Cal Raleigh has 2-homer day, reaches 38th home run this season in Mariners' win over Tigers
The Seattle Mariners catcher had another big game on Friday, hitting two home runs in the Mariners' 12-3 win over the Detroit Tigers. Raleigh's two homers marked his 37th and 38th of the season — with the second one being a grand slam in the top of the ninth.
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The latest tallies bring Raleigh within one home run of a stunning record: If Raleigh gets another homer this weekend, he will tie Barry Bonds for the most homers (39) before the All-Star break. (Bonds set the record in 2001; however, his association with MLB's steroids era has put an asterisk on many of his stats.)
Raleigh has been on a tear this year, already tying his previous career high for home runs despite only being halfway through the season.
In addition, Raleigh is one of few high-performing switch hitters in the league, and has hit a number of extra records as a result of that. Last month, the catcher became the first switch hitter to hit 30 homers before the All-Star break.
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Friday's game was Raleigh's eighth multi-home run game this season, which has him tied with Mickey Mantle for most by a switch hitter in a season (1961). Raleigh still has 68 games this season to unseat Mantle — and possibly keep going.
Raleigh has been well-rewarded as a result of his home run heroics: The catcher will be participating in his first All-Star Game and his first Home Run Derby next week. Now, though, he will have two more games against the Tigers to shoot for Bonds' record — and beyond.
Long-term, Raleigh will be shooting for MLB's home run title. He currently leads Aaron Judge, who is in second with 34 home runs, by four homers; Shohei Ohtani is next on the list with 31.
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