ARLINGTON – Bryan Woo threw 6 1/3 scoreless innings of one-hit ball. Rhylan Thomas made his big league debut and collected his first career hit with a bloop double. Ben Williamson and Miles Mastrobuoni produced a couple of web gems.
Nobody, though, could top what Cal Raleigh did in the Mariners’ 13-1 victory over the Rangers on Friday night at Globe Life Field.
As manager Dan Wilson said, “Cal is obviously the story today–two homers, the grand slam.”
Raleigh belted a 432-foot solo home run to lead off the fourth. Then, in the fifth, he connected on a low curveball with a one-handed swing that produced a grand slam in what became a seven-run inning for Seattle.
Raleigh now has a Major League-leading 12 home runs. Being baseball’s home run leader has a nice ring to it, right?
“It’s May,” Raleigh said with a chuckle. “But, yeah, try to keep it going.”
There’s no question the Mariners have it going as they have won five straight, averaging 9.6 runs a game over this recent stretch.
Since April 9, Seattle has posted baseball’s best record at 15-4. The offense is a significant reason behind the success.
Raleigh led the way Friday. He hammered a first-pitch slider from Rangers starter Jack Leiter high into the right-field seats. Then, the Mariners pulled away in the fifth.
Thomas got things going with a bloop double down the left-field line, a moment he’ll never forget.
“I kind of saw it fading as I was approaching first base,” he said. “I was like, ‘Oh my goodness, I have a chance here.’ It was the best feeling of all time. I’ll never feel like that again in a game.”
It became an even sweeter moment when Raleigh stepped to the plate a few batters later with the bases loaded. Raleigh fell behind 0-2 and battled back to a 2-2 count. That’s when Leiter delivered a low curveball that Raleigh connected with and sent into the right-field seats.
“Really, just trying to get in a good spot to hit, not trying to do too much with,” Raleigh said. “I was trying to stay in the middle of the field. I was a little out front, but able to keep it fair. I feel if I try to pull that ball, I hook it foul or maybe miss it.”
Raleigh and the Mariners didn’t miss much all night. They scored three more runs in the fifth, including a sacrifice fly by Thomas.
Seattle added two more runs in the sixth on a home run by Julio Rodriguez and three more in the ninth.
Those runs were more than enough for Woo, who retired the first 14 batters he faced before giving up a two-out single to Jonah Heim in the fifth. Woo responded by striking out Josh Jung to end the inning and went on to pitch into the seventh. He has gone at least six innings in all six of his starts this season.
“I just want to do my job,” said Woo, who had eight strikeouts and no walks. “I always want to set the tone, go out and attack, get in the zone early, put guys away late when I have chances.”
Woo benefited from a couple nice defensive plays early in the game too. Williamson made a diving, over-the-shoulder grab on Joc Pederson’s flare to shallow left field to end the first inning. In the fourth, Mastrobuoni made a leaping grab on a liner from Josh Smith for the first out.
But, as Wilson said, the night ultimately belonged to Raleigh. He finished with a season-high five RBIs, his first five-RBI game since Aug. 11, 2024 vs. the Mets. That was also a two home run game by Raleigh, who has 12 multi-HR games since the 2022 season.
But Raleigh brings more than just power as Woo put it.
"It’s just everything all together,” Woo said. “It’s the bat. It’s the leadership. It’s the humility. It’s what he means to the guys in the clubhouse. It’s what he means to the fans in Seattle. I don’t want to keep hyping him up so much. His ego’s going to blow up.”
Woo, of course, was joking as he said that part. After all, there was plenty to joke and smile about after the game.