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- Cal Raleigh became the seventh player in MLB history to hit 60 home runs in a season during Wednesday’s win.
- The fan who caught the milestone ball immediately gave it to a young fan nearby in an act of kindness.
- Seattle clinched its first AL West division title since 2001 with the 9-2 victory over Colorado.
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Seattle catcher Cal Raleigh became the seventh player in MLB history to hit at least 60 home runs in a season Wednesday night when he drove two hits out of T-Mobile Park during the Mariners’ 9-2 win over the Colorado Rockies.
In related news, the man who reportedly caught the milestone ball appears to have given it away to a young fan sitting nearby. Sure, the gesture wasn’t nearly as historic as what the player lovingly known as Big Dumper had just accomplished, but it was pretty cool — especially considering the ball’s potential value.
A fan named Alberto caught Mike Trout’s 400th career home run at Coors Field. He gave it to the Angels star after the game, and Trout agreed to an unusual request.
Here’s more on Raleigh’s 60th home run and the act of kindness that followed.
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Big night for Big Dumper
Seattle Mariners catcher Cal Raleigh takes a curtain call after hitting his 60th home run of the season against the Colorado Rockies.
(Ryan Sun / Associated Press)
Raleigh entered the night with 58 home runs, already well beyond his previous career high of 34 from last season. The switch-hitting catcher was batting left-handed in the first inning when he blasted a 93-mph fastball from Tanner Gordon 438 feet into the upper deck behind right field for home run No. 59.
Then, with two out in the bottom of the eighth inning, chants of “M-V-P” were already raining down on Raleigh as he stepped to the plate, batting left-handed again, against Rockies reliever Angel Chivilli.
One pitch later, the at-bat was over and Raleigh had made history. He ripped a 98-mph fastball from Chivilli 389 feet into the right field stands to join Babe Ruth (1927), Roger Maris (1961), Sammy Sosa (1998, 1999, 2001), Mark McGwire (1998, 1999), Barry Bonds (2001) and Aaron Judge (2022) as the only players to hit at least 60 home runs in a season.
Raleigh rounded the bases, then took a curtain call in front of an ecstatic crowd that included his parents, Todd and Stephanie Raleigh.
It was the 11th time this season Raleigh had hit multiple home runs in a game, which ties the MLB record held by Hank Greenberg (1938), Sosa (1998) and Judge (2022). Raleigh, who also had a two-run double in the second inning, finished with four RBIs to give him an American League-leading 125 this season.
In addition to Raleigh’s personal achievements Wednesday night, the Mariners clinched their first AL West title since 2001.
Roki Sasaki and Clayton Kershaw pitch scoreless innings as Dodgers defeat Arizona to reduce magic number to win NL West to 1.
“It’s crazy,” Raleigh said after the game. “Sixty is, I don’t know what to say. I didn’t know if I was going to hit 60 in my life. And then I did it like this. Just tonight, I mean, what a way to do it.”
Raleigh has four regular-season games left to try to break Judge’s AL record of 62 home runs, set in 2022. The all-time MLB record is 72, set by the San Francisco Giants’ Bonds in 2001.
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Kind gesture in the stands
Seattle Mariners catcher Cal Raleigh rounds the bases after his 60th home run of the season Wednesday at T-Mobile Park.
(Steph Chambers / Getty Images)
Based on a fan video posted on social media, it appears that a man wearing Mariners gear initially ended up with the historic ball. That fan can be seen holding the ball over his head while others seated nearby applaud his (and Raleigh’s) accomplishment.
A second video, posted by the same fan who posted the first one, appears to show that the man gave the ball to a younger fan (someone can be heard in the video joyfully exclaiming, “Oh my God! They gave it away to this kid!”). The boy and an adult appear to be following security out of the stands, presumably to somewhere the Mariners might be able to make an offer to secure the ball for Raleigh.
The Times did not receive an immediate response from the Mariners regarding the current whereabouts of the ball, what the young fan may have been offered for it and whether the original fan who got the ball was recognized in any way for his gesture.
Adam Gresch, the team’s senior manager of communications, reposted a photo of the man on X and wrote: “The Mariners would love to get in contact with this incredible fan. If you know him, please DM!”
The fans sitting around the man definitely appreciated what he had done. The same video shows them applauding the new local legend, who tipped his hat to them and seemed genuinely happy with his decision to part with the ball.
A Philadelphia Phillies fan was proud to snag a Harrison Bader home run ball for his son. But he says he then gave it away to another fan to ‘de-escalate the situation.’
It’s a feel-good story that helps cleanse the palate weeks after another viral incident took place in the stands at a game between the Philadelphia Phillies and Miami Marlins in Florida. Phillies fan Drew Feltwell secured a home run ball hit by Harrison Bader and placed it in the glove of 9-year-old son Lincoln.
A woman quickly approached Feltwell, however, and angrily declared that the ball belonged to her. In an effort to set an example for his children by de-escalating the situation, Feltwell later said, he reached into his son’s glove and gave it to the woman, who quickly became known on social media as “Phillies Karen.”
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Selfless to a fault?
Cal Raleigh waves to the crowd after being acknowledged Tuesday by Kevin Martinez, Mariners president of business operations, for setting the team record for home runs in a season.
(Ryan Sun / Associated Press)
Still, some folks on X are calling the Mariners fan “stupid” and “foolish” for giving away a ball that could be worth a fortune. Last year, the home run ball that gave Dodgers superstar Shohei Ohtani the distinction of being the only MLB player to have 50 home runs and 50 stolen bases in a single season sold at auction for a record $4.4 million.
It still remains to be seen, however, just who will receive that money. Three individuals have claimed to have been the rightful owner of the ball, and the matter remains tied up in Florida’s 11th Judicial Circuit Court. A calendar call in the case has been set for January.
In December 2022, Judge’s 62nd home run ball sold to an anonymous bidder for $1.5 million.
If Raleigh’s 60th home run ball went up for auction now — and there’s no immediate indication that’s going to happen — it likely wouldn’t sell for nearly as much as those two historic balls, which came off the bats of generational superstars from traditional powerhouse teams.
Roki Sasaki was activated from the injured list after missing almost five months with a shoulder injury, and came out of the bullpen for a dominant 1-2-3 inning.
Ken Goldin, whose Goldin Auctions sold both the Ohtani and Judge balls, told The Times on Thursday that if Raleigh doesn’t hit any more home runs this season, he would expect the 60th home run ball to “sell in $250,000 range.”
“If he ends up hitting more, I still think that this is a six-figure ball,” Goldin said. “But the most valuable ball would be whatever his final home run of the year is.”
If Raleigh breaks Judge’s record with a 63rd home run, Goldin said it’s “possible” that ball could go for $1 million but predicted it would more likely land “in the high six figures.”
Cash value aside, last week, a possibly priceless act of selflessness followed a different milestone home run for Raleigh. When he hit his 57th home run of the season Saturday against the Houston Astros, Raleigh broke Ken Griffey Jr.’s team record for home runs in a season.
If the team was to a pick a Mr. L.A. Dodger, the soft-spoken Bill Russell, a Dodger for nearly half a century, would have to be in that conversation.
The ball landed in the Astros bullpen and was recovered by longtime Houston bullpen catcher Javier Bracamonte, who personally took the ball to Raleigh and placed it in his glove.
“He said: ‘Thank you so much, I appreciate it. That means a lot to me,’” said Bracamonte, who received a hug from the opposing team’s star catcher. “And I said, ‘This is great.’”
Raleigh said of Bracamonte: “Class act over there with him, so I’m very grateful. He could have easily just thrown it up in the air, but he, I guess, understood and kept it for me ... so very nice thing to do.”
