Hours before hitting the home run that gave the Mariners a late victory and made him the all-time franchise leader in home runs for a catcher, Cal Raleigh was intrigued about what was in the boxes that just showed up in the clubhouse.
The long-awaited “torpedo” bats had arrived. Raleigh wanted to see one and give it a test during batting practice, but with no commitment of when it might get used in a game.
Some five hours later, Raleigh grabbed one of those torpedo bats. And when Rangers’ reliever Chris Martin left a pitch at the top of the strike zone, Raleigh didn’t miss with a swing that gave the M’s a 5-3 win over Texas on Friday night.
“You know how baseball players are not very patient,” Raleigh said afterward. “It felt good. The swing felt good.”
It seemed appropriate that the swing that made Raleigh the Mariners all-time leader in homers by a catcher also was a late-inning, game-winning blast. This time it came in the bottom of the eighth inning and was Raleigh’s third homer of the season.
It also was the 96th of his career, passing Mike Zunino for the most hit by a catcher in an M’s uniform.
“It feels pretty … it feels good, very blessed. There’s been a lot of great players and catchers in this organization and just never would have thought that’d be a thing,” Raleigh said.
It wasn’t as majestic as some of his other long balls, but on a night when the M’s knocked out Jacob deGrom after four innings and watched the bullpen give away a two-run lead, it was a needed blast from the unofficial captain.
The inning started with Jorge Polanco continuing to hit and continuing to show he needs to find a way into the lineup every day. Polanco’s leadoff single against Martin was his third hit of the game, which also included a line-drive homer in the first inning off deGrom.
Martin left a 1-0 cutter at the top of the strike zone and Raleigh, using one of the newly arrived torpedo bats, unloaded a 399-foot shot to retake the lead.
“I know there were a couple guys swinging them today. And some guys feel good with it, some guys don’t. But that’s a big hit right there,” M’s manager Dan Wilson said.
Rowdy Tellez also homered, just his second hit with the M’s, and J.P. Crawford added an important two-out, RBI single off deGrom the one time a run was manufactured. Leo Rivas walked, stole second and scored on Crawford’s looping single.
Andrés Muñoz allowed an infield single to Jonah Heim opening the ninth but got Marcus Semien to ground into a double play to end it for his fifth save in six Mariners wins.
M’s starter Bryce Miller needed exactly 100 pitches to get through five innings. His outing felt like a fight with Miller spotting his fastball but at times losing the feel for his array of off-speed pitches. It led to some deep counts and long at-bats that elevated his pitch count in a hurry.
Miller pitched out of a bases-loaded jam in the first inning, the result of two walks and a bunt single, but still needed 30 pitches to escape the threat. He went to a three-ball count eight times in 20 batters faced and even with retiring the side in order in the second and third innings was still laboring to get through the fifth.
This start was not a picture of efficiency for Miller.
“I thought that first inning he maybe was trying to do too much. Too many different types of pitches and trying to finesse it when in reality he’s more of a power guy,” Raleigh said. “Kind of come at you with his best stuff, like best on best. He’s not the most tactical, he can locate, but he’s at his best when he’s attacking and coming right at you.”
Despite the high pitch count, Miller was able to work through five innings and per MLB Statcast used eight different pitches. He struck out five, walked three and the only two hits he allowed had a combined exit velocity of 99.9 mph.
Josh Smith had the bunt single in the first inning, and the Rangers only run against Miller came when Adolis García walked, stole second and scored on Josh Jung’s looping single in the fourth inning.
“I felt like I grinded. Getting through some early season soreness, I think, and velo is kind of down, but if anything [it] kind of proves to me that I can navigate lineups and limit hard contact even without my best stuff,” Miller said.
What Miller did in working his way through five innings was given away in the span of four batters in the sixth. Wilson went with Trent Thornton to face the middle of the Rangers’ order, and the choice immediately backfired.
Thornton allowed a double to Josh Smith, hit García with a fastball, got Joc Pederson to ground into a double play but then watched Jung go opposite field for his first homer of the season. The two-run shot barely cleared the wall and pulled the Rangers even at 3-3.
It stayed that way until the M’s “Big Dumper” came through with another big hit in the eighth.
“It’s taken a long time to get comfortable in those situations and understand how pitchers are trying to attack you. And yeah, I want to be in those situations. That’s kind of what it’s all about, right?” Raleigh said. “Those late-game type moments, and it seems like we’re in a lot of them. So it’s almost a habit to get used to those in a way.”
