Cal Raleigh Conquers the 50 Home Run Milestone and Makes History
SEATTLE – Cal Raleigh has marked a before and after in baseball history. The Seattle Mariners catcher hit his 50th home run on Monday night, setting a new record in the Major Leagues for a catcher and joining a select group of legends.
Raleigh, with this achievement, joins Mickey Mantle as the only switch-hitters to reach 50 home runs in a season. In addition, he becomes the eighth player in MLB history to reach this figure in the month of August.
According to research, Raleigh is the first player to hit 20 home runs from each side of the plate in the same season, demonstrating his versatility and power from both batting positions.
The “Big Dumper”, as he is known, sent a 3-2 fastball from San Diego pitcher JP Sears 419 feet away, hitting the second level of left field.
Raleigh becomes the second Mariners player to reach 50 home runs in a season. Hall of Famer Ken Griffey Jr. achieved the feat with 56 home runs in 1997 and again in 1998.
Raleigh has shown great form, adding three home runs in the last two games. On Sunday, he hit home runs 48 and 49 in the 11-4 victory over the Athletics.
