By Paul L. Taylor Posted on

Mariners aiming to move on following Randy Arozarena’s apology

Randy Arozarena’s second statement advised he has spoken to Cal Raleigh and they are both focused on the Mariners’ quest for a World Series.

When Randy Arozarena released a statement a week ago through the Seattle Mariners, it didn’t actually address the situation which resulted in the need for said statement in the first place. In fact, by omitting to even mention Cal Raleigh it almost made the unnecessary drama surrounding what happened during the World Baseball Classic become even more troublesome, whether it was deemed real or perceived.

As such, there were plenty of relieved Mariners fans on Saturday, when Arozarena released a second statement which this time mentioned Raleigh and how he had apologized to his teammate for what happened. The statement said:

“I understand that with Opening Day a few days away, I don’t want it to be a distraction. Cal and I have talked and I apologized for what I said after the game. Nothing in the WBC takes away from the fact that we are brothers and teammates. He’s family, and we are both focused on helping the Mariners win the World Series.”

Cal Raleigh reiterates that he never had any issue with Randy Arozarena

The hope is this second statement and the apology will finally put to bed any potential for lingering animosity during the 2026 season, although to be fair Raleigh had previously said there were no issues from his side anyway. In any event, he discussed the matter again on Saturday with MLB.com’s Daniel Kramer and other members of the media following the Mariners’ 7-1 Cactus League loss to the Chicago Cubs, as he said:

“We talked it out, and everything went great. Randy knows that I love him, and he’s a brother, and it’s in the past and none of us are carrying this forward. We’re in a good spot. We talked it out. We were both sorry, and we both got in a good place and we’re both happy to be here, too. It was really good walking in the door and seeing everybody. As fun as [the WBC] was, it was nice to feel back here. It feels like the family’s all back together in a way.”

That the incident during the WBC game between Team USA and Mexico even became a thing in the first place was extremely frustrating, especially when it transpired Arozarena had known ahead of time not to try and shake Raleigh’s hand. As such, the implication was almost that the 2021 AL Rookie of the Year was almost intentionally atagonizing the situation.

 The two-time All-Star went off during postgame interviews about a lack of respect, when the reality is it was he who showed this by making his Mariners teammate look bad in front of an international audience. For some — fair or not — this was just another example a player not helping himself, after previous examples over the years of on-field antics including showboating, a lack of effort on defense, and questionable base-running decisions.

Randy Arozarena warming up at the right time for the Mariners

Now though, the genuine belief is that the situation is resolved and everyone can move on and focus on the most important goal of striving for that first ever World Series berth and championship. And Arozarena seems to be coming into form at the right time, with four hits, a home run, four RBI and a walk in his past four Cactus League games.

Mariners manager Dan Wilson was more than happy that the situation had been resolved, as he mentioned the positive chemistry between Raleigh and Arozarena specifically, but also within the team as a whole. Wilson said:

“It doesn’t surprise me. That’s what we’ve talked about in that clubhouse. It’s just a special group. They love each other, and yeah, it’s time. I think we’re all ready to get back to Seattle and get this thing started.”

The 50th season of Mariners baseball in Seattle has the potential to be an extremely special one for a team which plenty of media experts are picking to represent the AL in the World Series come late October. And make no mistake that a harmonious Raleigh and Arozarena playing to their full potential, is at the heart of making such predictions become a reality.

Photos court​‌esy of Tim Rogers Photography

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