SEATTLE -- Cal Raleigh hadn’t even exited his car when the commotion began.
Just after shifting into park, the Mariners’ catcher made eye contact with the driver to his left -- a teenager who immediately recognized him, widened her eyes and covered her mouth before pointing at him in disbelief. It was the first of countless encounters during this specific shopping excursion, the setting of which was perhaps just as surreal as the blossoming celebrity himself.
Raleigh was at a Costco in the deep suburbs of Seattle, about 25 miles from T-Mobile Park, and shopping for items for the home he’d just purchased in the wake of signing a six-year, $105 million extension before Opening Day.
The property was an investment -- not for how real estate has skyrocketed in the Puget Sound region over the past decade, but rather, for Raleigh to put down roots. He joined J.P. Crawford as the only Mariners players who live here year-round.
“I didn't know a whole lot about Seattle at the very beginning, when I was drafted ... I slowly learned the culture and slowly learned what this organization, what the city was all about,” Raleigh said earlier this season. “I kind of fell in love with it.”
When the Mariners take the field for the American League Division Series on Saturday and Sunday, Raleigh will be the talk of the town and whose orbit everyone wants a slice of. But he’ll quickly point to his surrounding cast of characters for being just as vital to why they’re here.
And more so, as he bellowed to the home crowd at T-Mobile Park after last week’s division clincher, why they can “win the whole [expletive] thing.”
“I think, number one, enjoy it, take it in,” Raleigh said on Friday ahead of Game 1. “We're going to have a lot of fun. Enjoy these games. It's what you play for all year. This is a time when it gets fun. Everybody is going to be on their feet. It's going to be a packed house. It's going to mean just a little more, obviously, in the playoffs, so we're excited. It's just finding a way to take a deep breath here and there and resetting yourself every once in a while.”
As for that Costco voyage, Raleigh was regularly approached throughout the warehouse department store, snapping pictures and signing autographs.
These interactions are hardly an inconvenience, yet Raleigh did recognize that his favorite part of any trip to Costco -- the $1.50 hot dog -- would have to be a to-go experience this time around, otherwise a stationary setup in the dining area could turn into a full-fledged hullabaloo.
“They've been great all year long,” Raleigh said of Mariners fans. “They've been great in years prior, too, so it's not like this is a new thing or anything. It's just kind of taken on a different level maybe than in years past. And they've been amazing, and I'm really looking forward to seeing them this weekend.”
Raleigh obviously stands out away from the ballpark for his physical stature -- showcased by perhaps the best nickname in sports -- but his recognition has reached new heights in this historic season.
On a national level, his ascent to superstardom has been arguably the sport’s biggest storyline in 2025, as the Home Run Derby champ, a frontrunner for AL MVP, but more validating in his eyes, for being the centerpiece of the Mariners’ first AL West title since 2001.
“Getting to win the West last week was something super special, because it's something we haven't done in 20-plus years,” Raleigh said. “It was just nice to enjoy it with the guys, let the guard down, really just celebrate with them. And like I said, something that hasn't been done in a long time. So it meant a little more doing that, and doing that was amazing.”
The on-field accolades are why Raleigh is immediately recognized at a local Costco, but that he shops there on his own is a perfect encapsulation to why this region -- and the sport on a whole -- has fallen in love with him.
He’s the blue-collar catcher who swats 60 homers. The player who speaks his mind about his team’s competitive direction, even if it leads to uncomfortable conversations. The guy who raises the 12th Man Flag at Seahawks games and sounds the siren at Husky Stadium. The son who mows his folks’ lawn on a steamy off-day in Atlanta. The brother who invites his 15-year-old sibling to squat behind the plate for him in the Derby.
A man of the people.
“I think he's been well known around the league and respected,” said Raleigh’s father, Todd Sr.. “But as far as the fans, you're right, it's crazy now. Everybody seems to be on the train now and his popularity now. But as far as Cal, I haven't seen anything different. ... His humility hasn’t changed.”