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Cal Raleigh blasted a home run, Jorge Polanco delivered the decisive run with a sixth-inning single, and the Mariners defeated the Toronto Blue Jays 3-1 on Sunday evening as they returned to the ALCS for the initial occasion in two dozen years.

Pitching Dominance on Show

George Springer homered on the first pitch from Bryce Miller, who then got out of a bases-threatening situation in a 27-pitch opening frame. Anthony Santander singled in the second inning for Toronto’s only other hit, and Mariners pitchers retired 23 of the Blue Jays’ final 24 batters. 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 outplay Detroit over 15 innings.

Crucial Offensive 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 Rogers Centre. 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 later in the inning and contributed an run-scoring single in the eighth inning.

“We are a resilient squad, as you know, from top to bottom,” Raleigh said. “Our pitchers performed today, really, really impressed us. They were outstanding. Especially short rest and how many pitches they threw the previous game.”

Seattle, the AL West titleholder 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

Seattle, the only MLB team to never host a Fall Classic game, held Toronto to two hits after the Toronto squad had 50 hits along with 34 runs in their four-game playoff series against the Yankees. Miller, the winner, 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 will be a fiercely contested series, for sure,” Toronto manager John Schneider said. “These guys will be ready for it.”

Springer’s 21st postseason home run ended a tie with the Derek Jeter of the Yankees, moving him into sole possession of fifth place on the career list. Raleigh’s homer was his fourth in 15 appearances against Kevin Gausman, who took the loss.

Polanco, the hero of Friday's game, singled against Brendon Little to drive in Rodríguez, who was walked by the pitcher. Polanco later added another run-scoring hit against Seranthony Domínguez.

Memorable Game Highlights

Eugenio Suárez hit a double against the top of the right-field fence in the seventh inning against Varland. The 395-foot drive would have been a home run in half of MLB stadiums, Seattle’s field included.

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