Seattle Mariners Announce Cal Raleigh Decision Before Blue Jays Series

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SEATTLE, WASHINGTON - JUNE 19: Cal Raleigh #29 of the Seattle Mariners reacts after a passed ball during the seventh inning against the Boston Red Sox at T-Mobile Park on June 19, 2026 in Seattle, Washington. (Photo by Jack Compton/Getty Images)

The Seattle Mariners are coming off a series victory over the Philadelphia Phillies earlier this week.

It was easily the best stretch of the season for Mariners slugger Cal Raleigh, who has faced some challenges in 2026 after an historic 2025 campaign in which he led the majors with 60 home runs and 125 RBIs.

Raleigh hit three home runs in the series opener against Philadelphia before following that performance with another homer the next day. He has now hit four home runs across his last three games.

Now, ahead of Friday night’s series opener against the Toronto Blue Jays, Mariners manager Dan Wilson has made some lineup changes involving Raleigh.

Mariners Announce Raleigh Decision

The last time Seattle took the field Wednesday, Raleigh batted cleanup while serving as the team’s designated hitter.

On Friday, he’ll drop one spot to No. 5 in the order and return behind the plate as the starting catcher for right-hander Emerson Hancock.

Here’s the full Mariners lineup:

Via Underdog MLB: “Mariners 8/28 R. Arozarena LF D. Canzone DH J. Rodríguez CF J. Naylor 1B C. Raleigh C C. Young 2B T. Ward RF J. Crawford 3B B. Rodden SS E. Hancock SP.”

Mariners 8/28

R. Arozarena LF
D. Canzone DH
J. Rodríguez CF
J. Naylor 1B
C. Raleigh C
C. Young 2B
T. Ward RF
J. Crawford 3B
B. Rodden SS

E. Hancock SP

— Underdog MLB (@UnderdogMLB) August 28, 2026

Raleigh’s 2026 Season

Entering Friday, despite his recent offensive jolt, Raleigh is batting just .167 across 100 games and 354 at-bats. That marks the lowest batting average of his career by a wide margin.

He’s recorded 32 runs, 59 hits, 18 home runs and 59 RBIs while slugging .342 with a .625 OPS.

Mariners Right Now

Seattle has been one of the more underwhelming teams in MLB this season considering the expectations it entered the year with.

The Mariners are currently 64-70 overall, but despite sitting six games below .500, they’re still just 3.0 games behind the division lead in the AL West and 4.0 games out of a Wild Card spot.