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Cal Raleigh homered, Jorge Polanco drove in the go-ahead run with a sixth-inning single, and the Mariners beat the Blue Jays 3-1 Sunday night as they made their return to the ALCS for the initial occasion in two dozen years.

Defensive Mastery on Display

George Springer homered on the opening delivery from Miller, who then got out of a bases-threatening situation in a 27-pitch first inning. Anthony Santander singled in the second inning for the Blue Jays' sole additional hit, and Mariners 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 Mariners needed 209 pitches to outplay Detroit over 15 innings.

Crucial Offensive Moments

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 held batters to 0 for 16 on splitters in the postseason before the home run by Raleigh.

Polanco delivered a go-ahead base hit subsequently in the frame and added an RBI single in the eighth inning.

“We’re a tough team, as you know, one through nine,” Raleigh said. “Our pitchers performed today, really, really impressed us. They did awesome. Especially short rest and how many pitches they threw the previous game.”

AL West champion Seattle journeyed to AL East winner Toronto on Saturday after a 3-2 home victory over the Tigers to claim the Division Series in the longest winner-take-all game in Major League Baseball history.

Historic Achievements

Seattle, 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 playoff 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 1-2-3 innings, with Muñoz getting the save.

“This will be a fiercely contested series, man,” Toronto manager John Schneider said. “Our team will be prepared for it.”

Springer's 21st playoff homer broke 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 at-bats against Gausman, who took the loss.

Polanco, who had the game-ending single Friday, hit a single off Brendon Little to bring home Julio Rodríguez, who was issued a walk by Gausman. Polanco later added another run-scoring hit against Seranthony Domínguez.

Notable Game Highlights

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

Toronto outfielder Nathan Lukes left in the fourth inning. Lukes sustained a right knee bruise when he fouled a ball into his knee in the first inning.