SEATTLE (AP) 鈥� The Big Dumper is back with the Seattle Mariners, and they鈥檙e ready for him to make a big difference.
Star catcher Cal Raleigh, runner-up in AL MVP voting last season after hitting 60 home runs, was reinstated from the 10-day injured list Tuesday. He was in the lineup and behind the plate as the Mariners returned home for their series opener against the Baltimore Orioles.
Raleigh had been out since May 14 with a right oblique strain, the first IL stint of his career. Seattle went 15-13 without him and was still leading the AL West, but the team finished 4-6 recently on a 10-game trip through Detroit, Baltimore and Washington.
鈥淚鈥檓 just really just excited to get back,鈥� said Raleigh who hit .412 (7 for 17) with five home runs and 12 RBIs in a five-game rehab assignment with Class A Everett and Triple-A Tacoma.
鈥淚 missed it a lot, and it was a fun week getting back out there. I鈥檓 really excited just to get back to it, be with the guys, and get back in the thick of it.鈥�
Raleigh鈥檚 numbers prior to the injury were nowhere near what he became accustomed to during his historic 2025 campaign, when he established single-season records for homers by a catcher, a switch-hitter and a Mariners player. He entered Tuesday鈥檚 game with a .161 batting average, seven homers and 18 RBIs.
He said Tuesday he feels as though renewed health and the rehab assignment should benefit him.
鈥淚 thought I had some good practice, good timing, good game results and a good process,鈥� Raleigh said. 鈥淪o I鈥檓 taking all that as a positive and kind of rolling it into here. That鈥檚 what I wanted to do, and thought I executed it pretty well.鈥�
Raleigh wasn鈥檛 the only reinforcement to arrive for Seattle on Tuesday. Veteran shortstop J.P. Crawford, who had been on the injured list since June 5 after being hit in the hand by a pitch at Detroit, returned to action and promptly was inserted as the team鈥檚 starting third baseman for the first time this season as the club continues to see what rookie shortstop Colt Emerson can do.
鈥淕etting Cal back is huge,鈥� manager Dan Wilson said. 鈥淗aving him behind the plate and active and ready to go is a huge lift. And J.P. coming back as well.
鈥淚 think we鈥檙e excited to be back home and ready to play in front of the home folks.鈥�
Seattle did have a setback, however, as outfielder Randy Arozarena was placed on the 10-day injured list with a left hamstring strain. The move was retroactive to Saturday.
Arozarena hasn鈥檛 played since last Friday, and an MRI on Tuesday showed mild inflammation.
鈥淲e had hoped to go day-to-day with the feeling that he could be back as soon as tomorrow,鈥� Mariners general manager Justin Hollander said.
鈥淓very opinion from our medical people on how Randy was testing out indicated that he was very likely trending in the right direction and was a real possibility to be available tomorrow. The MRI cast a little doubt on that.鈥�
The Mariners already have Luke Raley and Josh Naylor experiencing minor day-to-day health issues, so the team was risking playing with an almost empty bench on Tuesday night if it didn鈥檛 make a move.
鈥淲e don鈥檛 anticipate a stay on the IL longer than the minimum,鈥� Hollander said of Arozarena, 鈥渂ut we can鈥檛 play three people short for any length of time.鈥�
In the corresponding move, the Mariners selected the contract of outfielder Curtis Washington Jr. from Class A Everett, because that team was playing in the area.
In other roster moves, catcher Jhonny Pereda was optioned to Tacoma, and third baseman Will Wilson (broken left thumb) was transferred to the 60-day injured list.
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