‘Cal has to be the MVP’: Rick Rizzs crowns Cal Raleigh as MVP after 60 home run season

The Seattle Mariners clinched its first American League (AL) West Division title in 24 years on Wednesday night v. the Colorado Rockies following a 9-2 victory.

Longtime Mariners broadcaster, Rick Rizzs, did not spoil his opportunity to hand Raleigh his flowers after a legendary two-home run performance, notching his league-leading 60th home run of the season.

“I was thinking he would get two home runs last night, and he did, now tied with Babe Ruth,” Rizzs said on “Seattle’s Morning News” on KIRO Newsradio. “Can you believe that? He’s a catcher. No catcher in the history of the game of baseball over the last 140 years has done this. He has to be the American League MVP. Period.”

Spearheaded by three home runs in the first inning from Cal Raleigh, Julio Rodriguez, and Jorge Polanco, followed up with a masterclass one-hit pitching performance by Luis Castillo, the Mariners inched one game closer to locking up a first-round bye.

“I’m so happy for the fans, they all came out and were going crazy last night,” Rizzs said. “I’m sure the fans that were listening on the radio were enjoying themselves. It’s just a wonderful feeling to be here at this point, knowing you have a good chance to get to the World Series.”

Raleigh kicked off the scoring Wednesday with his first home run of the game, a 438-foot solo home run to right field. The “Big Dumper” later ripped his 60th home run of the year in the 8th inning, on a 389-foot line-drive into right field.

The Mariners’ 162-game journey towards the postseason

The Mariners surged in the standings throughout September, propelled by a 10-game win streak, series sweeps of AL West rivals, the Houston Astros and the Los Angeles Angels, and a three-game sweep of the St. Louis Cardinals.

“It’s exhilarating. I’m exhausted, but it’s a great exhausted feeling; there’s joy behind the long drive it takes,” Rizzs said. “To get to this point for any team in baseball, it’s a heck of a journey, and these guys keep fighting through the good times and the bad times. It’s amazing how this club has turned things around at the end of the season.”

Rizzs summarized the Mariners’ ebbs and flows throughout the season en route to the team’s 2nd playoff appearance in three years.

“Five weeks ago, the sky was falling and the Mariners couldn’t win a ball game, but they turned it around,” Rizzs said. “They had a team meeting, and they looked at one another inside the clubhouse, and held each other accountable. They said, ‘We’re a lot better than this,’ and they found out that they were. They started winning and kept winning.”

Seattle’s die-hard sports fans didn’t bend or break throughout the Mariners’ occasional struggles this season. Rizzs applauded Mariner fans for sticking with the team on their way to a well-deserved postseason bid.

“I’m so proud of these ball players and the fans that showed up last night, and who followed this team all season long,” Rizzs said. “Whether [fans] listened on the radio, or watched on TV, they have been amazing, and they energize the players to get it done.”

The Mariners play in the final game of three v. the Rockies Thursday at 6:40 p.m. before closing out the season with a three-game series v. the Los Angeles Dodgers on Friday through Sunday.

Tickets for the 2025 postseason are on sale today at noon, but expect tickets to sell out quickly as anticipation builds ahead of the first game of the AL Divisional Series.

Watch the full conversation in the video above.

Listen to “Seattle’s Morning News” with Charlie Harger and Manda Factor weekday mornings from 5-9 a.m. on KIRO Newsradio. Subscribe to the podcast here.

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