Cal Raleigh belts grand slam in rehab start with Tacoma Rainiers
Cal Raleigh is back to doing what he does best, and Tacoma got the first look.
The Mariners star catcher belted two home runs, including a grand slam, in his first rehab appearance with the Tacoma Rainiers, powering a 15-3 win over Triple-A Albuquerque at Cheney Stadium on Tuesday.
“I had a really good last week down in Arizona,” Raleigh said May 31 after rehabbing at Seattle’s spring training facility. “A lot of positive signs, and I’m really excited to be back here.”
Seattle placed Raleigh on the 10-day injured list with a right oblique strain on May 14. He began a rehab assignment with High-A Everett on Sunday before joining the Rainiers for their first of six games with Triple-A Albuquerque.
“Big Dumper” homered on the first pitch he saw in Tuesday’s first inning, depositing a middle-middle cutter off Triple-A Albuquerque’s Erasmo Ramirez over the right field wall for a two-run homer.
When the Rainiers loaded the bases in the fifth, Raleigh golfed a low change-up to right field for a no-doubt grand slam, blowing Tuesday’s opener wide open. Tacoma led, 12-2.
Raleigh popped out in the second inning and was hit by a pitch in the fourth, going 2-for-3 with two home runs, two runs and six RBI. He could rejoin the Mariners as early as next week.
“I made a joke with somebody the other day, and it’s like, ‘The first couple (games I missed) didn’t feel real.’ It didn’t feel right,” Raleigh said May 31. “Once I got to Arizona, those were kind of the acceptance days, I guess. Once I got there, I was able to kind of accept it and try to get back as quick as I can, control what you can control.
“It’s really hard watching the (Mariners) on TV. Not being there, it’s a Twilight Zone kind of feeling. I think it makes you appreciate it a little more, when you’re that far away and you realize you don’t get to do it every day, what you love. It gave me a little more appreciation for getting to play every day and being around the guys.”
Raleigh, 29, is batting .161 (26-for-161) with seven home runs and 18 RBI in 41 games for the Mariners this season.
