Cal Raleigh Surpasses Johnny Bench, Leads MLB with 32 Homers, First Switch-Hitter to 30 HR, On Pace for 66, Enters Home Run Derby

Seattle Mariners catcher Cal Raleigh has emerged as the Major League Baseball home run leader in the 2025 season, breaking historic records and setting a remarkable pace. On June 17, Raleigh hit his 27th home run, taking the MLB lead, and continued to extend it with a grand slam and multiple multi-homer games. By June 20, he had hit 29 home runs, surpassing Hall of Famer Johnny Bench's 55-year-old record for the most home runs by a catcher before the All-Star break. Raleigh became the first switch-hitter ever to hit 30 home runs before the break on June 21, marking his third consecutive 30-home run season.

As of June 24, he had reached 32 home runs, including homers in four consecutive games and six in his last six games, putting him on pace for an unprecedented 66 home runs in a season. Raleigh's performance has placed him in serious American League MVP discussions, competing with Aaron Judge, who has 28 home runs and a high batting average. Raleigh also announced his participation in the upcoming 2025 Home Run Derby in Atlanta, joining Ronald Acuña Jr. as confirmed participants. His historic power-hitting season features a .277 batting average, .382 on-base percentage, and .658 slugging percentage, with 69 RBIs and notable stolen base numbers. Raleigh's achievements include being the fastest to 30 home runs in a season since 2001 and joining Ken Griffey Jr. as the only Mariners players with 30-plus home runs before the All-Star break. His recent streak includes 14 RBIs and 12 runs scored across six games, further highlighting his offensive impact for the Mariners.