HOUSTON (AP) — Cal Raleigh insisted Tuesday he has no beef with Randy Arozarena even though his Seattle teammate lashed out with a vulgar rant after Raleigh left him hanging for a handshake at the World Baseball Classic.
The kerfuffle went viral when Arozarena, a two-time All-Star outfielder playing for Mexico, cursed out Raleigh to a reporter after the U.S. catcher did not accept a handshake before an at-bat in the Americans’ 5-3 win.
Speaking to Mexican journalist Luis Gilbert in Spanish, Arozarena said Raleigh “has to thank God that he has nice parents, well educated,” and said he recently hugged them during a friendly greeting at the team hotel.
He then used profane Cuban and Mexican slang to insult Raleigh before pivoting to English and saying Raleigh could shove his “good to see you” in his rear. Arozarena was born in Cuba but defected to Mexico to pursue an MLB career.
Arozarena had reached down to greet Raleigh in his catcher’s squat at home plate, and Raleigh declined to offer his hand back. Raleigh appeared to say something to Arozarena during the exchange at the plate that could have set off the Mexican star.
Arozarena appeared to be visibly upset at Raleigh, though it wasn’t totally clear if he was just having fun at his teammate’s expense. The pair have been teammates since Arozarena was traded from Tampa Bay to Seattle during the 2024 season.
Raleigh called Arozarena a baseball “brother” while explaining there was no tension between the teammates.
“I love Randy, I do,” Raleigh said before the U.S. played Italy on Tuesday night. “I hate that this is a thing. There’s no beef when we get back to Seattle. He’s my brother. We’re family.”
He said he spoke to Arozarena on Tuesday.
“He’s awesome,” Raleigh said. “He’s been great for our team and we talked and this isn’t this isn’t a big deal at all. So we’re good friends and we’ll continue to be good friends, and I think we’re just enjoying competing against each other right now.”
Mariners manager Dan Wilson told reporters he planned to speak to both of his players at Tuesday.
“These guys are incredible athletes because of their competitiveness, and that’s where they’re at, and that’s why they’ve gotten to the level that they’ve gotten,” Wilson said. “But I also know that our team loves each other deeply. And that’s one of the key ingredients we have in that clubhouse, is how much they love each other, and so I don’t anticipate this being any bit of an issue.”
Wilson doesn’t expect whatever happened between the two to linger into the regular season. The Mariners went 90-72 in 2025 and won the franchise’s first AL West title since 2001 in large part behind Raleigh, who became the seventh player in major league history to hit 60 homers in a season.
“Competitiveness is competitiveness,” Wilson said. “It doesn’t matter. Sometimes, it’s a backyard game. Whatever. These guys are competitive. But like I said, I think the love that they have for each other will shine.”
Raleigh said his priority right now is on his U.S. teammates.
“It’s just a competitive environment, and I know he would want the same for me when we’re on the team and playoff baseball,” he said. “I just have a responsibility for my teammates here right now and my country and emotions are running high.”
U.S. manager Mark DeRosa was asked about the incident Tuesday.
“You’re in the fight, man,” he said. “You’re trying to represent your colors, your country. And … I wouldn’t have had a problem if he dabbed him up. I don’t think it shows any (thing) one way or the other. But he chose not to. And I’m good with that, too.”
Aaron Judge hit a two-run homer and Roman Anthony added a three-run drive in a big third inning to lead the United States to the win. The U.S. improved to 3-0 and was set to play Italy (2-0) on Tuesday night, seeking to secure a spot in the quarterfinals in Houston this weekend.
Jarren Duran homered twice for Mexico (2-1), which will face Italy on Wednesday night in the last game of Group B play.
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AP MLB: https://apnews.com/hub/mlb
