More history: Cal Raleigh ties Mantle for switch-hitter HR record

Seattle Mariners catcher Cal Raleigh has caught up to the single-season switch-hitter home run record set by Mickey Mantle in 1961.

BY SEATTLESPORTS.COM STAFF

Sep 14, 2025, 1:31 PM Updated: 2:34 pm

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Watch: Cal Raleigh Hits #54 - How it Sounded | 1 min

Cal Raleigh is running out of home run records to chase.

The star Seattle Mariners catcher has caught up to yet another big one here in his incredible 2025 campaign: most homers by a switch-hitter in a single season.

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“The Big Dumper” pulled even with one of the all-time greats, Hall of Famer Mickey Mantle, when he crushed his 54th homer of the year off Angels right-hander Kyle Hendricks in the first inning Sunday.

Raleigh’s blast, a two-run shot to left-center field, traveled 409 feet and came off the bat at 109.4 mph. It put the Mariners ahead 2-0 as they look for their season-best ninth straight win.

Mantle initially set the switch-hitter mark during the historic 1961 season when he and New York Yankees teammate Roger Maris took aim at Babe Ruth’s record of 60 homers in a season. Maris ultimately overtook Ruth with 61 that year, while Mantle settled for a number that at the time tied for seventh-most in the record books. But none of the players ahead of Mantle, then or now, had been switch-hitters.

With one more homer, Raleigh’s season would stand alone as the best power-hitting display by a switch-hitter of all-time.

Raleigh’s 54 homers puts him in a tie for 22nd-most in a season in MLB history.

Cal Raleigh with #5️⃣4️⃣ as heard on the #Mariners radio network. 🔱

📰 https://t.co/iJrKfv3qrA https://t.co/lL0pB6DQuF pic.twitter.com/4tGILUZUyp

— Seattle Sports (@SeattleSports) September 14, 2025

There are two more records Raleigh can make a run at: Mariners legend Ken Griffey Jr.’s franchise record of 56 home runs in a season, and Yankees superstar Aaron Judge’s American League record of 62 homers. But with just 12 games to go in the regular season for Raleigh and the M’s after Sunday, the AL record may be just out of reach at this point.

Raleigh already broke the record for home runs by a catcher in a season, which had been held by the Kansas City Royals’ Salvador Perez (48 homers in 2021). That means he’s now the only catcher ever to hit 50 in a season. He’s also just the second player in Mariners history with a 50-homer season.

It’s been a banner last calendar year for Raleigh.

Following the 2024 season, he was named a first-time Gold Glove winner last fall, and he was soon after awarded the Platinum Glove as the best fielder regardless of position in the American League.

Just before this season, he signed a six-year, $105 million contract extension that will keep him in Seattle through at least 2030.

And this season, he had an historic first half at the plate to earn his first All-Star selection, and he became the first catcher to win the Home Run Derby during the All-Star Game festivities in Atlanta. He joined Griffey as the only Mariners to win the annual event.