Watch: Mariners’ Luke Raley robs Astros of home run

Luke Raley has been one of the Seattle Mariners’ best hitters this season.

On Tuesday night, he made a major impact with his glove too.

As Mariners’ Luke Raley heats up, he’s becoming a coach favorite

In the top of the second inning, Houston Astros star shortstop Jeremy Peña launched a deep fly ball to left-center field. Raley, playing left field and battling windy conditions, raced back and made a leaping catch at the wall to rob Peña of a solo homer. Raley’s home-run robbery preserved an early 1-0 lead for the Mariners. Seattle went on to win 4-2.

Home run robbery by Luke Raley ❌ pic.twitter.com/9cKdCqSt9w

— MLB (@MLB) May 29, 2024

Raley, who was acquired in a January trade with the Tampa Bay Rays, is slashing .275/.310/.417 with four homers, one triple, three doubles and a .726 OPS in 43 games this season. The 29-year-old outfielder got off to a slow start in April, but caught fire in May. In 21 games this month, he’s hitting .323 with four homers and a .910 OPS.

“He’s a throwback and he’s quickly becoming a favorite of many on the coaching staff, just because he’s not afraid (and) he plays the game extremely hard,” Mariners manager Scott Servais said earlier this month. “One of my favorite things is – when he hits a base hit – is how hard he runs to first base and how he rounds first base, kind of like when you were taught in high school.”

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