For those who don’t stay within the Pacific Northwest, you’re doubtless solely now turning into acquainted with the highly effective stylings of Mariners catcher Cal Raleigh.
Tucked all the way in which up in Seattle, Raleigh is no-longer quietly on tempo for one of many best offensive seasons we’ve ever seen from a catcher, and is making a powerful case he needs to be the favourite within the American League Most Priceless Participant race with Aaron Decide.
This weekend, Raleigh continued his assault on MLB pitching, smoking 4 house runs in three video games at Wrigley Subject. He added one other in Minnesota on Monday and now has six in his final six video games. He’s really a unicorn within the sport, a switch-hitting energy hitter whose main place is catcher. He’s already handed Johnny Bench for many dingers by a catcher earlier than the All Star break and, with 32 on the season coming into Monday, stands a superb probability at breaking Barry Bonds’ all-time file for homers earlier than the Break (39), needing eight extra within the subsequent 20 video games to do it.
Bonds set that mark in 2001, the identical yr he set the all-time single-season house run file with 73. Raleigh is on tempo for 66.
Raleigh’s 32 bombs are 4 greater than Decide’s 28, and his 68 RBIs are additionally essentially the most within the American League, six greater than Decide’s 62. Decide does lead in most different classes, together with OPS (1.202 to 1.049), fWAR (6.1 to five.3) and wRC+ (227 to 193), and whereas these numbers supposedly consider the place each gamers play, Raleigh is placing up his as his staff’s main catcher, essentially the most bodily grueling place to play on a regular basis.
That ought to earn him some vital additional credit score.
Raleigh’s 193 wRC+ can be tied for the very best of any catcher in MLB historical past, together with Roy Campanella in 1945. Mike Piazza’s 183 wRC+ in 1997 can be third. No catcher has ever hit 50 HRs, with Salvador Perez’ 48 in 2021 the all-time file, however he did a lot of that as DH. Solely Bench (45 in 1970 and 40 in ‘72), Javy Lopez (43 in ‘03), Campanella (41 in ‘53), Todd Hundley!!! (41 in ‘96) and Piazza (40 in ‘97 and ‘99) have hit not less than 40.
Raleigh is simply 9 away from that quantity lower than midway by this season.
He’s additionally posted a 5.3 fWAR to date, placing him on tempo for a ten.8 WAR season. The all-time file for a catcher’s WAR is Buster Posey’s 9.8 in 2012.
Raleigh is not any new child on the block, both. Since turning into the Mariners’ common catcher in 2022, he’s slugged 122 bombs, Sixth-most of any participant in baseball. Solely Decide, Shohei Ohtani, Kyle Schwarber, Pete Alonso and Matt Olson have hit extra. And whereas he does get the occasional time without work behind the dish to play DH, he’s made 57 begins at catcher, with 17 because the DH.
He hits a lot better when he’s catching, by the way in which, with a 1.156 OPS in his 57 begins behind the plate and a .659 OPS when he’s the DH. He’s additionally a Gold Glove profitable catcher, and one of many favorites to win it once more, though defensive metrics say his protection has slipped a bit this season.
Keep in mind, he’s a power-hitting switch-hitter. We don’t see these a lot anymore. He’s slugged 21 homers from the left facet and 10 from the best. He scored eight runs this weekend in Chicago, tying an MLB file for many runs scored in a three-game collection by a catcher.
Raleigh has improved in each offensive class this season. His batting common his first three seasons was .211, .232 and .220. It’s .278 this season. His stroll fee has elevated each season, from 9.2% in 2022 to 13.5% this yr. His strikeout-rate is a career-low 24.9%. His on-base proportion is a career-high .383.
He’s pulling the ball greater than he ever has earlier than, tapping into his energy higher than ever earlier than, with a 55% pull-rate that’s far increased than final yr’s 48.9%. He’s additionally hitting extra fly balls, 55% this season, in comparison with 51.9% a season in the past. That’s referred to as leaning in to your strengths, children.
It’s greater than doubtless Raleigh’s tempo will sluggish. It’s getting hotter and extra humid, and one can assume it could have an effect on his offensive manufacturing the extra he’s behind the plate this summer time. Aaron Decide’s current offensive funk doubtless gained’t final lengthy, and by the tip of the season, he’ll most likely have the superior offensive numbers in most classes.
However typically a participant is doing one thing at his place that goes past the numbers. If Cal Raleigh retains this up and has the best season any catcher has ever had, he needs to be the AL MVP.
