Seattle’s LGBTQ community members say they hope that this Friday’s World Cup “Pride Match” between Egypt and Iran, two countries where homosexuality is criminalized, can be an opportunity to change minds.
Seattle, WA
What Cal said after signing new deal with Seattle Mariners
Cal Raleigh spoke glowingly about the city of Seattle and how badly he wants to deliver a World Series crown to the success-starved Mariners fanbase. He expressed confidence in his teammates and the organization. He teared up when talking about his family.
And of course, he worked in some good-natured ribbing toward his fellow battery mates in Seattle’s talented starting rotation.
Lefko: Cal’s commitment changes the feeling about Mariners’ future
After Raleigh and the Seattle Mariners agreed to a six-year, $105 million contract extension earlier this week, the organization formally announced the deal during a news conference on Friday. Here are some highlights what the slugging, Platinum Glove Award-winning catcher said.
A priceless connection
From his drought-breaking home run to his “Big Dumper” nickname, Raleigh has become a fan favorite since making his big league debut with the Mariners in 2021. And as the 28-year-old catcher has repeatedly emphasized, it’s a two-way bond.
“One of the big things when deciding wanting to sign here was wanting to be someone to bring a World Series to this city and to an organization and a place that’s been so special to me and my family,” Raleigh said. “Not a lot of guys get a chance to play for one organization their whole career. … And it means a lot that (the Mariners) believe in me and that I’m gonna get a chance to do that.
“I look at guys like Alvin Davis, Dan Wilson and Ichiro. They’re Mariner greats and they’re legends in the city of Seattle and how much they mean to this city. And I think that’s super special and something that money can’t buy.”
Seattle is a long way from Raleigh’s hometown of Cullowhee, North Carolina, or where he spent his college days at Florida State University. But he said it’s become his second home.
“To be honest, I didn’t know a whole lot about Seattle at the very beginning, even when I was drafted,” Raleigh said. “I came up here and played in Everett and slowly learned the culture and slowly learned what this organization and what this city is all about. And I kind of fell in love with it.
“This city has really embraced me, and not just me, but really all of our players. They’re great fans, they really are. They support us all the time and through the ups and downs. So when you have that kind of people in your background, it makes it really special and makes me want to stay here and want to play for those people.
“It’s not always about the money,” he added. “Sometimes it’s more about being happy and in a place that you love and a place that you really appreciate. And that’s what Seattle has shown me. And to get that opportunity to do that for a long time means a lot to me and my family.”
Confidence in the organization
The Mariners remain the only MLB franchise to never reach the World Series. Raleigh is determined to end that distinction.
“I believe in the guys in the room that we have right now,” Raleigh said. “One of the best (pitching) staffs in all of baseball, both bullpen and starters. Obviously looking ahead to the future, a lot of good young prospects. I know you can’t always count on that, but a lot of guys with good makeup and guys that I do like what I saw from spring training. And I do believe we’ve got a lot of good things going here, especially with some guys already locked up.
“With that being said, it’s going to be one of my jobs now to be a leader and be a guy who can make this into a consistent winner and somebody who can set the culture the right way here, so that’s what I’m really looking forward to. … Nothing’s gonna change in the sense of how I prepare or what the goal is, but it just feels really good that these guys believe in me and believe in what we’re doing here.”
A ‘special’ bond
A number of Raleigh’s teammates were in attendance for his news conference, including starting pitchers Logan Gilbert, Bryce Miller, Bryan Woo and Emerson Hancock. (Luis Castillo was the starting pitcher for Friday night’s game.)
So naturally, there were some playful barbs back and forth.
At one point, Miller chimed in: “So last week, we went (out) to eat and you let Logan put his card down. So I’m wondering if you plan on reimbursing him?”
“Uh, well, the deal wasn’t done yet,” Raleigh said with a laugh. “… He still owes me a few for some dirtballs I’ve had to block for him.”
Later on, Woo presented a football analogy: “When a QB gets paid, he does a pretty good job of taking care of his O-linemen. O-linemen don’t get a whole lot of credit in the trenches with you every day. Have you put any thought toward taking care of your O-linemen?”
“Usually it’s the other way around,” Raleigh responded. “The pitcher’s supposed to take care of the catcher, right? I don’t know, we’ll think of something. Maybe I’ll get you guys a gift or something – something small.
“I’ve seen Rolexes. I’ve seen cars,” Woo chimed back. “Just putting it out there.”
“I’ll think about you guys,” Raleigh said.
Raleigh said it meant a lot to have his pitchers and teammates show up in support.
“It’s really special. These guys mean a lot to me. A lot of these guys I’ve come up with and have unfortunately had to room with some of them,” Raleigh said with a laugh. “No, I’m kidding. But these guys mean a lot to mean and (it’s) very special to see these guys and coaches that I’ve kind of came up with as well.
“It’s special when you have those relationships. And it makes it even better when I know I’m gonna be here a lot longer and share a lot of memories with these guys.”
One final thank you
Before the news conference ended, Raleigh had one more message.
“I just want to say thank you to all my coaches (and) everybody in the organization,” Raleigh said. “You guys have treated me very well over the past nine years. This is the only place I’ve ever known, and I’m hoping this will be the only place that I ever have to know.
“So all the people that have helped me get here, obviously my teammates, thank you very much. It really means a lot.”
Raleigh then started fighting back tears while thanking his family, which was in attendance.
“My mom and dad, thank you guys for giving me all the opportunities in the world, and my brothers and sisters for always being there for me,” Raleigh said. “I know it’s hard being all the way out in Seattle, but I do love it here and thank you guys for everything.
Raleigh closed by addressing Mariners general manager and team majority owner John Stanton, who were seated to his right.
“And thank you guys as well for giving me this opportunity to believe in me and lead this team,” Raleigh said. “I’m going to do everything I can to help us win a World Series.”
More on the Seattle Mariners
• Gilbert and Raleigh: From 2018 M’s draft picks to opening day battery
• Seattle Mariners rookie’s defense wasn’t a concern in opening day win
• How Seattle Mariners opening day star Polanco feels different this year
• Seattle Mariners Observations: What stood out from opening day win
• Watch: Mariners legend Ichiro fires 84 mph first pitch to Dan Wilson
SEATTLE — Seattle police are investigating a shooting that left a 17-year-old boy injured early Thursday morning in the High Point neighborhood.
At about 12:48 a.m., dispatchers received multiple reports of rapid gunfire near Sylvan Way Southwest and Southwest Morgan Street.
Officers arrived and found a 17-year-old boy suffering from a gunshot wound to the hip area. Medics transported the teen to Harborview Medical Center in serious but stable condition.
Before officers located the victim, they found a car that had crashed and become disabled near Sylvan Way Southwest and Delridge Way Southwest. Police said multiple suspects were seen running from the vehicle through a nearby Home Depot parking lot.
Officers cordoned off the area and searched for the suspects with assistance from the K-9 Unit, but were unable to locate them. Police recovered the vehicle and impounded it for processing.
During the incident, gunfire struck at least three vehicles and two buildings. No other injuries were reported.
Officers processed multiple nearby scenes and recovered evidence before clearing the area. Detectives with the Gun Violence Reduction Unit will lead the investigation.
Seattle, WA
Council eyes street barricades in fight against violence, sex trafficking in north Seattle
SEATTLE — The Seattle City Council is expected to vote next week on a plan that would give the Seattle Department of Transportation (SDOT) the authority to close off street access for public safety reasons.
The proposal comes after months of outcry from residents in north Seattle who say sex traffickers and sex buyers are looping through the streets surrounding Aurora Avenue North.
The street-closure proposal passed the council’s Public Safety Committee on Tuesday and is expected to be voted on by the full council next week.
“I don’t think it’s hyperbole to say the crime has gotten much worse, much more violent, and much more predator,” said District 5 councilmember Debora Juarez. “I think that we do have the authority to shut down a street for bullets flying and endangering the lives of those who live there.”
Frustrated neighbors have installed their own homemade barricades after a spate of gun violence between sex traffickers in May.
RELATED | SDOT removes street barricades near Aurora Ave; neighbors doubtful of temporary measures
Councilmember Bob Kettle says street closures will help tamp down sex buying in certain areas, but he emphasizes it must be accompanied by an increase in outreach and enforcement.
“We have to have a sustained effort,” Kettle told KOMO News. “My concern is for every action, there’s a reaction. We need to take this flex and then really attack it … because if we do just a bit and our attention wanders, we could have this conversation three months from now and we’re talking about the same thing.”
A 15-year-old boy was shot near 95th Street and Aurora Avenue North around 10:45 p.m. last night. The teen initially claimed he had been shot while walking down the street, but investigators now say he was shot by a passenger in his car.
RELATED | Seattle police say ‘drive-by’ on Aurora Ave. was actually passenger shooting teen driver
Kettle credited the city’s Real Time Crime Center cameras with helping investigators quickly piece together the events of the shooting.
“Just as important to finding out what happened, the cameras help police determine what did not happen,” Kettle said.
According to Seattle police data, reports of shootings and shots fired in the north precinct area are at their lowest levels since 2021.
Through the end of May, there were 48 total reports of shootings or shots fired, with one fatal shooting and seven nonfatal injury shootings.
That’s down from 63 total reports of shootings and shots fired – one fatal and seven injuries – in 2025; and 64 shootings or shots fired reports – one fatal and 17 injuries – in 2024.
At Tuesday’s committee meeting, councilmembers pointed out residents are calling for a new police precinct to be built on Aurora Avenue.
Ten years ago, a new North Precinct building was slated to be built at 130th Avenue and Aurora Avenue North to replace the existing precinct building, which was decades old and did not have enough space for the department’s needs.
Led by former councilmember Kshama Sawant, the “Block the Bunker” movement successfully got the North Precinct replacement project killed in city council.
Kettle said the city’s current financial issues make it essentially impossible to bring back a project similar to the one the previous council defeated.
“We have to connect the dots back,” Kettle said. “If we want to know why we are where we are today, we have to look at decisions made over the last two councils.”
Seattle, WA
Iran and Egypt to play in Seattle ‘Pride Match’ despite earlier complaints | The Jerusalem Post
Seattle revels in its reputation as a welcoming place and Pride flags are visible all over the city, all year round. Its June Pride weekend is one of the biggest in the United States.
So, ahead of December’s World Cup draw, it was only natural that local organizers designated the June 26 match to be held in the city as a “Pride Match.”
Then the draw happened — and the two teams scheduled to play the game were Egypt and Iran.
Egypt’s Football Association urged global soccer governing body FIFA to prevent any Pride-related activities, arguing such events clashed with the Muslim-majority country’s cultural and religious values. The governing body in Iran, where same-sex relations can carry the death penalty, filed an objection with FIFA.
Some in Seattle have doubts over the teams in the ‘Pride Match’
But in Seattle, there is no question that the Pride Match will go ahead as planned.
“The World Cup is going to come and go in three weeks,” Hedda McLendon, from Seattle’s local World Cup organizing committee, told Reuters. “The Pride celebration … has happened on this weekend for 50-plus years.
“It is going to happen this weekend, it is going to happen long after the World Cup.”
Some in the city’s LGBTQ community had mixed feelings given the participants, said Jon Cairns, 49, manager of local LGBTQ+ club Kremwerk.
Cairns, however, said his own view was that it provided a platform to promote acceptance that only the world’s biggest sporting event could offer.
“My reaction is let’s have them,” he told Reuters. “International sports is one of the biggest brokers historically of social change and individual rights and freedoms worldwide, including in the U.S.”
He cited black U.S. sprinter Jesse Owens’ four gold medals at the 1936 Olympic Games in Nazi Germany and Tommie Smith and John Carlos’ raised-fist protest in 1968 as moments where “only international sports could reach that big of an audience.”
“They’re not going to turn off the World Cup on state television in Iran or Egypt to block out a Pride flag in the audience,” Cairns said.
The Pride Match is “a host city initiative” and separate of FIFA, a spokesperson for soccer’s governing body told Reuters.
Seattle’s LGBTQ community sees an opportunity
Egypt and Iran’s involvement in the Pride Match is not the first time the World Cup has grappled with stark differences in attitudes between hosts and visitors.
In 2022 World Cup host Qatar, the emir said visitors should “respect our culture” when asked about gay people attending the tournament.
FIFA threatened yellow cards for captains wearing the “OneLove” armband, citing its rules against political slogans. Teams including England and the Netherlands that had been planning to wear the armbands to protest Qatar’s laws against same-sex relationships abandoned the plan.
For Ryan Webster, a 40-year-old lifestyle manager who was at Kremwerk the weekend before Pride, Seattle’s “Pride Match” was an opportunity to show solidarity with people in countries where their sexuality was outlawed.
“I’m choosing to believe that this is our moment to allow the members of the LGBTQ community that come from those countries to have the opportunity to celebrate themselves in totality that they might not have otherwise,” he said outside the club, which will host a watch party for Friday’s game.
Inside, ‘Venus Fengz’ lip-synced to Cher’s “Believe” before introducing fellow drag performers to the stage, clapped and cheered by a raucous crowd.
Fengz, who only wanted to provide their stage name, said Pride coinciding with the World Cup would bring increased visibility, anticipating perhaps some new audience members.
“I think it’s always great for us to be able to share space and share places with people who don’t have the same experiences as us,” they told Reuters.
“Sometimes you just have to be the bigger person and show grace where you can and know that everyone is a human learning (from) different experiences, but also it can get hard — because you’re on the shorter end of the stick, always trying to have to explain yourself around people who don’t grow up with the same worldview.”
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