Seattle Mariners’ Cal Raleigh Leads MLB with 32 Homers, Breaks Johnny Bench’s Record, First Switch-Hitter with 30 HR Before All-Star

Seattle Mariners catcher Cal Raleigh has emerged as the Major League Baseball home run leader in the 2025 season, reaching 32 home runs by June 24. Raleigh broke a 55-year-old record previously held by Hall of Famer Johnny Bench for the most home runs by a catcher before the All-Star break, surpassing Bench's 29 homers with his 30th home run on June 21. He is also the first switch-hitter ever to hit 30 home runs before the All-Star break and the fastest player to reach 30 home runs in a season since Barry Bonds and Luis Gonzalez in 2001, doing so in just 75 games. Raleigh's power surge includes multiple multi-homer games and a recent streak of homering in four consecutive games.

He is on pace to hit 66 home runs this season, which would challenge Roger Maris's non-Steroid Era record of 61 home runs in a single season. Beyond home runs, Raleigh has driven in 69 runs and is contributing significantly both offensively and defensively as a catcher. His performance has sparked discussions about the American League MVP race, with comparisons drawn to New York Yankees outfielder Aaron Judge, who has 28 home runs and a .364 batting average. Raleigh's advanced metrics include a .277 batting average, .382 on-base percentage, .658 slugging percentage, 191 weighted runs created plus (wRC+), and an 11.1 Fangraphs Wins Above Replacement (fWAR). He has also demonstrated speed with multiple stolen bases across recent months, a rare feat for a catcher. Raleigh's achievements have placed him alongside Mariners legend Ken Griffey Jr. as one of the few players in franchise history to hit 30 or more home runs before the All-Star break.