Inside The Mariners

Cal Raleigh loses AL MVP voting, Aaron Judge wins award for the third time

Mariners catcher Cal Raleigh set plenty of records and reached some massive milestones in his 60 home run season, but he couldn't catch up with the Yankees slugger
Ryan Boman|
Oct 20, 2025; Toronto, Ontario, CAN; Seattle Mariners catcher Cal Raleigh (29) walks on field before game seven against the Toronto Blue Jays in the ALCS round for the 2025 MLB playoffs at Rogers Centre. Mandatory Credit: Dan Hamilton-Imagn Images
Oct 20, 2025; Toronto, Ontario, CAN; Seattle Mariners catcher Cal Raleigh (29) walks on field before game seven against the Toronto Blue Jays in the ALCS round for the 2025 MLB playoffs at Rogers Centre. Mandatory Credit: Dan Hamilton-Imagn Images | Dan Hamilton-Imagn Images

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Seattle Mariners

After a storybook season, Seattle Mariners catcher Cal Raleigh finished second place for the American League Most Valuable Player Award, receiving 13 first-place votes, four less than the Yankees' outfielder Aaron Judge. With the victory, the 33-year-old Judge is now the owner of three MVP trophies.

Raleigh received a lot of sentimental votes, cast by those who saw him as a long shot and an underdog. His Ruthian-like stats were hard to ignore, and the M's backstop is widely considered one of the truly 'good guys' in the game.

For the record, Raleigh finished the 2025 campaign with 60 home runs and notched 125 RBI, 110 runs scored, 24 doubles, and 14 stolen bases. However, his batting average was only .241. Meanwhile, Judge won his first batting title with a .331 average, with 53 home runs, 114 RBIs, and an MLB-leading 1.145 OPS. It was that sharp contrast in averages that was enough to give the nod to Judge.

The Case for Cal

Raleigh mvp
Oct 17, 2025; Seattle, Washington, USA; Seattle Mariners catcher Cal Raleigh (29) hits a home run against the Toronto Blue Jays during the eighth inning during game five of the ALCS round for the 2025 MLB playoffs at T-Mobile Park. Mandatory Credit: Steven Bisig-Imagn Images | Steven Bisig-Imagn Images

There are many MLB fans (particularly in Seattle) who feel Raleigh was robbed, and there a few accolades and personal milestones that the voters should have looked at closer.

  • Single-season catcher HRs (previously 48 by Salvador Perez)
  • Single-season switch-hitter HRs (previously 54 by Mickey Mantle)
  • Single-season Mariners HRs (previously 56 by Ken Griffey)

Raleigh was also voted the overall Player of the Year and American League Outstanding Player in the 2025 Players' Choice Awards.

“We’ve said this all before, but it just continues,” Mariners manager Dan Wilson said about his catcher as the season wound down, indicating that his guy should take home the hardware.. “And it continues at a historic level. To do what he’s doing, and to do it behind the plate, as often as he’s back there, again, it’s just kind of unfathomable."

“We’ve said this all before, but it just continues. And it continues at a historic level. To do what he’s doing, and to do it behind the plate, as often as he’s back there, again, it’s just kind of unfathomable.

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Ryan Boman
RYAN BOMAN

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