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As if his year needed any more highlights, Seattle Mariners star catcher Cal Raleigh is officially headed to the 2026 World Baseball Classic. He joins Aaron Judge and a star-studded Team USA roster and will likely be their starting catcher in next year's WBC.
Team USA just announced Raleigh's decision on its X account.
Welcome to Team USA, Cal Raleigh!
— USA Baseball (@USABaseball) July 14, 2025
The current MLB home run leader has announced that he will play for Team USA in the 2026 World Baseball Classic 🇺🇸 pic.twitter.com/RXb1okOmO0
The honor comes as no surprise, as Raleigh has never shied away from the spotlight.
He currently leads the MLB with 38 home runs, and is on pace to become the first catcher in MLB history to post a 9-WARseason. He is competing in the Home Run Derby later today, and will start the All-Star Game for the American League on Tuesday, batting cleanup. He'll be catching reigning AL Cy Young Award winner Tarik Skubal to start the game.
Cal Raleigh's star power shines even brighter after Team USA announcement
Raleigh is the first Mariner to join Team USA's roster for 2026, giving Seattle fans someone to root for when the classic gets underway. In 2023, current Mariners such as Julio RodrÃguez and Randy Arozarena competed for their own countries, and it is likely they will do so again in 2026.
With Raleigh joining a lineup that is already set to include Judge and Bobby Witt Jr., Team USA is building a strong roster prepared to go for gold. After their dissapointing loss to Team Japan in 2023, Raleigh and the rest of Team USA will be out for revenge in 2026.
The WBC takes place March 5th through 17th, meaning Raleigh will miss most of Spring Training, but will be ready for the regular season. That should not hinder him much. Raleigh struggled in 2025 spring training, before breaking out and becoming the best power hitter in baseball over the past two months.