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2 days ago
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Mariners slugger Cal Raleigh leads MLB in homers and is on pace to set a season record for catchers
Seattle Mariners' Cal Raleigh, center, celebrates in the dugout after hitting a solo home run during the seventh inning of a baseball game against the Minnesota Twins, Sunday, Jun 1, 2025, in Seattle. (AP Photo/Ryan Sun) Seattle Mariners' Cal Raleigh, right, celebrates with Randy Arozarena, left, after hitting a solo home run during the seventh inning of a baseball game against the Minnesota Twins, Sunday, Jun 1, 2025, in Seattle. (AP Photo/Ryan Sun) Seattle Mariners' Cal Raleigh watches his solo home run during the seventh inning of a baseball game against the Minnesota Twins, Sunday, Jun 1, 2025, in Seattle. (AP Photo/Ryan Sun) Seattle Mariners' Cal Raleigh watches his solo home run during the seventh inning of a baseball game against the Minnesota Twins, Sunday, Jun 1, 2025, in Seattle. (AP Photo/Ryan Sun) Seattle Mariners' Cal Raleigh, center, celebrates in the dugout after hitting a solo home run during the seventh inning of a baseball game against the Minnesota Twins, Sunday, Jun 1, 2025, in Seattle. (AP Photo/Ryan Sun) Seattle Mariners' Cal Raleigh, right, celebrates with Randy Arozarena, left, after hitting a solo home run during the seventh inning of a baseball game against the Minnesota Twins, Sunday, Jun 1, 2025, in Seattle. (AP Photo/Ryan Sun) Seattle Mariners' Cal Raleigh watches his solo home run during the seventh inning of a baseball game against the Minnesota Twins, Sunday, Jun 1, 2025, in Seattle. (AP Photo/Ryan Sun) SEATTLE (AP) — Just before Big Dumper put a thump into a soaring flyball, a smattering of 'MVP! MVP!' chants broke out from behind home plate Sunday. Given the way Cal Raleigh's season has started, perhaps the Mariners' catcher is wholly deserving of such high praise. With a solo shot during Seattle's latest victory, a 2-1 win over the Minnesota Twins, Raleigh upped his total to a major league-leading 23 home runs. Advertisement 'He's having an excellent season, not only offensively but also defensively,' teammate Randy Arozarena said, with bench coach Manny Acta translating. 'What he's doing right now, it's great because he's carrying our offense pretty much.' That's no exaggeration on Arozarena's part. And what Raleigh is doing is also unprecedented. The 28-year-old backstop from North Carolina with the funny nickname became the first catcher in major league history to reach 20 home runs before the end of May. His 22 home runs entering June tied for the second-most in Mariners history behind only Ken Griffey Jr., who had 24 in 1997. 'He just continues to grow and mature in this game,' said Mariners manager Dan Wilson, a former catcher who was on that Seattle team in 1997. 'And the pace that he's on right now with home runs — and he's not just hitting home runs, he's still just hitting the ball hard. Advertisement 'You add that to what he does behind the plate in a game like this — whew, he's a real special player and he's doing it all right now.' According to Baseball Savant, Raleigh ranks eighth among big league catchers in Fielding Run Value. He also has more home runs than Shohei Ohtani and Aaron Judge. So it's no wonder Raleigh has already been worth 3.3 Wins Above Replacement, per less than 60 games into the season for the AL West-leading Mariners. 'I just wish that he continues to stay healthy and (has) a very long career,' Seattle pitcher Luis Castillo said, with Acta translating. "Because it's a lot of fun right now.' Advertisement Salvador Perez of the Kansas City Royals holds the big league record for home runs in a season by a catcher with 48 in 2021. Raleigh is on pace for 64 this year, which would break the American League mark of 62 set by Judge in 2022. Sure, there's still a long way to go in 2025. But, awfully impressive for someone playing such a demanding and taxing position, where offense is often considered a luxury rather than a requirement. 'Sometimes it's not playing harder, it's playing smarter,' said Wilson, a major league catcher for 14 years. 'And he continues to play smart baseball whether it's behind the plate or at the bat. He's coming up huge for us all over the place.' ___ AP MLB:
Yahoo
23-05-2025
- Sport
- Yahoo
Seattle's Julio Rodríguez scratched from lineup just before game against Houston
Seattle Mariners' Julio Rodríguez (44) runs the bases after hitting a three-run home run during the first inning of a baseball game against the Chicago White Sox, Wednesday, May 21, 2025, in Chicago. (AP Photo/Erin Hooley) HOUSTON (AP) — Seattle Mariners center fielder Julio Rodríguez was scratched from Thursday night's series opener against the Houston Astros. The team didn't given a reason for him being taken out of the lineup but said there would be an update after the game. Advertisement Rodríguez hit a three-run homer in Wednesday's 6-5 win over the White Sox and took batting practice on the field Thursday before the lineup change was announced about 30 minutes before game time. The 2022 American League Rookie of the Year is hitting .231 with nine homers and 28 RBIs. Leody Taveras moved from right field to center field after the scratch and Miles Mastrobuoni was inserted into the lineup to play right field and bat eighth. ___ AP MLB:
Yahoo
21-05-2025
- Sport
- Yahoo
Taveras' 2-run homer in the 8th inning lifts Mariners to a 6-5 win over the White Sox
Chicago White Sox's Chase Meidroth (10) runs to first after hitting a one-run single during the seventh inning of a baseball game against the Seattle Mariners, Wednesday, May 21, 2025, in Chicago. (AP Photo/Erin Hooley) Chicago White Sox pitcher Brandon Eisert (53) throws against the Seattle Mariners during the sixth inning of a baseball game, Wednesday, May 21, 2025, in Chicago. (AP Photo/Erin Hooley) Seattle Mariners' Leody Taveras (4) celebrates in the dugout after hitting a two-run home run during the eighth inning of a baseball game against the Chicago White Sox, Wednesday, May 21, 2025, in Chicago. (AP Photo/Erin Hooley) Seattle Mariners' Leody Taveras (4) hits a two-run home run during the eighth inning of a baseball game against the Chicago White Sox, Wednesday, May 21, 2025, in Chicago. (AP Photo/Erin Hooley) Seattle Mariners' Leody Taveras (4) hits a two-run home run during the eighth inning of a baseball game against the Chicago White Sox, Wednesday, May 21, 2025, in Chicago. (AP Photo/Erin Hooley) Chicago White Sox's Chase Meidroth (10) runs to first after hitting a one-run single during the seventh inning of a baseball game against the Seattle Mariners, Wednesday, May 21, 2025, in Chicago. (AP Photo/Erin Hooley) Chicago White Sox pitcher Brandon Eisert (53) throws against the Seattle Mariners during the sixth inning of a baseball game, Wednesday, May 21, 2025, in Chicago. (AP Photo/Erin Hooley) Seattle Mariners' Leody Taveras (4) celebrates in the dugout after hitting a two-run home run during the eighth inning of a baseball game against the Chicago White Sox, Wednesday, May 21, 2025, in Chicago. (AP Photo/Erin Hooley) Seattle Mariners' Leody Taveras (4) hits a two-run home run during the eighth inning of a baseball game against the Chicago White Sox, Wednesday, May 21, 2025, in Chicago. (AP Photo/Erin Hooley) CHICAGO (AP) — Leody Taveras hit a two-run homer in the eighth inning to put Seattle ahead and the Mariners topped the Chicago White Sox 6-5 on Wednesday for their fifth win in six games. With Seattle trailing 5-4, Rowdy Tellez greeted reliever Mike Vasil (2-2) with a single. Taveras drove Vasil's next pitch to the right-center bleachers for his second hit of the game. Advertisement Seattle's Cal Raleigh slugged his 16th homer, tying the Yankees' Aaron Judge for the AL lead, doubled and walked twice. Julio Rodriquez hit a three-run homer for the AL West-leading Mariners. Chicago's Lenyn Sosa and Joshua Palacios hit consecutive homers in the fourth. Tim Elko added his third homer in 10 games since being recalled from the minors. Rookie Chase Meidroth had two hits and put Chicago ahead 5-4 in the seventh with an RBI single. The White Sox lost for the sixth time in seven games. Seattle starter Logan Evans allowed four runs on six hits in six innings while striking out seven. Casey Legumina (4-1) pitched one inning for the win, despite surrendering an unearned run. Andrés Muñoz worked around a single in the the ninth for his AL-leading 16th save. Advertisement White Sox rookie Shane Smith allowed three runs on two hits with six strikeouts in five innings. He settled in after walking the first two Seattle batters and then serving up Rodriguez's ninth homer. Elko's solo shot in the third made it 3-1. Sosa's two-run homer, followed by Palacios' drive, put Chicago ahead 4-3. Raleigh's solo shot tied it at 4 in the sixth. Key moment After Seattle took the the lead, Carlos Vargas and Muñoz retired six of seven hitters to close it out. Key stat Meidroth extended his hitting streak to nine games. Up next Mariners RHP George Kirby (no record) comes off the IL for his season debut against Astros RHP Lance McCullers Jr. (0-1, 7.88) at Houston on Thursday. White Sox RHP Sean Burke (2-5, 4.89) starts on Friday against visiting Texas. ___ AP MLB:
Yahoo
18-05-2025
- Sport
- Yahoo
Even Flow: Arozarena and the Mariners beat the Padres 6-1 to sweep opening series of the Vedder Cup
San Diego Padres' Fernando Tatis Jr. celebrates after hitting a home run during the first inning of a baseball game against the Seattle Mariners Sunday, May 18, 2025, in San Diego. (AP Photo/Gregory Bull) San Diego Padres starting pitcher Michael King looks down after an RBI single hit by Seattle Mariners' Miles Mastrobuoni deflected off him during the fourth inning of a baseball game Sunday, May 18, 2025, in San Diego. (AP Photo/Gregory Bull) Seattle Mariners' Randy Arozarena celebrates after hitting a home run during the fourth inning of a baseball game against the San Diego Padres Sunday, May 18, 2025, in San Diego. (AP Photo/Gregory Bull) Seattle Mariners' Randy Arozarena (56) celebrates with fans after hitting a home run during the fourth inning of a baseball game against the San Diego Padres Sunday, May 18, 2025, in San Diego. (AP Photo/Gregory Bull) Seattle Mariners' Randy Arozarena (56) celebrates after hitting a home run during the fourth inning of a baseball game against the San Diego Padres Sunday, May 18, 2025, in San Diego. (AP Photo/Gregory Bull) Seattle Mariners' Randy Arozarena (56) celebrates after hitting a home run during the fourth inning of a baseball game against the San Diego Padres Sunday, May 18, 2025, in San Diego. (AP Photo/Gregory Bull) San Diego Padres' Fernando Tatis Jr. celebrates after hitting a home run during the first inning of a baseball game against the Seattle Mariners Sunday, May 18, 2025, in San Diego. (AP Photo/Gregory Bull) San Diego Padres starting pitcher Michael King looks down after an RBI single hit by Seattle Mariners' Miles Mastrobuoni deflected off him during the fourth inning of a baseball game Sunday, May 18, 2025, in San Diego. (AP Photo/Gregory Bull) Seattle Mariners' Randy Arozarena celebrates after hitting a home run during the fourth inning of a baseball game against the San Diego Padres Sunday, May 18, 2025, in San Diego. (AP Photo/Gregory Bull) Seattle Mariners' Randy Arozarena (56) celebrates with fans after hitting a home run during the fourth inning of a baseball game against the San Diego Padres Sunday, May 18, 2025, in San Diego. (AP Photo/Gregory Bull) Seattle Mariners' Randy Arozarena (56) celebrates after hitting a home run during the fourth inning of a baseball game against the San Diego Padres Sunday, May 18, 2025, in San Diego. (AP Photo/Gregory Bull) SAN DIEGO (AP) — Randy Arozarena homered off Michael King in the three-run fourth inning and the AL West-leading Seattle Mariners beat the San Diego Padres 6-1 Sunday to sweep the opening series of the inaugural Vedder Cup. The Mariners homered six times and outscored the Padres 15-3 in the three-game series. If needed, run differential will be the first tiebreaker in the Vedder Cup, named after Pearl Jam frontman Eddie Vedder, who has ties to both cities. The two teams, who share a spring training complex, formalized the competition in March. The winner gets a trophy featuring a guitar provided by Vedder, who was born in a Chicago suburb and is a Cubs fan. The teams play again Aug. 25-27 in Seattle. Advertisement Bryan Woo (5-1) settled down after giving up a leadoff homer on an 0-2 count to Fernando Tatis Jr., his 12th. Only one Padres player reached scoring position against Woo, who allowed one run and five hits in seven innings. He struck out five, walked none and retired his final 11 batters and 16 of his last 17. The Padres were 0 for 21 with runners in scoring position in the series. King (4-2) held the Padres hitless until Arozarena lined a 2-2 pitch to left with two outs in the fourth for his sixth homer. The Mariners followed with four more consecutive hits, including a ground-rule RBI double by Leody Taveras and a single by Miles Mastrobuoni that ticked off King's glove. Arozarena reached on a two-base fielding error by Tatis in right field leading off the sixth and scored on Mitch Garver's one-out single Advertisement King allowed four runs, three earned, and six hits in 5 1/3 innings. He struck out eight and walked one. Key moment Arozarena started the Mariners' scoring with his ninth career homer at Petco Park and second against San Diego. Key stat While with Tampa Bay, Arozarena hit seven home runs at Petco Park during the 2020 AL playoff bubble — three against the Yankees in a division series win and four against the Astros in the ALCS win. Up next Mariners RHP Luis Castillo (3-3, 3.65 ERA) is scheduled to start Monday night in the opener of a three-game series at the Chicago White Sox. The Padres haven't announced a starter for Tuesday night's series opener at Toronto. ___ AP MLB:
The Province
12-05-2025
- Sport
- The Province
Vancouver Canadians prep to face pitcher who throws both left- and right-handed
Obituary: Former Canucks goalie Frank Caprice backed up both Richard Brodeur and Kirk McLean Why we keep circling back to Manny Malhotra as possible Canucks head coach Canucks: What to learn from Travis Green guiding Senators back to NHL playoffs Vancouver Canadians prep to face pitcher who throws both left- and right-handed Switch-pitcher Jurrangelo Cijntje, who was a Seattle Mariners' first-round draft pick in 2024, is at Nat Bailey Stadium this week with the Everett AquaSox Get the latest from Steve Ewen straight to your inbox Sign Up Photo by Evan Morud Article content The Vancouver Canadians' scouting report on Everett AquaSox pitcher Jurrangelo Cijntje is bound to be a little longer than most, considering they need to account for him throwing both right- and left-handed. Advertisement 2 Story continues below This advertisement has not loaded yet, but your article continues below. THIS CONTENT IS RESERVED FOR SUBSCRIBERS ONLY Subscribe now to read the latest news in your city and across Canada. Exclusive articles by top sports columnists Patrick Johnston, Ben Kuzma, J.J. Abrams and others. Plus, Canucks Report, Sports and Headline News newsletters and events. Unlimited online access to The Province and 15 news sites with one account. The Province ePaper, an electronic replica of the print edition to view on any device, share and comment on. Daily puzzles and comics, including the New York Times Crossword. Support local journalism. SUBSCRIBE TO UNLOCK MORE ARTICLES Subscribe now to read the latest news in your city and across Canada. Exclusive articles by top sports columnists Patrick Johnston, Ben Kuzma, J.J. Abrams and others. Plus, Canucks Report, Sports and Headline News newsletters and events. Unlimited online access to The Province and 15 news sites with one account. The Province ePaper, an electronic replica of the print edition to view on any device, share and comment on. Daily puzzles and comics, including the New York Times Crossword. Support local journalism. REGISTER / SIGN IN TO UNLOCK MORE ARTICLES Create an account or sign in to continue with your reading experience. Access articles from across Canada with one account. Share your thoughts and join the conversation in the comments. Enjoy additional articles per month. Get email updates from your favourite authors. THIS ARTICLE IS FREE TO READ REGISTER TO UNLOCK. Create an account or sign in to continue with your reading experience. Access articles from across Canada with one account Share your thoughts and join the conversation in the comments Enjoy additional articles per month Get email updates from your favourite authors Sign In or Create an Account Email Address Continue or View more offers Article content Article content tap here to see other videos from our team. Try refreshing your browser, or Vancouver Canadians prep to face pitcher who throws both left- and right-handed Back to video Article content The 21-year-old Seattle Mariners' farmhand is doing his best to push 'switch-pitcher' into today's baseball vernacular. This isn't a novelty act, either, with the Mariners picking Cijntje in the first round (No. 15 overall) in the 2024 Entry Draft out of Mississippi State and giving him a US$4.88 million signing bonus. The MLB Pipeline has Cijntje (pronounced sane-ja) as the No. 92 prospect in the entire minor leagues as part of their updated top 100 list that came out Sunday. He remains at No. 8 on Seattle's top 30 list. According to his MLB Pipeline scouting report, his fastball touches 98 m.p.h. as a right-hander, and he complements it with a slider and a change-up. As a lefty, it's a low-90s fastball with a sweeper, and he does throw from a lower arm slot. The C's, who are the Toronto Blue Jays' high-A affiliate, start a six-game Northwest League set with the AquaSox on Tuesday at Nat Bailey Stadium. Starting pitchers for the entire series haven't been announced yet, but Cijntje has been Everett's Saturday starter of late. Advertisement 3 Story continues below This advertisement has not loaded yet, but your article continues below. Canucks Report Essential reading for hockey fans who eat, sleep, Canucks, repeat. There was an error, please provide a valid email address. Sign Up By signing up you consent to receive the above newsletter from Postmedia Network Inc. Thanks for signing up! A welcome email is on its way. If you don't see it, please check your junk folder. The next issue of Canucks Report will soon be in your inbox. Please try again Article content Advertisement 4 Story continues below This advertisement has not loaded yet, but your article continues below. Article content Cijntje is trying to enter rare territory, considering the majors hasn't seen a pitcher throw with both arms regularly since reliever Pat Venditte, whose 61-game, five year career in the bigs came to an end in 2020. He had been tagged as the first hurler to do such a thing on a consistent basis at that level since 1901. Montreal Expos fans may recall 39-year-old righty Greg Harris pitching lefty to two batters in what was the second to last game of his 15-year big league career in 1995. That ended up getting some traction as a news story back then. Cijntje was born in Gravenhage, Netherlands, and raised largely in Willemstad, Curaçao. He's a natural southpaw, but he always wanted to be like his dad Michelangelo, who was a righty-throwing catcher, so he practised throwing with both hands. He played for Curaçao in the 2016 Little League World Series. His family sent him to Hialeah, Fla., to live with cousins while he played high school baseball. That led him to Mississippi State, and to where he is now. Advertisement 5 Story continues below This advertisement has not loaded yet, but your article continues below. Article content Photo by Evan Morud He recorded the win last Saturday in Everett's 3-1 triumph over the Tri-City Dust Devils after allowing two hits and one earned run in five innings, while striking out six and walking two. Tri-City put out a lineup with two lefty batters and two switch-hitters. Cijntje pitched left-handed just three times; Tri-City was 0-for-2 with a walk against him in those instances. When he pitched right-handed, Tri-City was 2-for-15 (including a solo home run by lefty-hitting outfielder Anthony Scull in the fifth inning), with six strikeouts, a walk and a hit-by-pitch. The Mariners have had him throwing predominantly righty this season. He's faced 120 hitters so far with Everett, according to Baseball Reference, and he's gone from the right side 90 times. Opposing batters are hitting .167 (13-of-78) when he's a righty and .316 (6-of-19) when he's a lefty. Advertisement 6 Story continues below This advertisement has not loaded yet, but your article continues below. Advertisement 7 Story continues below This advertisement has not loaded yet, but your article continues below. Article content On the season, he's 2-2, with a 5.27 ERA, in nine games, including six starts. He has been much better as a starter (.194 opponents' batting average) than a reliever (.444 opponents' batting average). At 5-foot-11 and 200 pounds, Cijntje is on the smaller side by pitcher standards today. He's drawn comparisons with one-time Vancouver hurler Marcus Stroman in that regard. If Cijntje can get the two-sided thing to work, it would be a distinct advantage. Teams used to be able to bring in a reliever to face one specific hitter. That's no longer allowed. Pitchers have to face three hitters or last until the end of the inning before they can be replaced. And hitters still fare much better against pitchers from the opposite side. According to Baseball Reference, lefty batters in the big leagues in 2024 hit 12 points higher (.249 compared with .237) and were 44 points better in slugging percentage (.410 compared with .366) against right-handed pitchers compared with left-handers. Advertisement 8 Story continues below This advertisement has not loaded yet, but your article continues below. Article content Share this article in your social network Latest National Stories
