An ugly season for Seattle Mariners catcher Cal Raleigh went from bad to worse earlier this month when he was placed on the IL for the first time in his career. Raleigh, the 2025 American League MVP runner-up, is dealing with a calf strain. The star catcher tried to play through the injury for over a week, but he was pulled from a May 13 game against Houston after being seen wincing.
“Nobody wants to go on the IL, and especially not Cal,” said Mariners manager Dan Wilson at the time. “But I think at this point it’s the smart thing to do.”
Below, we will provide a Raleigh injury update and look at when he will likely return.
When will Cal Raleigh return to the Mariners lineup?
On Memorial Day, Raleigh reportedly played light catch in Peoria, Arizona, where the Mariners hold spring training.
“That’s a good sign,” Wilson said on Monday. “But again, you just really have to be careful with the obliques, as we’ve talked about, and take it slow.
“But I know [Raleigh] has put a lot of work in prior to this, with the rotation [movement] and building the strength and getting it back. So I think in terms of a progression, I think he’s on pace with where we’ve hoped. We’ll just continue to see it as we go.”
Raleigh’s oblique strain is reportedly mild. Recovery from a mild oblique strain typically takes around 2-to-4 weeks.
Raleigh has already been out of action for 15 days.
Here is a look at the Mariners’ schedule around the time the “Big Dumper” is expected to be back in action.
- Wednesday, June 10: Mariners at Orioles
- Thursday, June 11: Mariners at Orioles
- Friday, June 12: Mariners at Nationals
- Saturday, June 13: Mariners at Nationals
- Sunday, June 14: Mariners at Nationals
- Tuesday, June 16: Orioles at Mariners
- Wednesday, June 17: Orioles at Mariners
- Thursday, June 18: Orioles at Mariners
- Friday, June 19: Red Sox at Mariners
Teams typically like to bring players back from injury during a homestand, but the Mariners schedule is such that the team will probably have to bring him back while on the road. Seattle has a home game against the Mets on June 3, and then takes off for a 10-game road trip.
Cal Raleigh odds
Raleigh has been one of the biggest disappointments in MLB this season. He is batting just .161 on the season, with 7 home runs and 18 RBI.
This is coming off a season in which he mashed 60 home runs and drove in 125 runs.
Raleigh was +1200 to win American League MVP prior to the start of the season. Only Aaron Judge and Bobby Witt Jr. had lower prices.
Raleigh is now +15000 to win the award.
Mariners odds
The M’s went 90-72 last season and won the American League West by 3 games. The division is currently shaping up as the worst in MLB as the Mariners are in first place, but are under .500 with a 28-29 record. The Athletics trail them by a half game.
Seattle is the favorite to win the AL West at Fanatics Sportsbook as it owns a -155 price.
The Mariners are +975 to win the World Series.
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