Raleigh, Judge heat up homer race at Yankee Stadium

NEW YORK — In the battle of baseball’s biggest sluggers, Aaron Judge and Cal Raleigh both delivered in round one.

Judge and Raleigh traded homers in the Yankees’ series-opening 10-3 win over the Seattle Mariners on Tuesday night in the Bronx, further fueling what is shaping up to be an epic home run race between the All-Stars.

Judge struck his 34th home run of the season in the seventh inning, briefly moving him within one of Raleigh’s MLB lead. Raleigh, the Mariners’ catcher, had an up-close view of Judge’s 345-foot solo shot against Casey Legumina.

But Raleigh answered in the eighth with a two-run blast against Geoff Hartlieb, giving him 36 on the year. Raleigh’s 394-foot no-doubter soared over Judge’s head and into the second-deck of the right-field stands.

“I think it’s what both sides are pretty ho-hum used to seeing, for them to put one on the board,” Yankees manager Aaron Boone said afterward. “You’ve got two guys in the mid-30s at this point in the season. Just a testament to how special of a season both of them are in the midst of.”

Raleigh is now on pace for 64 home runs, which would break the American League single-season record of 62 that Judge set in 2022. A few fans within the Yankee Stadium crowd of 38,641 groaned Tuesday as Raleigh settled into his home run trot.

Judge, meanwhile, is on pace for 61 homers, though he has one more through 91 team games this year than he did at the same point in 2022.

Raleigh, who is hitting .268 with 76 RBI and an 1.029 OPS, also poses the biggest threat in the AL MVP race to Judge, who has 75 RBI and leads the majors with a .360 average and a 1.205 OPS.

“He’s a complete hitter,” Judge said of Raleigh on Sunday. “Hits the ball all over the park. Being able to be a switch-hitter and have both your swings on like that, it’s impressive, so I’m excited to see him.”

Nicknamed “Big Dumper” for his powerful drives, Raleigh has already set a career high for home runs this season, eclipsing the 34 he hit last year.

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But he is eyeing much more than personal history.

Raleigh is on pace to break the record for home runs in a season by a primary catcher, which Salvador Perez set with 48 in 2021.

He is also on pace to set the record for home runs in a season by a switch-hitter, which belongs to Mickey Mantle, who struck 54 during his famous 1961 campaign.

Raleigh broke the record for home runs by a primary catcher before an All-Star break more than two weeks ago, when he passed the 28 that Johnny Bench hit in 1970.

If he hits four homers in the next five games, Raleigh would break Barry Bonds’ overall pre-break record of 39 homers in 2001. Bonds finished with an MLB single-season record of 73 homers that year.

“Remarkable, really, when you consider the position and the rarefied — actually, not even rarefied, he’s made his own air, now, with the first half,” Boone said of Raleigh before Tuesday’s game. “From a power standpoint, he’s always had power, but now you’re just seeing a more improved and polished hitter.”