North Carolina native Cal Raleigh, a catcher for the Seattle Mariners, has had a banner year. The twenty-eight-year-old smashed sixty home runs (the most by any player this season and most by a catcher and switch-hitter ever), earned his first All-Star selection, won the Home Run Derby, and is a front-runner for American League Most Valuable Player. His team is having a big year, too: The Mariners won their division with the third-best record in the A.L. and are now in the playoffs.
Of course, any career highlight reel of Raleigh’s would be incomplete without mentioning his nickname, which teammate Jarred Kelenic bequeathed him in 2021. As Raleigh and the Mariners fight for even more glory in 2025, here are five things to know about the Big Dumper.
He’s from Western North Carolina.
Raleigh was born and raised in the small town of Cullowhee, where his parents run a printing business, and attended Smoky Mountain High School in nearby Sylva. He batted .469 in his senior season, hitting ten homers, and was also a standout basketball player. When Hurricane Helene devastated the region in 2024, Raleigh took to Instagram to raise money and solicit donations of food and water.
Baseball’s in his blood.
Raleigh’s father, Todd, served as a catcher for Western Carolina University from 1988 to 1991 and went on to coach college baseball for the Catamounts (for whom Raleigh served as a bat boy) and the Tennessee Volunteers. His mother, Stephanie, was a three-sport athlete (basketball, volleyball, and track) at Sylva-Webster High School; sisters Emma Grace and Carley are also athletes; and younger brother Todd Jr. (who goes by “T”) plays youth travel baseball and is also a switch-hitting catcher.
He played ball at Florida State University.
Though he originally committed to Clemson, Raleigh ended up playing three seasons for the Noles. He batted over .300 all three seasons before being drafted by the Mariners in 2018. Raleigh isn’t the only FSU alum making waves—his former teammate Cam Smith plays for the Houston Astros.
Home Run Derby: He called it.
When Raleigh was eight years old, he appeared on a home video in an Asheville Tourists jersey proclaiming himself “Home Run Derby champ.” Twenty years later, his declaration came true when he defeated Rays infielder Junior Caminero in the final round, 18–15, to become the first catcher to take the title. His family was involved in the achievement; he invited his dad to pitch to him and his brother to catch.
What about that nickname?
The Big Dumper, which refers to his prominent posterior, became a viral sensation after Kelenic tweeted it in 2021. Raleigh’s mother has said she thinks the nickname “stinks,” but that she and Raleigh have accepted it. The Mariners’ promotion team has run with it as well, offering a Big Dumper seat cushion giveaway, staging a Big Dumper Era night, and giving away 10,000 “Platinum Dumper” bobbleheads. “I’ve always had a large butt,” Raleigh says. “It’s a blessing and a curse, I guess.”
omg Becky, look at that bobblehead
— Seattle Mariners (@Mariners) April 3, 2025
🎟️ https://t.co/bpRba3Cjxn pic.twitter.com/t7D6zY3ygp
He’s got instant legend status in Seattle.
Generous proportions aside, he’s already part of Mariners lore thanks to a 2022 home run that broke a twenty-one-year playoff drought for the franchise. The situation: Tie game against the (then-)Oakland Athletics, bottom of the ninth, two outs, full count. Every kid’s dream scenario. Watch the full sequence for yourself and try not to get chills:
