Cal Raleigh's 1st Mariners home run of 2026 hints at his next evolution

Cal Raleigh says he isn't setting out to hit 60 home runs again, which is fine. That doesn't signify a lack of ambition so much as a firm grip on reality. Seasons like that are never goal. Just the dream.

Yet in the same breath with which the Seattle Mariners superstar catcher told Brock and Salk of 60 homers being the "elephant in the room," he also spoke of just wanting be as consistent as possible in 2026. Among other things, that will require adjusting to adjustments pitchers make to him.

And this is why Raleigh's first spring training home run is so darn encouraging.

"Big Dumper" collected his first Cactus League homer on Tuesday off Chicago White Sox right-hander Wikelman González. It was a changeup just off the outside edge of the strike zone, and he went with it for a 107.4 mph, 427-foot shot to left-center field.

There's a lot to be learned from Cal Raleigh's first Mariners home run of 2026

It's the distance that stands out. Because when it comes to home runs of 420-plus feet to the left of center field as a left-handed batter, here's a simple comparison:

• 2025: 0
• 2026: 1

We're not pulling anyone's leg. This is a real thing, confirmed by Statcast and everything. Out of the 10 homers of 420-plus feet that Raleigh hit as a lefty last year, not one resembled the booming opposite-field moonshot that resulted in his first (albeit unofficial) long ball of 2026.

This had everything to do with how he approached hitting. It was all about efficiency, as he got his left- and right-handed swings to perfectly mirror each other and generally set about pulling the ball in the air. Come the end of 2025, he had done the latter better than anyone on record.

But whenever a slugger goes all-in on a pull-heavy approach, you always worry about pitchers adjusting accordingly. Maybe by throwing more outside pitches. Maybe by throwing more pitches that move away from the batter. Or some combination of both, with the idea being to get swings and misses and roll-over ground balls.

González checked both boxes with his offering to Raleigh on Tuesday, and he… well, he crushed it anyway. Just stayed back, put a good swing on it, and crushed it.

“That ball was hammered,” observed Brendan Donovan, via Ryan Divish of The Seattle Times. “When it touches his bat, it’s loud. It was fun to see.”

It's only one spring training homer, so reading into it anymore than this is pushing things a little too far. But since Raleigh is very obviously a hitter with two good swings and a good head on his shoulders, it doesn't feel like a reach to see it as a sign of good things to come.