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After narrowly missing out on knocking out Aaron Judge for the American League Most Valuable Player award last season, Cal Raleigh is in contention this year for the opposite.
The Seattle Mariners catcher became just the seventh player in MLB history to smash 60 home runs in a season in 2025, and while reaching that point would have been a challenge this year, every plate appearance is a struggle at the moment.
Raleigh went 0-for-4 Monday night in the Mariners’ 3-1 loss to the Houston Astros, continuing a skid in which he is now hitless in his last 36 at-bats.
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Cal Raleigh of the Seattle Mariners reacts after being grounded out during the eighth inning against the Atlanta Braves at T-Mobile Park in Seattle on May 5, 2026. (Jack Compton/Getty Images)
Before this skid, Raleigh was already struggling at the plate, hitting .205 with a .707 OPS in his first 30 games. But now his average is down to .157, second-worst in baseball, and his OPS is down to .559, 10th-worst.
As a lefty, he slashed .167/.256/.370, and on the right side, those fell to .133/.196/.200.
The last time he received a hit was April 27.
There’s also not much under the hood to suggest Raleigh is going to turn things around. Of course, such a mediocre streak can’t happen without bad luck, but after ranking in the 85th percentile in hard hit percentage (at least 95 mph exit velocity), he’s now in the 10th percentile in that category this season. His barrel percentage and average exit velocity are also much worse than last year.
Cal Raleigh of the Seattle Mariners reacts to the bat during the sixth inning against the Atlanta Braves at T-Mobile Park in Seattle on May 6, 2026. (Steph Chambers/Getty Images)
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A big problem for Raleigh has been the fastball – after hitting .230 against it with a .594 slugging percentage last year, those are now down to .093 and .222 this year. He swung and missed on 36.0% of fastballs, compared to 26.3% last year. He hit more than half of the four-seamers at 95 mph or faster last year, but just 23.3 percent this year.
Coming into the season, the Mariners were right to compete for the American League pennant. They are currently 20-22 and will likely change the situation whenever Raleigh does. They are two games out of the AL West title, behind only the Athletics, with plenty of season left to play.
Cal Raleigh of the Seattle Mariners reacts after striking out against the Toronto Blue Jays in the sixth inning of Game 6 of the American League Championship Series in Toronto on October 19, 2025. (Frank Gunn/The Canadian Press)
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But the season could be late for the receiver who less than a year ago was chasing Judge for an MVP.
