Cal Raleigh's Dad Hilariously Hit Him With a Pitch During Home Run Derby Round

That would've been an awkward pitcher to charge the mound against.
Cal Raleigh's dad was his Home Run Derby pitcher Monday night
Cal Raleigh's dad was his Home Run Derby pitcher Monday night / Screengrab via ESPN
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Cal Raleigh turned his Home Run Derby appearance into a memory his family will remember forever.

The Seattle Mariners star catcher and MLB's leader in home runs had his father, Todd, pitch to him during the Derby. The family affair didn't end there either as his brother, Todd Jr., was behind the plate. It was a sweet moment that created a photo which makes for an elite mantlepiece in the Raleigh family home.

Todd has a prestigious baseball background as a former Division I coach at the University of Tennessee and Western Carolina University. When he got the call to pitch to his son Monday night in Atlanta, it was a no-brainer.

The father-son duo did result in a funny moment though when the elder Raleigh hit his son in the elbow on a pitch he threw during the first round.

No harm, no foul though as "Big Dumper" brushed it off, completing his first round with 17 homers. He advanced to the semifinals through a tiebreaker with Athletics slugger Brent Rooker, who also hit 17 long balls. Raleigh's longest homer went farther than Rooker's by less than a tenth of a foot—what a way to advance.

Todd gets to pitch to his son in the knockout round—hopefully we don't see any chin music.


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Blake Silverman
BLAKE SILVERMAN

Blake Silverman is a contributor to the Breaking and Trending News team at Sports Illustrated. Before joining SI in November 2024, he covered the WNBA, NBA, G League and college basketball for numerous sites, including Winsidr, SB Nation's Detroit Bad Boys and A10Talk. He graduated from Michigan State University before receiving a master's in sports journalism from St. Bonaventure University. Outside of work, he's probably binging the latest Netflix documentary, at a yoga studio or enjoying everything Detroit sports. A lifelong Michigander, he lives in suburban Detroit with his wife, young son and their personal petting zoo of two cats and a dog.