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Cal Raleigh homered, Jorge Polanco delivered the decisive run with a sixth frame single, and the Mariners beat the Toronto Blue Jays 3-1 on Sunday evening as they returned to the AL Championship Series for the initial occasion in two dozen years.

Pitching Mastery on Display

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

Crucial Batting Plays

Raleigh, who led the major leagues with 60 homers, evened the game in the sixth with his ninth home run in 14 games at the Toronto ballpark. Kevin Gausman had previously kept batters hitless on splitters in the postseason before the home run by Raleigh.

Polanco hit a go-ahead single later in the inning and added an run-scoring single in the eighth inning.

“We’re a tough team, as you know, one through nine,” Raleigh stated. “Our pitchers performed today, really, really impressed us. They were outstanding. Especially short rest and the high pitch count the previous game.”

Seattle, the AL West titleholder traveled to Toronto, the AL East champion on Saturday after a 3-2 win at home over the Tigers to claim the Division Series in the most extended decisive contest in MLB history.

Historic Achievements

Seattle, the sole MLB franchise to never host a Fall Classic 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 Yankees. Miller, the winner, fanned three and issued three walks in six innings, throwing 72 deliveries. The three relievers each had 1-2-3 innings, with Muñoz getting the save.

“This will be a fiercely contested series, for sure,” Toronto 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, placing him alone in fifth position on the all-time list. Raleigh’s homer was his fourth in 15 at-bats against Kevin Gausman, who suffered the defeat.

Polanco, who had the game-ending single Friday, singled against Brendon Little to bring home Rodríguez, who was walked by the pitcher. Polanco added another RBI single against Domínguez.

Notable Game Highlights

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.

Blue Jays outfielder Nathan Lukes exited in the fourth. Lukes sustained a right knee bruise when he fouled a ball into his knee in the first inning.