Mariners' Catcher Cal Raleigh Stands Atop This Great Leaderboard

Mariners' catcher Cal Raleigh didn't play on Thursday as the Mariners lost against the Washington Nationals, but he hit a home run on Wednesday night which put him at the top of his impressive leaderboard.

May 18, 2024; Baltimore, Maryland, USA; Seattle Mariners catcher Cal Raleigh (29) hits an RBI double against the Baltimore Orioles during the eighth inning at Oriole Park at Camden Yards. Mandatory Credit: Gregory Fisher-USA TODAY Sports / Gregory Fisher-USA TODAY Sports

Cal Raleigh didn't play on Thursday when the Seattle Mariners lost to the New York Yankees, 5-0, at Yankee Stadium, but he did hit a crucial three-run home run on Wednesday as the M's mounted a comeback effort late.

For Raleigh, hitting clutch home runs has become something he's accustomed to - and the team this year has needed each of his key blasts to help post a 27-24 record through the first 51 games of the season.

In general, Raleigh has become the best power-hitting catcher in all of baseball, and he currently leads catchers in home runs this year.

Per @MarinersPR

Cal Raleigh leads @MLB catchers with 11 home runs this season.

Cal Raleigh leads @MLB catchers with 11 home runs this season.

— Mariners PR (@MarinersPR) May 23, 2024

The 27-year-old led catchers in home runs last season as well with 30, and while teams are largely OK punting offense from the position in exchange for good defensive work, Raleigh has become a pleasant anomaly.

Raleigh also hit 27 homers during the drought-busting 2022 season.

This season, Shea Langaliers of the Athletics is second among catchers with 10 homers. Salvador Perez and Adley Rutschman each have nine.

The Mariners split the four-game series with the Yankees and will now head to Washington for a weekend series with the Nationals.

The first game of the series is on Friday at 6:45 p.m. ET. George Kirby will get the ball for Seattle while the Nationals haven't announced a starter as of this posting.

No matter who is pitching, you can expect Raleigh to be back in the lineup and looking to extend his lead atop the leaderboard.

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