SEATTLE -- Cal Raleigh is always among the first Mariners players to arrive at the ballpark, but on Tuesday afternoon, there was even more urgency to get in early.
Raleigh went through his first simulated practice for the T-Mobile Home Run Derby with his dad, Todd, throwing to him at T-Mobile Park ahead of the Mariners’ 6-3 loss to the Royals -- as he will at the July 14 event in Atlanta.
“It was a little exhausting, I’m not going to lie,” Raleigh said. “I learned that you've got to slow it down a little bit and maybe swing a little slower, don't swing as hard. So I'm trying to go for more quality over quantity. Because I think when we get there, the adrenaline is going to be going, so we're going to be going plenty fast.”
Raleigh went through one round -- which will consist of three minutes or 40 pitches, whichever comes first -- plus a bonus that allows for the hitter to attempt as many home runs before recording three “outs,” on swings that don't result in homers.
Cal and Todd were moving quickly enough that they thought they’d run through their pitch allotment early.
“Going in, we thought we'd have a little less time,” Todd said. “But it seemed like we had a little more time. I know we've just got to find that good rhythm, not be too quick. I know he doesn't like to be rushed, but obviously there's a little bit of a rush in this.”
A timer tracked on the videoboard, and clubhouse staff even placed measuring devices on the field in the outline of Truist Park to determine which balls would clear those dimensions.
In total, Raleigh hit 12 or 13 homers during the practice round on Tuesday, depending on who was polled and the criteria accounting for the altered dimensions.
He’ll likely need more to advance beyond the first round, as no player last year to do so had fewer than 16 in their opening act. The record -- for any round -- was 41, achieved by teammate Julio Rodríguez in 2023 at T-Mobile Park.
“I'm glad we did it today, because you don't really know until you're actually doing it,” Raleigh said. “And today, it was like, I was definitely rushing.”
The switch-hitting Raleigh also swung from both sides after a timeout -- which is likely how the real thing will manifest.
The Derby format allows each batter one 45-second timeout in each of the three regulation periods, but timeouts cannot be called during bonus periods. Baltimore’s Adley Rutschman is the only switch-hitter to swing from both sides in a Derby, doing so in 2023; he had a similar strategy, hitting lefty throughout the first round before flipping to the right side in the bonus.
As for consulting past Derby contestants, Raleigh has talked with teammates Rodríguez (2022 and 2023) and Randy Arozarena (2023) -- but he also had an impromptu confab with Kansas City’s Bobby Witt Jr. (2024), who emerged from the visitors' dugout after the practice round.
“Julio's big thing was finishing two hands,” Raleigh said, “and him just saying, 'You've got more time than you think. You don't need to rush.' So it seems to be a common theme.”
Hotter conditions, at least by Seattle’s standards, also helped Raleigh simulate the event, as temperatures were in the low-80s on Tuesday afternoon -- among the warmest of the year while the Mariners have been at home. However, the environment did not feature Atlanta’s humidity, which Cal and Todd acknowledged will impact stamina.
“I think it's just more about controlling your tempo and controlling your effort level,” Raleigh said. “Because it's not like you get weeks off [to recover from] this. You're still playing every day.”
Raleigh’s younger brother -- 15-year-old Todd Jr. -- has indeed been confirmed by MLB and the MLB Players Association to be behind the plate for the Derby, though he was not in Seattle for the practice round. Cal and Todd are hopeful to get one more session in, though that’s yet to be confirmed.
Raleigh is one of just two contestants that have committed to the Derby, along with the Braves’ Ronald Acuña Jr., though the Mariners star still isn’t officially an All-Star quite yet. He’s a finalist in Phase 2 of the PRO SPIRIT MLB All-Star Ballot, which runs through Wednesday at 9 a.m. PT, pitted against Toronto’s Alejandro Kirk for the nod to the American League’s starting lineup.