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The World Baseball Classic (WBC) is known for its rivalries, but a viral moment between MLB teammates got even spicier after Team USA and Mexico met in pool play Monday night in Houston.
Mexico’s Randy Arozarena stepped up to the plate to face U.S. star pitcher Paul Skenes, but not before extending his hand to acknowledge his Seattle Mariners teammate, Cal Raleigh, who was catching behind home plate.
That was until Raleigh looked up at Arozarena and refused to shake his hand.
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Randy Arozarena had a pretty strong response to his Seattle Mariners teammate Cal Raleigh’s reaction to a handshake during the World Baseball Classic. (Getty Images)
Raleigh appeared in the viral video to say something to his teammate, who bent down to listen. But whether or not it’s a competitive thing for Raleigh, Arozarena seemed serious about the situation in his postgame comments.
After the USA defeated Mexico, 5-3, to remain undefeated in the WBC, Raleigh had no comment on what happened to Arozarena at the plate. But Arozarena had a lot to say about the situation.
Arozarena was asked in Spanish how he would respond to Raleigh’s handshake. His response was translated, and while some on social media dismissed it as potentially sarcastic, the majority believe he was quite serious.
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“How do you want me to answer Cal Raleigh?” Arozarena asked the reporter. “What do you want me to tell him?
“I want to tell him in four languages, that’s what I want. First, I want to tell him in Spanish, look: All he has to do is thank God that he has such wonderful parents, yes? That his parents are very well-behaved. I managed to see them two days ago at the hotel and they went to say hello, they gave me a hug. Said they were very proud to see me again.
Randy Arozarena of the Seattle Mariners celebrates with Cal Raleigh #29 after hitting a solo home run in the eighth inning during Game Three of the American League Championship Series presented by loanDepot between the Toronto Blue Jays and Seattle Mariners at T-Mobile Park on Wednesday, October 15, 2025 in Seattle, Washington. (Daniel Shirey/MLB Photos)
“The other thing I’m going to say to him, I’m going to tell him to him Cuban-style. What he’s got to do is go f— himself. Mexican-style: he can go f— himself. And in English, I’ll tell him in English. That ‘good to see you’ he gave me? He can shove it up his a–.”
So Arozarena claims Raleigh said “good to see you” to him at the plate, but he refused to shake hands. However, this is not the first time we have seen this in the WBC.
In an earlier match between Australia and the Czech Republic at the Tokyo Dome, an awkward situation arose when the former’s catcher refused to shake the latter’s hand. Theories began to circulate, with the two most popular being a simple competition thing where players don’t want to fraternize with “the enemy” and the catcher potentially doesn’t get pine tar on their hands.
Perhaps one of them is why Raleigh did the same to his own teammate, but they will have to return to spring training together, where this will surely be a hot topic among reporters and fans.
Randy Arozarena of the Seattle Mariners celebrates with Cal Raleigh #29 after hitting a three-run home run during the third inning against the St. Louis Cardinals at T-Mobile Park on September 9, 2025 in Seattle, Washington. (Alika Jenner/Getty Images)
Meanwhile, the USA and Mexico could find themselves heading to Miami depending on how their final pool play goes this week.
Team USA wraps up their schedule against Italy on Tuesday night, where they hope to clinch their quarterfinal spot with a win. Mexico and Italy conclude their pool play with a potentially decisive matchup on Wednesday night.
