The switch-hitting Seattle catcher is dumping homers over outfield walls.
Last season, Seattle Mariners catcher Cal Raleigh hit 34 home runs. Before 2025, the team signed him to a six-year, $105 million contract. They knew they had a future star on the roster. That vote of confidence is paying off.
Now, barely halfway into the 2025 campaign, Raleigh has already sent 35 balls over the wall, leading the Majors. Leading, as in ahead of Aaron Judge, Shohei Ohtani, Kyle Schwarber, and the rest of baseball.
And check this out: He’s already set the MLB record for most homers before the All-Star break…for a switch-hitter and a catcher. By the end of the season, he just might set the record for most home runs in a season for a catcher. For a player who didn’t make the American League All-Star Team in 2024, he’s now in the conversation for American League MVP.
Raleigh plays in the northwest corner of the United States for the Mariners, who haven’t made a lot of news the past few seasons. However, because he’s going to be in this year’s Home Run Derby on July 14th and start in the All-Star Game the next day, all baseball fans are going to get a firsthand look at this phenomenon who is chasing all types of records. If you’re still wondering, “Who is this guy?” here’s the answer to that.
Where’s he from?
Caleb John Raleigh was born on November 26, 1996, and attended high school in Sylva, North Carolina. He played college ball at Florida State University and was drafted by the Seattle Mariners in 2018. He played two seasons in the Minors before being called up to the Mariners roster in July of 2021.
Cal Raleigh, aka “Big Dumper.”
In 2021, one of Raleigh’s former teammates, Jarred Kelenic, tweeted his nickname for all to see—Big Dumper. It refers to Raleigh’s ample backside, Kelenic explained. That’s all there was to it. As insensitive as that may seem, Raleigh has adopted it. You could say he wears it proudly. Sportswriters widely use it, and the Mariners even had a two-game “Platinum Dumper” Cal Raleigh bobblehead giveaway early in the ’25 season.
Raleigh has a solid build, which helps him as a catcher. He’s 6'2", weighs 235 lbs. and is very athletic. In fact, his nine stolen bases so far in 2025 have set the Mariners season record for a catcher.
Cal Raleigh, switch-hitting catcher.
Raleigh can hit from either side of the plate and hits well from both sides. His OPS (on-base percentage + slugging) is virtually identical this season from both sides, hovering right above 1.000. Switch-hitting catchers are not too common, but then again, neither are switch-hitters in general. Ted Simmons (Cardinals), Jorge Posada (Yankees) and Yasmani Grandal (multiple teams) were also switch-hitters. Most of Raleigh’s home runs this year have come from the left side of the plate.
He was called up to the Majors in 2021.
This is his fifth season in the Big Leagues, all with Seattle. He started slowly in his first two seasons, but he had already shown power at the plate. He hit 27 home runs in 2022, the most ever by a Mariners catcher. By far, the highlight of that year was his pinch-hit, ninth-inning, walk-off home run against Oakland on September 30th. The homer clinched a playoff berth for the Mariners, ending a historic 21-season playoff drought. In 2023, Raleigh belted 30 round-trippers, with 75 RBIs and a .232 average.
2024: A stellar season at and behind the plate.
In just his third full season with the Mariners, Raleigh truly made his presence known in the Majors. In 153 games, he drove in 100 runs and slugged 33 home runs.
Sturdy backstop. Always known for his strong defensive skills (he excels at framing pitches for strikes), he took home the 2024 Rawlings Gold Glove Award for catching, as well as a Platinum Glove, awarded by fan vote to the best all-around defensive player in each League. He led the Majors with 135 games caught, for 1,122 innings, also the most; threw out 26 runners attempting to steal; and led the AL in framing runs, getting the most strike-three calls by the ump.
Power source. In June, Cal Raleigh hit a walk-off grand slam to beat the White Sox, and the following month, he hit two home runs in a game, from both sides of the plate—and he did it twice, just two days apart! When he knocked in his 34th home run on the last day of the season, it also gave him his 100th run batted in, which is a magical number for any player. Better yet, that also marked his 93rd career homer, passing Hall of Famer Mike Piazza for the most by a catcher in his first four seasons.
Cal Raleigh, All-Star.
Cal Raleigh was named the starting catcher for the American League in this year’s All-Star Game, which will be played on July 15th at Truist Park in Atlanta, the home of the Braves. It’s his first All-Star team selection. He will also be in the Home Run Derby on July 14th, competing against other sluggers. He plans on having his father, Todd, pitch to him, and having his brother, who goes by “T,” behind the plate. His father said, “I’ve already thrown him five million balls; what’s a few more? I’m not nervous. I can throw a baseball, so I’m going to do it!”
Chasing history.
Raleigh has a solid chance to set the single-season home run record for a catcher, which is 48. Here’s who he’s chasing as he approaches the second half of the season:
48 – Salvador Perez, Kansas City Royals (2021)
45 – Johnny Bench, Cincinnati Reds (1970)
43 – Javy López, Atlanta Braves (2003)
41 – Roy Campanella, Brooklyn Dodgers (1953)
41 – Todd Hundley, New York Mets (1996)
40 – Mike Piazza, L.A. Dodgers (1997); New York Mets (1999)
Hopefully, his appearance in this year’s Home Run Derby won’t take too much out of him and drain some of his home run power for the rest of 2025. But as he’s proven in the past, Cal Raleigh is full of surprises. And home runs.
Resources: espn.com/mlb/story/cal-raleigh-aaron-judge-power-hitters-half-season; espn.com/mlb/history/leaders/_/breakdown/season/year/2024/sort/homeRuns
en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cal_Raleigh; samessenger.com/sports/todd-raleigh-reflects-on-cals; baseball-reference.com/calraleigh; samessenger.com/sports/cal-raleigh-wins-2024-rawlings-gold-and-platinum-glove; cmlb.com/news/cal-raleigh-on-pace-for-historic-catching-season; samessenger.com/sports/cal-raleigh-will-live-the-dream
