Overview
- Raleigh acknowledged his struggles in public comments this week, saying “I’m awful” and taking responsibility for the team’s slump.
- The catcher’s numbers have plunged from 2025, with coverage citing a roughly .159 batting average, a .264 on-base percentage, a .299 slugging percentage and 12 homers this season.
- Analysts and reports point to a jump in strikeouts and chasing out of the zone—coverage lists a 32.2% strikeout rate and a 36.6% chase rate—as evidence of timing and mechanical problems at the plate.
- Seattle’s offense has cratered alongside Raleigh’s slide, scoring 469 runs and producing a .681 team OPS that ranked near the bottom of MLB, leaving the club below .500 and a long way back in the wild-card race.
- Observers note the sharp contrast with Raleigh’s 2025 breakout (60 homers and an AL MVP runner-up finish) and offer the World Baseball Classic participation and midseason mechanical timing issues as possible explanations while reporting that some sources speculate about managerial accountability.