Randy Arozarena hits career milestone with HR vs. Royals
When the Seattle Mariners hit a milestone home run in 2025, thoughts immediately turn to Cal Raleigh. The Gold Glove catcher leads the majors with 32 homers this season. But in Monday's matchup against the Kansas City Royals, Randy Arozarena grabbed the spotlight.
The All-Star outfielder left the yard in the fourth inning, hitting his 100th career home run, per MLB.
Arozarena jumped on the first pitch of the at-bat, blasting a Michael Wacha cutter 395 feet to right center. It was his ninth homer of the season and the 100th of his seven-year career.
But Arozarena wasn't done yet. He added to his impressive career total the following inning, crushing a 94 mph four-seamer 401 feet to center. The three-run bomb gave the Mariners a 5-1 lead over Kansas City.
Randy Arozarena reaches 100 home runs in multi-homer game for Mariners
Seattle acquired Arozarena in a trade with the Tampa Bay Rays at the deadline last season. The team had hoped the addition would spark the Mariners' struggling offense and help with a second-half playoff push. That didn't materialize as Seattle missed the postseason for the second straight year.
Arozarena hasn't put up eye-popping stats with the Mariners. But with his two-homer game, he's now on pace for his fourth consecutive 20/20 season as he's up to 10 home runs and 15 stolen bases in 2025. He entered Monday's contest slashing .244/.358/.416 with a 122 OPS+ and 2.7 bWAR in 81 games.
While Arozarena has contributed solid stats, the Mariners' offense in 2025 revolves around their switch-hitting catcher. Raleigh joined elite company with his power surge in the first half of the season. He leads the majors in home runs and RBI while adding Gold Glove-caliber defense behind the plate.
However, Seattle's pitching has been a disappointment this year. While the rotation was the team's biggest strength in 2024, several key starters have dealt with injuries this season.
The Mariners did get a strong outing from George Kirby on Monday. He allowed one run on three hits with five strikeouts over six innings of work. The fourth-year veteran was an All-Star and Cy Young candidate in his breakout 2023 campaign and turned in another strong performance last year. But Kirby began the 2025 season on the injured list with shoulder inflammation and didn't make his debut until May 22.
The Mariners have gone 10-6 over the last 16 games heading into the series opener against the Royals. However, the Houston Astros have once again taken control of the AL West, building a 6.5 game lead over Seattle in the division.
Related: Mariners' Cal Raleigh joins elite company after 33rd home run
Related: Mariners' Miles Mastrobuoni extends Seattle-Rangers marathon with insane sliding grab
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