Mariners' Luke Raley is red hot right now, and it is aiding Raleigh's turbulent season originally appeared on The Sporting News. Add The Sporting News as a Preferred Source by clicking here.
The Seattle Mariners have been playing solid baseball in 2026, and it has been without their polarizing and most valueable player, Cal Raleigh. He has been streaky, in the worst way possible, thus having him ride the bench on more than one occasion this season.
Luckily, there has been another key player that has stepped up in Raleigh's absence, and that is Luke Raley. The former Los Angeles Dodgers' outfielder is now raking it with the Mars', and doing so at a solid rate.
Raley has 10 home runs on the season, which leads the team. He also leads this squad in slugging% at .584, which is higher than Chicago White Sox sensation, Munetaka Murakami. It is important to note that Raley has not had the necessary at-bats to be registered with the top of these stat lists, but if he was, his OPS of .920 would be inside the top-five of the American League as well.
No. 20 has been a fantstic fixture in this lineup, and is one of the many reasons why they sit in the second spot of the American League West. And, without the guy that smashed 60 homers last season in Raleigh, Raley is going to have to lead the way all season long.
Thomas Harrigan of MLB.com named Raley as one of the nine most surprising players in baseball this season, and deservingly so. He is a leader on this team at the plate, and should be going forward.
If the Mariners want to make it back to the postseason, obviously, there first priority is fixing whatever is wrong with Raliegh. But, using Raley as a replacement in power and impact in the lineup is a nice second option. Especially with Raleigh on the IL.
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