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

Defensive Dominance on Show

George Springer homered on the first pitch from Bryce Miller, who then escaped a two-on jam 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 joined forces to throw just 100 pitches less than 48 hours after the Seattle team needed 209 pitches to outlast the Tigers over 15 innings.

Crucial Offensive Plays

Raleigh, who led the major leagues with 60 homers, evened the game in the sixth inning with his ninth home run in 14 appearances at Rogers Centre. Kevin Gausman had previously kept batters hitless on splitters in the playoffs before the homer by the catcher.

Polanco hit a go-ahead single later in the inning and contributed an RBI single in the eighth inning.

“We are a resilient squad, you know, from top to bottom,” Raleigh said. “Pitchers came out today, extremely impressive. They were outstanding. Especially short rest and how many pitches they threw the other day.”

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

Record Accomplishments

The Mariners, the only MLB team to never host a World Series game, limited Toronto to just two hits after the Toronto squad had 50 hits along with 34 runs in their four-game Division Series against the New York Yankees. Miller, the winner, fanned three and issued three walks in six frames, throwing 72 pitches. The three relievers each had perfect innings, with Muñoz securing the save.

“This is going to be a hard-fought series, for sure,” Toronto manager John Schneider commented. “Our team will be prepared for it.”

Springer's 21st playoff homer ended a tie with the Yankees’ Derek Jeter, placing him alone in fifth position on the career list. Raleigh’s homer was his fourth in 15 appearances against Gausman, who suffered the defeat.

Polanco, the hero of Friday's game, singled against Brendon Little to bring home Rodríguez, who was issued a walk by the pitcher. Polanco later added another run-scoring hit against Seranthony Domínguez.

Notable 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 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 first inning.