Cal Raleigh Homers as Seattle Mariners Defeat Blue Jays in Long-Awaited Comeback to AL Championship Series
Cal Raleigh homered, Jorge Polanco delivered the winning run with a sixth-inning single, and the Seattle Mariners overcame the Blue Jays 3-1 on Sunday evening as they returned to the ALCS for the first time in 24 years.
Pitching Mastery on Display
George Springer homered on the opening delivery from Bryce Miller, who then escaped a two-on jam in a 27-delivery opening frame. Anthony Santander hit a single in the second inning for the Blue Jays' sole additional hit, and Seattle pitchers retired 23 out of the final 24 Toronto hitters. The pitching quartet joined forces to throw just 100 pitches under two days after the Mariners needed 209 pitches to outlast Detroit over 15 innings.
Crucial Offensive Plays
Raleigh, the major league home run leader with 60, evened the game in the sixth 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 homer by the catcher.
Polanco delivered a go-ahead base hit later in the inning and added an run-scoring single in the eighth.
“We are a resilient squad, as you know, from top to bottom,” Raleigh stated. “Our pitchers performed today, extremely impressive. They did awesome. Particularly on short rest and the high pitch count the other day.”
Seattle, the AL West titleholder journeyed to AL East winner Toronto on the prior day after a 3-2 win at home over the Tigers to claim the Division Series in the most extended decisive contest in Major League Baseball history.
Historic Achievements
Seattle, the sole MLB franchise to not have hosted a Fall Classic game, limited Toronto to just 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 securing the save.
“This will be a fiercely contested series, for sure,” Blue Jays manager John Schneider commented. “These guys will be ready 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 appearances against Kevin Gausman, who suffered the defeat.
Polanco, who had the game-ending single Friday, singled against Brendon Little to bring home Rodríguez, who was issued a walk by the pitcher. Polanco added another RBI single against Domínguez.
Memorable Game Highlights
Eugenio Suárez hit a double off the top of the right-field wall in the seventh against Varland. The 395-foot drive would have been a homer in 15 of 30 big league ballparks, including Seattle.
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.
