Seattle Mariners Announce Cal Raleigh Decision During Twins Series

The Seattle Mariners fell to 53-58 on Friday night after dropping their series opener to the Minnesota Twins, 5-3.

On Saturday, the Twins will send Connor Prielipp to the mound, while the Mariners will counter with Logan Gilbert.

Ahead of the game, Mariners manager Dan Wilson made a notable lineup change involving slugger Cal Raleigh.

Mariners Make Raleigh Decision

After catching each of the last four games, Raleigh will get a break from defensive duties.

Instead, the Mariners moved him to designated hitter for Saturday afternoon’s game and bumped him up one spot in the lineup from No. 6 to No. 5.

Mitch Garver will start behind the plate and catch Gilbert.

Here’s the full lineup:

Mariners 8/1

C. Young 2B
R. Arozarena LF
D. Canzone RF
J. Rodríguez CF
C. Raleigh DH
J. Naylor 1B
M. Garver C
W. Wilson 3B
C. Emerson SS

L. Gilbert SP

— Underdog MLB (@UnderdogMLB) August 1, 2026

Raleigh’s 2026 Season

After an MVP-caliber campaign last season that saw him finish second in the voting while leading MLB with 60 home runs and 125 RBIs, this season has not gone as planned for Raleigh at the plate.

Raleigh recorded a hit and two RBIs in Friday night’s series opener, but he’s batting just .164 on the season with 47 hits, 11 home runs, and 39 RBIs. He is slugging .308 and owns a .579 OPS.

Mariners Right Now

Seattle remains in the postseason race despite its struggles, but the club still has work to do.

At 53-58, the Mariners sit 3.0 games behind the AL West-leading team and 3.0 games out of the final American League Wild Card spot.

They’ll wrap up the series against the Twins on Sunday before opening a three-game set against the Detroit Tigers next week.

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