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Cal Raleigh blasted a home run, Jorge Polanco drove in the decisive run with a sixth-inning single, and the Mariners defeated the Toronto Blue Jays 3-1 Sunday night as they made their return to the ALCS for the initial occasion in two dozen years.

Pitching Dominance on Show

George Springer homered on the first pitch from Miller, who then escaped a bases-threatening situation in a 27-pitch opening frame. Anthony Santander hit a single in the second inning for Toronto’s only other hit, and Mariners pitchers retired 23 of the Blue Jays’ final 24 batters. Miller, Gabe Speier, Matt Brash and Andrés Muñoz joined forces to throw just 100 deliveries under two days after the Mariners needed 209 throws to outplay the Tigers over 15 frames.

Key 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 previously kept batters hitless on splitters in the postseason before the home run by the catcher.

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

“We are a resilient squad, as you know, from top to bottom,” Raleigh stated. “Pitchers came out today, extremely impressive. They did awesome. Especially short rest and how many pitches they threw the other day.”

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

Record Accomplishments

The Mariners, the sole MLB franchise to never host a World Series game, limited Toronto to just two hits after the Blue Jays had 50 hits and 34 runs in their four-game playoff series against the Yankees. Miller, the winner, fanned three and issued three walks in six innings, throwing 72 pitches. The bullpen trio each had 1-2-3 innings, with Muñoz getting the save.

“This is going to be a hard-fought series, for sure,” Toronto manager John Schneider said. “Our team will be prepared for it.”

Springer's 21st playoff homer broke a tie with the Yankees’ Derek Jeter, placing him alone in fifth position on the career list. Raleigh's home run was his fourth in 15 appearances against Gausman, who suffered the defeat.

Polanco, the hero of Friday's game, hit a single off Brendon Little to bring home Rodríguez, who was issued a walk by Gausman. Polanco added another RBI single against Domínguez.

Memorable Contest Moments

Eugenio Suárez doubled against the top of the right-field fence in the seventh against Varland. The 395-foot drive would have been a homer in half of MLB stadiums, including Seattle.

Toronto outfielder Nathan Lukes exited in the fourth. Lukes bruised his right knee when he fouled a ball into his knee in the opening frame.