Harold Reynolds Offers Mariners a More Measured Look at Cal Raleigh’s Brutal Slump

There is no elegant way to spin a slump this loud. Cal Raleigh entered May 12 hitless in his last 36 at-bats, dragging his season slash line to .157/.238/.320 and forcing fans to hold their breath each time he’s at the plate. His last hit came on April 26, a home run against the Twins, which only makes the whole thing feel more jarring.

Raleigh is coming off a 2025 season that made him one of the biggest power threats in baseball. Now? His hitless stretch has covered 40 plate appearances, with only three walks and 15 strikeouts mixed in. That’s the kind of run that makes even routine at-bats feel like events.

That is also what made Harold Reynolds’ MLB Network breakdown land in such an interesting place. Reynolds, a former Mariner, was not pretending the slump is no big deal. He was offering something narrower and more useful: Raleigh looks “just a tick off” from the dangerous 2025 version.

Reynolds pointed to Raleigh’s heel lift and stride trigger appearing late compared to where they were during his monster 2025 season.

In other words, this may be more timing correction than offensive reinvention.

Harold Reynolds’ Cal Raleigh Breakdown Gives the Mariners a Correction, Not a Crisis

Last year, Raleigh’s best swing started earlier than it looked. His heel lift began while the ball was still in the pitcher’s glove, giving him time to get his front side down, quiet his lower half and reach a stable launch position before the pitch was on top of him. That sequencing gave his eyes a better chance to recognize spin and location. Then his hands and barrel could fire with the kind of authority that made him one of the sport’s most dangerous power bats.

Right now, that same sequence looks rushed. Reynolds’ point was that Raleigh’s front foot is still working to get down later in the delivery, sometimes as the ball is already coming toward him.

A fraction late in the batter’s box can become a mile. If the lower half is still moving when Raleigh needs to decide whether to swing, everything else gets squeezed. Pitch recognition gets worse, the hands rush to catch up, and the whole at-bat starts to feel late.

There’s another layer. Raleigh’s swing plane reportedly got steeper early this season, drifting farther into uppercut territory than the version that worked so well for him in 2025. Pair a late stride with a steeper path and suddenly velocity at the top of the zone becomes a real problem. 

That is why Reynolds’ diagnosis should land as measured, not dismissive. It gives the Mariners something to hunt. Start the load earlier and get the heel lift back in sync. That’s not a magic fix. Raleigh can be close mechanically and still look awful statistically. That’s where the Mariners have to stay patient without being passive.

Reynolds gave them his diagnosis. If he’s right, Raleigh’s slump may not require a reinvention. It may just require him to get his swing started a fraction earlier.

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