Mariners broadcaster Rick Rizzs: World Baseball Classic disrupted Cal Raleigh’s timing at the plate
Apr 24, 2026, 11:03 AM
Cal Raleigh #29 of the Seattle Mariners stands on deck during the fifth inning against the Athletics at T-Mobile Park on April 21, 2026 in Seattle, Washington. (Photo: Steph Chambers, Getty Images)
(Photo: Steph Chambers, Getty Images)
The Seattle Mariners open a three-game series against the St. Louis Cardinals Friday, sending right-hander George Kirby to the mound as the club looks to stabilize after an inconsistent start to the 2025 season.
Seattle enters the series 2.5 games behind the Texas Rangers and the currently Sacramento (formerly Oakland and soon-to-be Las Vegas) Athletics in the AL West after a walk-off win against Oakland earlier in the week. Cal Raleigh, Julio Rodriguez, and Josh Naylor each singled in the ninth inning to complete the comeback.
Mariners broadcaster Rick Rizzs said the team badly needed the victory.
“It’s been a streaky year for the ball club.” Rizzs told “Seattle’s Morning News.” “They lose five in a row, they win four in a row. They lose four in a row, they win two in a row. They lose two, and then they come back and win.”
Raleigh has come on as of late. The catcher homered in three consecutive games and went 3-for-5 in the walk-off win. Rodriguez went 9-for-22 over a recent stretch, and Naylor was 8-for-14.
Rizzs said he believes the World Baseball Classic disrupted the timing of Raleigh and the other batters who participated, pulling them out of their spring training routines before they were ready.
“I just didn’t think that Cal and a lot of other guys had the at-bats they needed,” Rizzs said. “That’s everything for hitters, timing. And I just think when they left spring training, they didn’t have the timing, and now they’re getting it.”
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The series also comes on the heels of one of the season’s most unusual plays. During the Athletics series, a line drive struck pitcher Logan Gilbert in the stomach at 108 mph and lodged inside his jersey between two buttons. Gilbert grabbed the ball before it hit the dirt, but the umpires ruled it a dead ball and a base hit due to rules in place governing the use of equipment.
The bases were loaded at the time, and the Athletics scored two runs on the play.
“One of the most amazing things I’ve ever seen,” Rizzs said. “It’s a stupid rule. The ball never hit the ground. I don’t know if we’ll ever see that again.”
Rizzs, now in his 52nd year in professional baseball, said he was primarily relieved that Gilbert was uninjured.
“I was just glad he was all right,” he said.
Manda Factor is the host of “Seattle’s Morning News” on KIRO Newsradio. Follow Manda on X and email her here.
