Why Team USA catcher Cal Raleigh is nicknamed 'Big Dumper'

Jim Reineking, USA TODAYFri, March 6, 2026 at 3:00 PM UTC

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Cal Raleigh enjoyed a season for the ages in 2025.

Raleigh became the sixth different major leaguer to hit at least 60 home runs in a single season. In doing so, he set the single-season home run record for a catcher, broke the Mariners' record set by Ken Griffey Jr. and topped Mickey Mantle's mark for switch hitters. In between, Raleigh became the first catcher to win the Home Run Derby at the All-Star Game.

After the season, Raleigh finished second to Aaron Judge in the American League MVP voting. Raleigh's huge season helped the Mariners win the AL West and reach the ALCS for the first time since 2001. Raleigh will kick off his 2026 campaign by representing Team USA at the World Baseball Classic.

Being a prodigious home run masher makes Raleigh's nickname — "Big Dumper" — hilariously appropriate. His 2025 rise to stardom also made his memorable nickname famous.

Here is how Raleigh became known as "The Big Dumper":

1 / 0Team USA World Baseball Classic roster: Meet the squadPitcher: David BednarWhy is Cal Raleigh nicknamed 'Big Dumper'?

Well, if you've seen Raleigh in action, you are aware of the 6-foot-2, 235-pounder's hefty carriage, particularly his posterior.

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Jarred Kelenic, a former minor- and major-league teammate of Raleigh, took notice of Raleigh's hindquarters and used "Big Dumper" to describe his teammate's rump.

In 2021, when Raleigh got called up to the Mariners, Kelenic went public with the tushy nickname, tweeting "Big dumper to the show" in response to the team's call-up announcement.

At first Raleigh didn't appreciate the description of his derriere, but seems to have warmed up to it now that his gluteus maximus is part of his brand.

"Everyone has always joked around that I have a big butt," Raleigh told The Athletic in 2023. "(The nickname) fizzled a little but then picked up last year and gained traction. I guess people thought it was hilarious."

In an interview with ROOT Sports last season, Raleigh's mother didn't like that her son was the butt of jokes, saying the nickname, "stinks."

"I'll roll with it," Raleigh's mom, Stephanie Raleigh, said. "He's accepted it, so I'm good with it, too. I won't say I love it though."

This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: Why is Cal Raleigh's nickname Big Dumper?

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