Sports

Did Cal Raleigh Leave Another One Of His Mariners Teammates Hanging At The World Baseball Classic

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Cal Raleigh Josh Naylor

© Nick Turchiaro/Imagn


Other than the United States nearly getting improbably eliminated in pool play, the biggest story at the 2026 World Baseball Classic has been Seattle Mariners superstar Cal Raleigh.

Unfortunately for Raleigh, that story hasn’t surrounded his strong play on the field. Or, even, his poor play on the field. Instead, it has to do with two bizarre incidents involving a pair of Seattle Mariners teammates who were playing for different countries.

The first incident occurred when Raleigh refused a handshake from Mariners’ outfielder Randy Arozarena during Team USA’s Pool B victory over Mexico.

The snub set off Arozarena, who laid into Raleigh after the game.

“The ‘good to see you’ he said to me, he can shove it up his a—,” Arozarena said in Spanish.

Arozarena also stated that Raleigh should “f— off” and “go to hell.”

Lest anyone think Arozarena was joking, he issued a statement after Mexico was eliminated, clarifying that he was extremely serious.

But Arozarena wasn’t the only teammate Raleigh refused to acknowledge

Cal Raleigh Snubbed Josh Naylor Too!

During Thursday night’s quarterfinal matchup with Team Canada, Seattle Mariners’ first baseman Josh Naylor reached out to attempt to give Raleigh a fist bump at the plate.

Raleigh wasn’t having it.

This time, however, Naylor didn’t react as angrily as Arozarena. Instead, he seemed to be poking fun at the entire situation.

Naylor told members of the media that he texted Raleigh prior to the game telling him he planned on offering a fist up, to which Raleigh reportedly replied, “please don’t.”

“We were all just joking. Trying to really make light of the situation,” Naylor said. “But me and Cal are really good friends. He’s an awesome teammate and honestly one of my favorite teammates I think I’ve ever had in my career. He’s such a leader, too. I was really, really happy to get traded to the Mariners last year and kind of experience being in the locker room with him.”

Clearly, Naylor and Raleigh found humor in the situation. But they may well have to clear things up with Arozarena when the trio returns to the same locker room.