SEATTLE (AP) — While Aaron Judge hit batting practice at T-Mobile Park, an advertisement featuring him and Cal Raleigh flashed on the videoboard with a link to buy tickets to the series between the New York Yankees and Seattle Mariners.
The reigning AL MVP is in the No. 2 hole for New York on Monday night, but Raleigh, the AL MVP runner-up last year after hitting 60 homers — the most in a season by a catcher — will not be in the Mariners lineup for the series opener.
Raleigh has started the season ice-cold, going 2 for 15 with 10 strikeouts in Seattle’s opening series against the Cleveland Guardians. Manager Dan Wilson said it is a chance for Raleigh, who appeared in three World Baseball Classic games for the United States, to get some rest four games into Seattle’s season.
“Coming out of spring training, he had sort of a shorter spring training in a lot of ways,” Wilson said. “And, didn’t want to spike his workload too much.”
Veteran Mitch Garver is starting at catcher and batting sixth against the Yankees in his first appearance of the year.
Last season, Raleigh appeared in a career-high 159 games for the Mariners and racked up 705 plate appearances. Unless he appears in Monday’s game as a pinch hitter, he will at most have two chances to square off against Judge and the Yankees during the regular season.
Ahead of arriving in Seattle, Judge told The Associated Press he was particularly impressed by Raleigh’s work ethic while they were teammates at the WBC.
“Greatness leaves a trail,” Judge said. “Just how he controls himself, how he controls that pitching staff, he’s going to have another great year, that’s for sure.”
As much as Raleigh excelled last season, it took a bit for the 29-year-old to hit his stride last year, too. It wasn’t until his 10th game of the season in 2025 that Raleigh’s average climbed above the Mendoza line, and it took until mid-April for the powerful catcher to start hitting home runs at a prodigious clip.
While Raleigh drew ample headlines for his hitting prowess in 2025, what separates him according to Guardians manager Stephen Vogt is that he’s a multi-dimensional talent, not just a hitter.
Vogt, who was a major league catcher for 10 years, said he thinks Raleigh is clearly the best two-way catcher in the game, but expectations should be tempered a bit in light of what he accomplished last year.
“For him to hit 60 homers again is unrealistic,” Vogt said. “I think if anybody’s expectation is 50-plus homers for anyone, it’s just not realistic. But, I think Cal’s still a great offensive player, and I think he’s going to have another great year.”
It may be unrealistic for Raleigh to again match Hall of Famer Babe Ruth, who also hit 60 home runs in 1927, a single-season record that stood for 34 years. But, Raleigh has hit at least 30 home runs each of the last three seasons, and the Mariners are hopeful to receive that kind of production from the All-Star catcher again in 2026.
Wilson said last season, the Mariners consistently monitored Raleigh’s workload to see if his production would ever dip. But, it never did, and it wasn’t until the 35th game of the season that Raleigh did not start either at catcher or designated hitter.
This season, Wilson evidently took a more proactive approach.
“We’re trying to assess this as we go and make sure that we don’t put him in a tough spot,” Wilson said. “I think he’s a hard guy to get out of the lineup because he wants to be in there so badly. But, I think it just felt like today was a good day to get him some rest.”
AP Baseball Writer Janie McCauley contributed to this story.
AP MLB: https://apnews.com/mlb
Seattle Mariners relief pitcher Cooper Criswell, right, celebrates a win with catcher Cal Raleigh, left, over the Cleveland Guardians in a baseball game, Sunday, March 29, 2026, in Seattle. (AP Photo/Lindsey Wasson)
Seattle Mariners' Cal Raleigh walks back to the dugout after grounding out against the Cleveland Guardians during the third inning of a baseball game, Sunday, March 29, 2026, in Seattle. (AP Photo/Lindsey Wasson)
Seattle Mariners' Cal Raleigh walks back to the dugout after striking out with runners on base to end the fifth inning of an opening-day baseball game against the Cleveland Guardians, Thursday, March 26, 2026, in Seattle. (AP Photo/Lindsey Wasson)
