Nick Turchiaro-Imagn Images

Cal Raleigh in Tears While Addressing Failed Mariners Season

Originally posted on Athlon Sports | By Rex Villas | Last updated Oct 21, 2025 1:52 AM ET

Cal Raleigh and the Seattle Mariners are not advancing to the 2025 World Series.

It looked like they were on their way to joining Shohei Ohtani and the Los Angeles Dodgers in the Fall Classic when they scored first in Game 7 of the 2025 American League Championship Series against the Toronto Blue Jays at Rogers Centre on Monday night, with Raleigh hitting a solo home run in the fifth inning to stretch Seattle's lead, 3-1. But George Springer gave the Blue Jays the lead for good in the bottom of the seventh inning with a huge three-run homer.

The Mariners couldn't muster a run the rest of the way after Springer's blast, leaving Seattle dealing with the heartbreak of a series collapse that ended in a 4-3 Game 7 defeat.

Seattle Mariners catcher Cal Raleigh (29) runs after hitting a solo home run against the Toronto Blue Jays in Game 7 of the 2025 ALCS.Dan Hamilton-Imagn Images

Seattle's loss also understandably left Raleigh emotional.

In a postgame interview in Seattle's locker room, the star catcher lamented the outcome not just of the seventh game of the Blue Jays series but Seattle's season.

“I hate to use the word failure, but’s it’s a failure," Raleigh said, per KING 5 News (h/t Jomboy Media). "We expected to get to the World Series and win the World Series.”

A teary-eyed Cal Raleigh met with media after the loss

“I hate to use the word failure, but’s it’s a failure. We expected to get to the World Series and win the World Series.”

(via @KING5Seattle) pic.twitter.com/mfqGnWAudE
— Jomboy Media (@JomboyMedia) October 21, 2025

The way the season concluded for the Mariners was indeed a hard one to accept for Raleigh and the rest of the Mariners, including, of course, their fans.

Seattle barged into the 2025 MLB postseason after winning its first division title since 2001 after going 90-72 in the regular season. They edged the Detroit Tigers in the AL Division Series that lasted five games before taking the first two games of the ALCS versus the Blue Jays.

But Toronto stormed back with back-to-back wins to level the series at 2-2. The Mariners took Game 5 to move just a win away from reaching the World Series, but failed to capitalize on the opportunity, as the Blue Jays won Game 6 and Game 7, booking Toronto's first appearance in the World Series in 32 years.

Despite how things turned out for the Mariners, Raleigh can still be proud of what he had accomplished in 2025. He led all players in the big leagues with 60 home runs while slashing .247/.359/.589 through 159 games.

This article first appeared on Athlon Sports and was syndicated with permission.

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