Seattle Mariners catcher Cal Raleigh (29) hits a home run during the third inning against the Houston Astros at Daikin Park. Troy Taormina-Imagn Images

Cal Raleigh swipes Mariners’ home run crown from Ken Griffey Jr.

Originally posted on Larry Brown Sports
By Renzo Pocholo Salao | Last updated Sep 20, 2025 9:09 PM ET

Cal Raleigh now stands alone as the Seattle Mariners ’ home run king, passing Ken Griffey Jr. on Saturday with a history-making solo shot against the Houston Astros at Daikin Park in Houston, Texas.

Raleigh smashed a 96-mph sinking fastball off Astros starter Framber Valdez into the bullpen in right field with one out in the top of the third inning. The blast gave Seattle a 3-0 lead in a critical contest against its division rival. The home run was also Raleigh’s 57th of the season, breaking a tie with Griffey for the Mariners’ single-season franchise record.

CAL RALEIGH STANDS ALONE

His 57th home run of the season puts him in front of Ken Griffey Jr. for the Mariners single-season home run record pic.twitter.com/wTeBXJWMyw
— MLB (@MLB) September 20, 2025

Here’s another angle of Raleigh’s record-breaking home run.

Big homer
Big history
Big Dumper

Cal Raleigh is incredible

(MLB x @BudweiserUSA) pic.twitter.com/BJh2dQitjR
— MLB (@MLB) September 21, 2025

Home run crown highlights Cal Raleigh's amazing season

“The Big Dumper” tied “The Kid” on Tuesday with two home runs in a 12-5 win against the Kansas City Royals. Griffey set the record with 56 home runs during his MVP 1997 season. He tied his own mark the following year.

Raleigh is in the midst of a breakout 2025 season that has him all but guaranteed to be a finalist for the AL MVP award. Raleigh has always been able to hit for power, averaging over 30 homers over his last three seasons. But his career batting average before this season was just barely above the Mendoza line.

On top of nearly doubling his home run output, Raleigh entered Saturday batting .246 at the plate with a .944 OPS and an AL-best 118 RBIs. He’s done it while playing Gold-Glove-caliber defense at the catcher position.

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

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