Cal Raleigh blasted a home run, Jorge Polanco drove in the go-ahead 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 24 years.
Pitching Mastery on Display
George Springer homered on the first pitch from Miller, who then escaped a two-on jam in a 27-pitch first inning. Anthony Santander hit a single in the second inning for Toronto’s only other 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 throws to outlast Detroit over 15 innings.
Crucial Batting Plays
Raleigh, the major league home run leader with 60, tied the score in the sixth with his ninth home run in 14 appearances at Rogers Centre. Kevin Gausman had held batters to 0 for 16 on splitters in the postseason before the homer by Raleigh.
Polanco hit a go-ahead single later in the inning and added an run-scoring single in the eighth.
“We are a resilient squad, you know, from top to bottom,” Raleigh stated. “Our pitchers performed today, really, really impressed us. They were outstanding. Particularly on short rest and the high pitch count the other day.”
AL West champion Seattle traveled to Toronto, the AL East champion on the prior day after a 3-2 home victory over the Tigers to win the Division Series in the longest winner-take-all game in MLB history.
Historic Achievements
The Mariners, the only MLB team to not have hosted a Fall Classic game, held Toronto to two hits after the Blue Jays had 50 hits and 34 runs in their four-game playoff series against the New York Yankees. Miller, the winner, fanned three and issued three walks in six frames, throwing 72 deliveries. The bullpen trio each had 1-2-3 innings, with Muñoz getting the save.
“This is going to be a hard-fought series, man,” Blue Jays manager John Schneider commented. “These guys will be ready for it.”
Springer's 21st playoff homer broke a tie with the Derek Jeter of the Yankees, placing him alone in fifth position on the career list. Raleigh's home run was his fourth in 15 at-bats against Gausman, who suffered the defeat.
Polanco, the hero of Friday's game, singled against Brendon Little to drive in Julio Rodríguez, who was issued a walk by the pitcher. Polanco added another RBI single against Seranthony Domínguez.
Memorable Contest Moments
Eugenio Suárez doubled against the top of the right-field fence in the seventh 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.
