Randy Arozarena brought up his 100th career home run in style with a pair of towering hits, but it was Cal Raleigh who once again grabbed the headlines on Monday night at T-Mobile Park. The Mariners’ slugging catcher smashed his 33rd homer of the season, continuing his march toward a record-breaking year, and added a sacrifice fly in Seattle’s 6-2 win over the struggling Royals.
With just one week to go before the All-Star break, Raleigh is giving hometown fans plenty to cheer about. He has already committed to the T-Mobile Home Run Derby, but his place in the American League starting line-up remains uncertain as Phase 2 of the All-Star fan vote continues. Raleigh is currently up against Toronto’s Alejandro Kirk, who benefits from support across Canada.
“Everyone is just kind of amazed at what he’s been able to accomplish this season,” said Arozarena through an interpreter. “He’s a great batter. If you asked me if I was surprised, not really, because I get to see the work he puts in behind the scenes.”
Raleigh’s latest blast came in the seventh inning off Royals left-hander Daniel Lynch IV. With the count at 2-1, he drilled a curveball 393 feet just to the right of centre – remarkably, the same area Arozarena had targeted twice earlier. It was only the seventh of Raleigh’s homers this season not pulled to the right side.
“He just kind of stayed on it really well,” said Mariners manager Dan Wilson. “That was a really nice swing and a great approach. Apparently, that was the place to hit it tonight.”
Raleigh now sits just one homer short of his career-best tally set last season, when he led all Major League catchers. Only Barry Bonds (39 in 2001) and Mark McGwire (37 in 1998) have hit more homers by the end of June in a single season. Ken Griffey Jr. and Sammy Sosa also hit 33 by July in 1998.
He also reached 70 RBIs in the Mariners’ 84th game, making him the fastest Seattle player to reach the mark since Bret Boone in 2003. Raleigh now leads all of Major League Baseball in RBIs with 71.
Arozarena, meanwhile, had gone nearly three weeks stuck on 99 home runs. Although he quietly hit for average in June, he only cleared the fence once until Monday. With the Seattle summer heating up, the notoriously tough ballpark is becoming more batter-friendly – and Arozarena is looking for his fifth straight 20-20 season. He currently sits on 10 homers and 15 stolen bases.
“This is a big ballpark,” Arozarena said. “But once that temperature gets higher, that ball is going to fly a little more.”
Lost in the home run noise was a tidy outing from George Kirby, who needed just 85 pitches to complete six innings of one-run ball. The right-hander didn’t allow a walk, struck out five, and has now posted a 3.17 ERA over his last six starts.
BIG DUMPER BLAST!
That’s No. 33 for Cal Raleigh 💪 pic.twitter.com/ijb4ChCh2v
— MLB (@MLB) July 1, 2025
Photo: Alika Jenner/Getty Images
