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Ken Griffey Jr. is no longer the only Seattle Mariners player to ever win the MLB Home Run Derby. It is a two-man club now, as he is joined by catcher Cal Raleigh, who won the event on Monday night at Truist Park in Atlanta.
Raleigh further proved he's the king of the long ball thus far in the 2025 MLB season, as he added the Derby title to his achievements this year, including, of course, the fact that he is the current home run leader in the big leagues. That seemingly added to the surprise of Raleigh about his win.
“Usually, the guy that's leading the league in homers doesn't win the whole thing,” Raleigh said after beating Tampa Bay Rays infielder Junior Caminero in the championship round of the Home Run Derby (h/t Jesse Rogers of ESPN). “That's as surprising to me as anybody else.”
Raleigh nearly did not make it past the first round of the tournament, where he hit from both sides of the plate. His 17 home runs in that round were tied with Athletics star Brent Rooker, but a tie-breaker gave the Mariners star the edge.
Matched up against Oneil Cruz of the Pittsburgh Pirates in the semifinals round, Raleigh blasted 19 home runs against Cruz's 13 to advance to the finals. On the other side of the bracket, Caminero defeated Minnesota Twins star Byron Buxton, 8-7, to secure a seat in the championship.
When it was all said and done, Raleigh had hit a total of 54 home runs to his name, 10 more than anyone from the rest of the field. Caminero had 44 while Cruz racked up 34. New York Yankees infielder Jazz Chisholm Jr. finished with the fewest blasts, with only three home runs during the first round.
The 28-year-old Raleigh has been a terror at the plate this season for opposing pitchers, as he entered the MLB All-Star break with the most home runs in the big leagues. He concluded the first half of the season with 38 dingers, while hitting .259/.376/.634. Those 38 home runs are already a career-high for Raleigh, who had not recorded more than 34 homers in a season before 2025.
