Jamie Mottram was sitting on a gold mine — even if he didn’t initially realize it.
As the president of Breaking T, Mottram is always on the lookout for the next viral sensation in sports. His merchandise company specializes in quickly identifying moments that get sports fans talking and then rushing viral products into the market.
When second-year Mariners catcher Cal Raleigh hit a walk-off home run to end the franchise’s 21-year playoff drought in September 2022, Breaking T sprang into action with a “Drought Buster” shirt commemorating the historic moment for Seattle fans.
“I don't even know that we were aware of Big Dumper as a nickname at that time,” Mottram joked of the process for creating his company’s first Raleigh product.
"It was just, Seattle's got this catcher who hit a massive home run, and since then it kind of snowballed with the nickname becoming so much more prevalent.”
Mottram’s designers did add the words “Big Dumper” in small type to that shirt in 2022, but the company didn’t fully lean into one of the most colorful nicknames in sports until this season.
Raleigh was given the nickname by former teammate Jarred Kelenic during their days together in the minor leagues when Kelenic made a reference to the catcher’s generous backside.
When Raleigh was called up to the majors in 2021, Kelenic tweeted, “Dumper to the show,” and Raleigh’s famous moniker quickly became a fan favorite.
“With him being a very good catcher the last couple seasons, coming into this year, that's kind of what he was for us as a national sports brand that creates baseball merchandise. He was a nice player with a great nickname in that market,” Mottram said.
“Now, this year he's hitting home runs at a historic pace, and everyone knows (not only) his name, but his nickname.”
With an American League-record 38 home runs before the All-Star break, a number trailing only Barry Bonds’ 39 in 2001, Raleigh has been the talk of baseball.
That’s sure to continue tonight when the fifth-year pro competes in his first MLB Home Run Derby in Atlanta on Monday night.
As millions of new fans get to watch Raleigh swing for the fences, the slugger’s creative nickname will likely make an even bigger impression.
“Big Dumper is a great hook. We talk about hooks, like a great pop song has a great hook. It's really memorable and catchy and kind of infectious,” Mottram said.
“We think about sports in the same way. … And Big Dumper as a nickname is just manna from heaven.”
Breaking T has capitalized on that hook in a huge way, with more than 20 Big Dumper products available on its website. There are dozens of Dumper shirt designs, along with coffee mugs and even onesies for babies and toddlers.
“There are so many creative things you can do with Big Dumper — whether that's depicting him with an abnormally large dumper or a big dump truck.”
The perfect t-shirt doesn’t exi–
— Seattle Mariners (@Mariners) July 1, 2025
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As the Mariners pushed a “get out the vote” campaign to get Raleigh to the All-Star Game, Breaking T designed a shirt inspired by the famous “I (heart) New York” design, substituting a Georgia peach for the heart to convey the “I love Cal” message. The product was a hit with Mariners players, who wore the shirts during pregame workouts.
Then there’s the shirt inspired by the opening bars to Seattle rapper Sir Mix-A-Lot’s hit “Baby Got Back,” depicting Raleigh squatting in his catcher’s position with the words “Oh my god, look at that …”
The shirt is definitely cheeky, but Breaking T gets approval on all designs from the MLB Players Association, and Raleigh has been onboard with the campaign.
“I don't think we've gone too far,” Mottram said. “It seems to be all taken in the spirit which we’re putting out there.”
At Simply Seattle stores in the Pacific Northwest, they’ve been capturing the spirit of Raleigh’s nickname since the beginning.
At Simply's three retail locations and on its website, Big Dumper merchandise has taken top billing this summer.
The store has worked with Raleigh since his early days in the bigs and caught a wave when an image of Mariners star Julio Rodriguez wearing a Big Dumper dump truck shirt was featured on MLB’s official Twitter account.
Owner Jamie Munson said Simply Seattle’s philosophy is to created product “by fans for fans,” and his staff of Mariners faithful has been cranking out new products with every Big Dumper blast.
The store has developed a tight relationship with Raleigh that led to the catcher making an appearance at a new store opening shortly before Opening Day in late March.
When Raleigh signed a $105 million contract extension through 2030 on the morning of the scheduled appearance, Munson was elated by the fortuitous timing. And then he got a little worried.
“He just signed $100 million contract. He doesn't need to come to this appearance with us,” Munson said. “But he is just such a good dude that he was like, ‘Nope I'll be there.’
“And so he ended up showing a couple hours later, and it was electric”
Fans lined up around the corner to take photos with Raleigh, and all the news outlets in Seattle covered the event, which turned into a “de facto” signing press conference for Raleigh to bask in the moment with Mariners fans.
The meet-and-greet was free for fans — which is a bit stunning when you consider what Raleigh could command today as one of the leading contenders for the AL MVP award.
“Cal is such a good dude that I don't know that things would change that much,” Munson said. “Sure, it might cost a little bit more. … But I don't think these things he's doing with local businesses (are) really as much about the money as it is just wanting to show his love for Seattle.”
Both Breaking T and Simply Seattle would love nothing more than for Raleigh to make a serious run at Bonds’ single-season homer record of 73.
And if Raleigh wins the Derby Monday night, they’ll have products available Tuesday.
Raleigh tops all MLB players in merch sales at Breaking T through the first half, edging out No. 2 Bobby Witt Jr. and Shohei Ohtani at No. 3.
“Our business is very aligned with the trends,” Mottram said. “So, our top sellers are not always Shohei Ohtani, Ronald Acuña Jr. or Aaron Judge. It has not always been the big top jersey sellers.
“Ours are much more in line with what's trending and what's the most relevant with fans. This year, there's nobody better at that than Cal Raleigh.”
Kevin Jackson is the chief content officer for cllct. He spent 25 years at ESPN Digital Media, where he was the founding editor of Page 2, and nearly four years as the Executive Director for Digital Content at FOX Sports.