This year, Cal Raleigh’s bat is putting up historic numbers. His home runs leave parks with stunning regularity. But there was a particular moment on July 8th that captured his unique fame. During a game against the New York Yankees, the broadcast zoomed in. The YES Network pointed its cameras right at Raleigh’s backside. Announcer Michael Kay then attempted to explain the catcher’s widely known nickname. “They gave him the nickname ‘Big Dumper’ because he has a pretty large posterior,” Kay stated live on air. The moment got hilariously weird when the camera stayed close, prompting Kay to shout, “We’re getting a close-up! I don’t know if we need that, guys. Goodness.”
The viral moment only intensified the public’s desire to know more. The question even trailed Raleigh at the Home Run Derby. Sitting alongside baseball royalty on FOX Sports’ pregame show, Raleigh finally cleared up the story. Hall of Famer David Ortiz, who was himself known as “Big Papi,” asked the question that was on everyone’s mind, and the Mariners’ catcher gave a straightforward answer.
Raleigh revealed that the real meaning of his nickname was indeed exactly what everyone had always suspected. It’s a moniker born from his anatomy, not just his on-field heroics. “It obviously comes from my b-tt. I’ve always had a large b-tt. It’s a blessing and a curse, I guess,” he said.
“It obviously comes from my butt. I’ve always had a large butt. It’s a blessing and a curse, I guess.”
Cal Raleigh tells @davidortiz and the crew where his Big Dumper nickname came from pic.twitter.com/6G0tc4Y8J7
— FOX Sports: MLB (@MLBONFOX) July 14, 2025
The moniker was not the work of fans. It began inside the Mariners’ clubhouse years ago. Raleigh’s teammate Jarred Kelenic gets the credit for coining it back in 2020 when they were on the team’s alternate training site during the pandemic. It became public when Kelenic posted on social media about Raleigh’s promotion to the big leagues. “Big dumper to the show,” he wrote on X on July 11, 2021.
Raleigh did not like it when the nickname first surfaced. As he later confessed, “It’s not the one you write up in your mind when you’re thinking of nicknames.” But he ultimately embraced it, feeling that it was a powerful way to connect with the fanbase. “I love it. I think it’s great,” he said in a 2023 interview, before further adding, “It gets the fans involved and they have fun with it. And that is what it’s all about. It’s a good time”.
Although Raleigh has embraced the name, not everyone in his family is crazy about it. His mom, Stephanie Raleigh, said what she thought: “It stinks.” Continuing further, she added, “He’s accepted it, so I’m good with it, too. I won’t say I love it, though.”
Well, family’s acceptance was critical because the nickname was about to erupt into a full-scale commercial phenomenon.
Big Dumper: From clubhouse joke to marketing homerun
The Seattle Mariners organization realized the natural fit the name had with fans. So, they wisely decided to embrace the phenomenon. For one of their ad campaigns, the team created a ‘Big Dumper Trucking’ commercial. There were even t-shirts featuring, “We got junk in the trunk.” The team’s T-Mobile Park store also carried authentic player jerseys, wearing BIG DUMPER on the back. The club even hosted a ‘Platinum Dumper’ bobblehead night, creating a massive fan buzz.
The tradition of quirky monikers in baseball is almost as old as the game itself. Ron Cey, a power-hitting Dodgers third baseman, was known as “The Penguin.” His teammates said he waddled when he ran the bases. Colorful Red Sox pitcher Bill Lee was dubbed “Spaceman.” His off-the-wall character and out-there ideas made the name a great fit. And who could forget Richie Hebner, who was called “The Gravedigger.” In the offseason, he actually used to work digging graves for his father’s company.
The list is endless. Pitcher Walter Beck went by the name “Boom-Boom,” which came from the sound of the ball hitting the wall upon impact. Also, Marlins closer Antonio Alfonseca was known as “El Pulpo,” which means The Octopus in Spanish. He was born with an additional finger on each hand. Mike Hargrove got known as “The Human Rain Delay” due to his lengthy batter’s box process.
So, while the Mariners’ marketing blitz proves Raleigh’s moniker is special, it only belongs to a grand baseball tradition of unforgettable names.
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