Mask, Mitt, and Moonshots: Cal Raleigh becomes first Catcher to hit 60 Homeruns

Last night, Seattle’s stalwart behind the plate made history. Cal Raleigh launched two solo rockets—one a majestic 438-foot blast in the first off Tanner Gordon, the other a 389-foot shot in the eighth off Angel Chivilli—to reach 60 home runs on the season.  The first pitch of the at bat too, as an “MVP” chant roared.

Incredible timing. Plus, he becomes only the seventh player in MLB history to hit 60 in a season, and the FIRST catcher to ever do so.

Why this matters:

• Raleigh now leads the American League with 125 RBIs.

• His slash line stands at roughly .248 / .– / .959 OPS, placing him among the league’s most elite bats.

• More telling: he’s racking up serious power metrics — average exit velocity 91.3 mph, Hard-Hit % 49.9, and a Barrel % nearly 19.6.

• His wOBA is .397 with an xwOBA of .388, showing that even when luck isn’t perfect, his production is real.

🥎 The Catcher’s Burden—and Glory

Let’s pause and appreciate the position. Catcher is baseball’s punishing chess match: squatting for 120 games, absorbing foul tips, controlling the run game, calling the game, framing pitches, and still lugging that gear. Yet Raleigh hasn’t just endured—he’s dominated.

By smashing 60 homers while regularly catching, he rewrote the record book. He broke Salvador Perez’s single-season catcher homer record (48), and eclipsed Mickey Mantle’s switch-hitter mark.  He’s not just a slugger playing catcher — he’s a catchingly powerful slugger.

His advanced metrics show an ideal hitter’s profile: among the best in hard contact, one of the crispest barrel rates in the game. And he’s doing it from behind the dish — an exhausting spot that demands focus every pitch.

Raleigh’s 60th came in a 9–2 win that clinched Seattle’s first AL West title since 2001. 

Smells like an MVP season to us — and no one would be upset. Cal Raleigh hasn’t just chased history—he caught it.