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Cal Raleigh homered, Jorge Polanco delivered the winning run with a sixth-inning single, and the Seattle Mariners overcame the Blue Jays 3-1 on Sunday evening as they made their return to the AL Championship Series for the initial occasion in two dozen years.

Pitching Dominance on Display

George Springer homered on the opening delivery from Bryce Miller, who then got out of a bases-threatening situation in a 27-delivery opening frame. Anthony Santander singled in the second for Toronto’s only other hit, and Seattle pitchers set down 23 out of the final 24 Toronto hitters. The pitching quartet joined forces to throw just 100 pitches under two days after the Seattle team needed 209 throws to outlast the Tigers over 15 frames.

Crucial Offensive Plays

Raleigh, who led the major leagues with 60 homers, evened the game in the sixth inning with his ninth homer in 14 games at the Toronto ballpark. Kevin Gausman had held batters to 0 for 16 on splitters in the playoffs before the home run by the catcher.

Polanco delivered a go-ahead base hit subsequently in the frame and added an RBI single in the eighth.

“We’re a tough team, you know, from top to bottom,” Raleigh said. “Pitchers came out today, extremely impressive. They did awesome. Particularly on short rest and the high pitch count the other day.”

AL West champion Seattle traveled to AL East winner Toronto on the prior day after a 3-2 win at home over the Tigers to claim the Division Series in the longest winner-take-all game in Major League Baseball history.

Record Achievements

The Mariners, the only MLB team to never host a Fall Classic game, held Toronto to two hits after the Toronto squad had 50 hits along with 34 runs in their four-game playoff series against the Yankees. Miller, who earned the win, struck out three and walked three in six frames, throwing 72 pitches. The bullpen trio each had 1-2-3 innings, with Muñoz securing the save.

“This will be a fiercely contested series, for sure,” Blue Jays manager John Schneider commented. “These guys will be ready for it.”

Springer’s 21st postseason home run broke a tie with the Derek Jeter of the Yankees, moving him into sole possession of fifth place on the all-time list. Raleigh’s homer was his fourth in 15 at-bats against Kevin Gausman, who took the loss.

Polanco, the hero of Friday's game, hit a single off Brendon Little to drive in Rodríguez, who was walked by the pitcher. Polanco later added another run-scoring hit against Domínguez.

Memorable Contest Moments

Eugenio Suárez hit a double against the top of the right-field fence in the seventh against Varland. The 395-foot hit would have been a home run in half of MLB stadiums, including Seattle.

Toronto outfielder Nathan Lukes left in the fourth inning. Lukes bruised his right knee when he fouled a pitch off it in the first inning.