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Cal Raleigh homered, Jorge Polanco delivered the winning run with a sixth frame single, and the Mariners defeated the Toronto Blue Jays 3-1 Sunday night as they returned to the ALCS for the initial occasion in 24 years.

Pitching Mastery on Show

George Springer homered on the opening delivery from Bryce Miller, who then got out of a two-on jam in a 27-delivery first inning. Anthony Santander hit a single in the second inning for the Blue Jays' sole additional hit, and Mariners pitchers retired 23 out of the final 24 Toronto hitters. Miller, Gabe Speier, Matt Brash and Andrés Muñoz joined forces to throw just 100 pitches less than 48 hours after the Seattle team needed 209 pitches to outplay the Tigers over 15 innings.

Key Offensive Plays

Raleigh, who led the major leagues with 60 homers, tied the score in the sixth inning with his ninth homer in 14 appearances at the Toronto ballpark. Kevin Gausman had held batters to 0 for 16 on splitters in the postseason before the homer by Raleigh.

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

“We are a resilient squad, you know, one through nine,” Raleigh said. “Pitchers came out today, really, really impressed us. They were outstanding. Especially short rest and how many pitches they threw the previous game.”

AL West champion Seattle journeyed 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 most extended decisive contest in Major League Baseball history.

Historic Accomplishments

The Mariners, the only MLB team to not have hosted a World Series game, limited Toronto to just two hits after the Blue Jays had 50 hits along with 34 runs in their four-game Division Series against the New York Yankees. Miller, who earned the win, fanned three and issued three walks in six frames, throwing 72 deliveries. The three relievers each had 1-2-3 innings, with Muñoz getting the save.

“This is going to be a hard-fought series, for sure,” Blue Jays manager John Schneider said. “These guys will be ready for it.”

Springer's 21st playoff homer ended a tie with the Derek Jeter of the Yankees, placing him alone in fifth position on the career list. Raleigh’s homer was his fourth in 15 at-bats against Gausman, who took the loss.

Polanco, who had the game-ending single Friday, hit a single off Brendon Little to drive in Rodríguez, who was issued a walk by the pitcher. Polanco later added another run-scoring hit against Seranthony Domínguez.

Memorable Game Moments

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

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