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

Pitching Mastery on Display

George Springer launched a homer on the first pitch from Bryce Miller, who then escaped a bases-threatening situation in a 27-delivery first inning. Anthony Santander singled in the second for the Blue Jays' only other hit, and Seattle pitchers retired 23 out of the final 24 Toronto hitters. The pitching quartet combined to throw just 100 deliveries under two days after the Mariners needed 209 pitches to outplay Detroit over 15 frames.

Key Offensive Moments

Raleigh, the major league home run leader with 60, evened the game in the sixth inning with his ninth homer in 14 appearances at Rogers Centre. Kevin Gausman had held batters to 0 for 16 on splitters in the playoffs before the home run by Raleigh.

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

“We are a resilient squad, you know, from top to bottom,” Raleigh said. “Our pitchers performed today, really, really impressed us. 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 win the Division Series in the longest winner-take-all game in Major League Baseball history.

Record Achievements

Seattle, the only MLB team to never host a Fall Classic game, limited Toronto to just two hits after the Toronto squad had 50 hits and 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 innings, throwing 72 deliveries. The bullpen trio each had perfect 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 postseason home run ended 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 appearances against Kevin Gausman, who took the loss.

Polanco, who had the game-ending single Friday, hit a single off Brendon Little to drive in Julio Rodríguez, who was walked by the pitcher. Polanco added another RBI single against Domínguez.

Memorable Game Moments

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

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