SEATTLE -- ?Cal Raleigh? changed his walk-up tune on May 23, a transition from country to Outkast, the Atlanta rap icons who ruled the music scene during his childhood. And in a quirky coincidence, his new song¡¯s title was an apt personification of his heroics during the Mariners¡¯ 8-6 win over Oakland on Thursday night.?

"The Way You Move."

Raleigh raced around the bases for a Little League homer during the fifth inning, hitting his first career triple off center fielder Skye Bolt¡¯s glove, then advancing home after second baseman Nick Allen sailed a throw past third base for an error after Raleigh had already slid in. The play sent the crowd at T-Mobile Park on Pride Night into a roaring frenzy and evoked hilarious reactions from his teammates, two of which scored in the sequence.?

Julio Rodr¨ªguez waved a towel after Raleigh sat down on the dugout bench, implying that the catcher was on fire. It wasn¡¯t just how wild the moment was, but the player who orchestrated it -- the 6-foot-3, 235-pound switch-hitter, who ranks in the 36th percentile in sprint speed, per Statcast, but dialed it up to 26.9 feet per second on the three bagger, lumbering his way around the bases.

¡°Obviously, it was a big hit,¡± Raleigh said. ¡°I think it was a one-run game at that point and it put us up four runs, that was huge. And obviously it was just a cool moment. It was fun. Honestly, I felt like I was playing Little League again.¡±

Said manager Scott Servais, ¡°As big as he is, he runs OK once he gets going.¡±

Raleigh again went for extra bases in the eighth with a double near the right-field corner, a ball that landed in territory that might¡¯ve positioned him for a rare two-triple game, which would match his total for his entire Minor League career. But he joked that he didn¡¯t quite have the juice to finish it off.

¡°I didn¡¯t see the ball at first, so I kind of got a slow start out of the box,¡± Raleigh said. ¡°Then by the time I got to second, I was gassed. I should¡¯ve tried to do it. Why not?¡±

Raleigh¡¯s contributions came on a night where the Mariners felt another repercussion from their benches-clearing fight in Anaheim last weekend, as shortstop J.P. Crawford began his suspension after filing an appeal. Jesse Winker will follow, and Rodr¨ªguez, too, if his appeal is not overturned. That puts even more onus on other hitters, but especially Raleigh, given how strong of a run he¡¯s on.

In 30 games dating back to May 23 -- coincidentally, the day he changed his walkup song -- Raleigh is hitting .250/.319/.560 (.879 OPS), way up from the .087/.208/.283 (.490 OPS) slash line he had in his first 19 games of 2022, part of which led to a Minor League demotion in late April. But with a season-ending injury to Tom Murphy and Luis Torrens on the 10-day IL, and when healthy, not showing nearly as much consistency as last year, the starting gig has firmly become Raleigh¡¯s.

Raleigh started all three games in the Mariners¡¯ series against Baltimore, including Wednesday¡¯s matinee, which was another sign for how much Seattle needs him right now. Typically, catchers don¡¯t start day games the morning after playing a night game, but with Luis Torrens suffering from left shoulder inflammation sustained in Sunday¡¯s fight, their only other option is Andrew Knapp, who has a .432 OPS in 73 games the past two seasons and was signed to a Minor League contract on May 21, and then selected from Triple-A Tacoma when Torrens was shelved on Monday.

Knapp will start as soon as Friday, per Servais, and see some sparing time while Torrens recovers. Servais, an 11-year big league backstop, is balancing the need for Raleigh and the wear-and-tear of catching as the season isn¡¯t even half over. Servais opted not to use Raleigh as the DH for Sunday¡¯s day game, in order to allocate him a full off-day, and he said that Raleigh will likely sit on Friday for that very reason.

¡°You can't plan it, so to speak. You don't know when young guys are going to figure it out,¡± Servais said. ¡°If you just continue to give them opportunities and coach them up, talk to them, listen to them. And I think that's what we've done with a lot of our guys. I couldn't be any happier for him. He's played a ton.¡±

No, the new walkup tune isn¡¯t the cause for Raleigh¡¯s rise, though it is a fun coincidence. The true factors have been a combination of being better on time for fastballs, which has helped him see breaking balls better -- such as the slider he dug out for the triple -- as well as shortening his swing and not selling out as much for power.

But perhaps the biggest of all, especially after a tough rookie season, is confidence.

¡°It¡¯s what I¡¯ve always wanted -- I want to be the starting catcher for a big league team,¡± Raleigh said. ¡°And I¡¯m getting a chance to do that right now, and it¡¯s everything I¡¯ve hoped for. I love it.¡±