Cal Raleigh keeps climbing, and his latest swing pushed him into some serious Seattle Mariners company.
The Mariners rolled past the Cincinnati Reds 8-0 on Monday night at T-Mobile Park, a win that gave Seattle its third straight victory and lifted the club back over .500 at 51-50. The result also moved the Mariners back into first place in the American League West, now sitting 0.5 games ahead of the Texas Rangers.
Seattle got the kind of all-around night that makes a shutout feel comfortable early. George Kirby worked six strong innings, the bullpen finished off the final three frames without allowing a run, and the offense got timely knocks from Julio Rodriguez and Weston Wilson. But the biggest swing of the night belonged to Raleigh, who launched a grand slam in the seventh inning.
It was Raleigh’s 10th home run of the season. The year has been a struggle at the plate overall - he’s batting just .163 - but the Mariners are hoping that one loud blast can get him going in the second half.
Even if the homer doesn’t change the shape of his season, it changed Raleigh’s place in franchise history. He now has 163 career home runs, tying Nelson Cruz for sixth-most in Mariners history. The grand slam was also the sixth of Raleigh’s career.
The top of that list still belongs to Ken Griffey Jr., who has 417 home runs in a Mariners uniform. Edgar Martinez is next at 309, followed by Jay Buhner at 307 and Kyle Seager at 242.
Alex Rodriguez sits in fifth with 189, leaving Raleigh within reach of another major climb down the line. He could catch Rodriguez in the 2027 season, presuming it’s played because of labor unrest.
Cruz, meanwhile, remains one of the most productive sluggers of his era. A 19-year veteran who played for the Rangers, Mariners, Twins, Orioles, Nationals, Rays, Padres and Brewers, he finished with 464 career home runs and averaged 37 per season.
During his four years in Seattle, he hit 163 homers, reached at least 37 in every season, led the American League with 119 RBIs in 2017 and made three All-Star teams. Overall, he was a seven-time All-Star and a four-time Silver Slugger.
The Mariners and Reds meet again Tuesday night at T-Mobile Park. First pitch is scheduled for 6:40 p.m. PT, with Luis Castillo set to face All-Star Chase Burns.
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For Seattle, the timing matters because this was a core part of Everetts next wave, a collection of players who had spent the first half building real momentum. The group includes a breakout bat, a high-average contact hitter, a healthy rebound story and a versatile piece who helped finish the job in a title-clinching win, so the AquaSox are not just losing depth, they are losing some of the energy that had defined the roster. The next question is whether Everett can keep that momentum going while the organization keeps pushing its most advanced talent one level closer to the big leagues. [Read more 🡒]