Words have a funny way of sticking around, and this story begins with a few salty words. Back in April 2024, Blue Jays manager John Schneider was asked about Cal Raleigh’s success against his team when Raleigh crushed a 10th-inning homer in a Mariners win.  “He’s not very tough to pitch to when you execute your pitches,” Schneider said. The comment did not go unnoticed, as Raleigh replied, “I know a lot of guys have beef with [Schneider] in the league. His comments aren’t surprising. I don’t have much to say. If you don’t have anything nice, don’t say it at all, I guess.”

Now, after leading his Seattle Mariners through an exhausting 15-inning win against the Detroit Tigers, Raleigh gets the ultimate chance for payback in their meeting against Schneider’s Blue Jays in the American League Championship Series 2025. Plus, Cal Raleigh has a record of tormenting the Blue Jays better than any active player has done over the years.

That’s why Daniel Kramer of MLB wrote, “While most outside the Pacific Northwest — at least on a national scale — didn’t truly catch on to the promising young career he’d embarked on until this season, that has not been the case whatsoever north of the border.” Why so?

In his 26 career games against them, including postseason, Raleigh has 11 homers and a 1.062 OPS. He is even more dangerous at Rogers Center, where he has a slash line of .300/.375/.820 (1.195 OPS) with eight homers, two doubles, and 17 RBIs, and his slugging percentage and OPS here are the highest in the venue’s history for any player with at least 56 plate appearances.

Raleigh’s biggest moments in Toronto came during the 2022 AL Wild Card Series, where he was a central figure in the Mariners’ two-game sweep of the Blue Jays. He hit a tone-setting home run in Game 1 in Luis Castillo’s most monumental start with the Mariners. Then, in Game 2, he scored a game-winning run on an RBI double in the eighth after hitting a double.

And now he returns as a completely different player this season. Where the Raleigh of 2022 was a promising rookie who only got his chance after catcher Tom Murphy was sidelined with a dislocated left shoulder, the Raleigh of 2025 is arguably the best power hitter in baseball right now.

He just completed a historic 60-homer season and will either win the AL MVP award or end runner-up to the Yankees captain. 

And in his last series, he was the Mariners’ best hitter in their five-game ALDS win over the Tigers, posting a .381 batting average and a 1.051 OPS. That’s why Toronto’s Game 1 starter, Kevin Gausman, said, “What a season he’s had and what a great switch-hitter at such a hard position to hit.”

But the 15-inning marathon took a toll. “The mental part of it is definitely more exhausting than the physical,” Raleigh said. “But mentally, having to deal with new pitchers and trying to face guys six, seven, eight times, whatever amount it was, it gets to be tough. Just the emotional roller coaster, as well. It’s a lot of fun, but it’s a lot of feelings and emotions going on.” Some of the emotion may stem from his heated exchange with Jays pitcher José Berríos over alleged sign-stealing in April.

Considering all of the above, Schneider’s old comments about him being “not very tough to pitch to” now look objectively foolish.

But we still can’t ignore…

Blue Jays hold nearly every other advantage heading into this series

The Seattle Mariners are walking into this series with just one day of rest after traveling for most of that while playing 15 innings in Game 5 against the Tigers. The marathon game has left Seattle’s pitching staff in a very tough spot. Starters Luis Castillo and Logan Gilbert also pitched out of the bullpen to win Game 5.

Castillo threw 15 pitches to get the final four outs. The Mariners must start Bryce Miller in Game 1 on only three days of rest, who threw 55 pitches in his last start on Wednesday.

To make matters worse, the Mariners’ ace is still on the sideline. Bryan Woo missed the entire ALDS with pectoral inflammation. He is expected to be on the ALCS roster, but he likely will not be available to pitch until Game 3 or 4 when the series moves to Seattle. That forces Seattle to start a championship series with a gassed bullpen and a compromised rotation.

And after finishing the regular season with a 94-68 record, the Toronto Blue Jays defeated their rival New York Yankees in a dominant 3-1 series victory. Vladimir Guerrero Jr. had a monster series, hitting .529 with three homers and nine RBIs, and as a team, Toronto hit .338 against the Yankees.

George Springer also had a great season. Rookie starter Trey Yesavage set a Blue Jays postseason record with 11 strikeouts in his Game 2 start. The team could get even stronger, as key players like Bo Bichette and Max Scherzer may return for the ALCS.

So, it will be interesting to see who gets the edge on this ALCS between these two 1977 expansion teams, where each of them will be desperate to end a long championship drought. The Blue Jays haven’t been this far since 2016 and are chasing their first World Series title since 1993.

The Mariners are in the ALCS for the first time since their historic 2001 season and are the only MLB team never to reach the World Series.