Dan Wilson highlighted Raleigh’s satisfaction with taking advantage of opportunities at the plate, especially after not being heavily attacked in Texas. Raleigh’s 30 home runs as a starting catcher this season tie him with Todd Hundley (1996) for the most before August in MLB history. Arozarena, for his part, connected his 100th home run with a solo shot in the fourth inning, giving Seattle its first run. In the fifth, he extended the lead with a three-run homer, his tenth of the season, marking his first multi-homer game since July 20, 2024. George Kirby (2-4) pitched six innings, allowing one run and three hits, with five strikeouts and no walks. Royals starter Michael Wacha (4-8) gave up five runs and eight hits in five innings. Bobby Witt Jr. contributed two RBIs for the Royals.