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

Pitching Dominance on Show

George Springer launched a homer on the first pitch from Bryce Miller, who then got out of 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 set down 23 out of the final 24 Toronto hitters. The pitching quartet combined to throw just 100 pitches less than 48 hours after the Mariners needed 209 throws to outlast the Tigers over 15 frames.

Crucial Batting Moments

Raleigh, the major league home run leader with 60, 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 playoffs before the home run by Raleigh.

Polanco hit a go-ahead single subsequently in the frame and contributed an run-scoring single in the eighth.

“We are a resilient squad, you know, from top to bottom,” Raleigh stated. “Our pitchers performed today, extremely impressive. They were outstanding. Particularly on short rest and the high pitch count the other day.”

AL West champion Seattle journeyed to AL East winner Toronto on Saturday after a 3-2 win at home over the Detroit Tigers to claim the Division Series in the longest winner-take-all game in MLB history.

Record Accomplishments

The Mariners, the sole MLB franchise to not have hosted a Fall Classic game, held Toronto to two hits after the Toronto squad had 50 hits along with 34 runs in their four-game Division Series against the Yankees. Miller, the winner, struck out three and walked three in six innings, throwing 72 deliveries. The bullpen trio each had 1-2-3 innings, with Muñoz securing the save.

“This will be a fiercely contested series, for sure,” Toronto manager John Schneider said. “Our team will be prepared 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 all-time list. Raleigh’s homer was his fourth in 15 at-bats against Kevin Gausman, who suffered the defeat.

Polanco, the hero of Friday's game, singled against Brendon Little to bring home Julio Rodríguez, who was walked by Gausman. Polanco later added another run-scoring hit against Domínguez.

Memorable Contest Highlights

Eugenio Suárez doubled off the top of the right-field wall in the seventh inning against Varland. The 395-foot hit would have been a homer in 15 of 30 big league ballparks, Seattle’s field included.

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.