đź”— Share this article Cal Raleigh Homers as Mariners Defeat Blue Jays in Much-Anticipated Return to ALCS Cal Raleigh blasted a home run, Jorge Polanco delivered the decisive run with a sixth-inning single, and the Seattle Mariners beat the Blue Jays 3-1 Sunday night as they returned to the ALCS for the initial occasion in 24 years. Pitching Dominance on Display George Springer launched a homer on the opening delivery from Miller, who then got out of a bases-threatening situation in a 27-pitch opening frame. Anthony Santander hit a single in the second for Toronto’s sole additional hit, and Mariners pitchers retired 23 out of the final 24 Toronto hitters. Miller, Gabe Speier, Matt Brash and AndrĂ©s Muñoz joined forces to throw just 100 pitches under two days after the Seattle team needed 209 pitches to outplay the Tigers over 15 innings. Crucial Batting Plays Raleigh, the major league home run leader with 60, tied the score in the sixth inning with his ninth home run in 14 appearances at the Toronto ballpark. Kevin Gausman had held batters to 0 for 16 on splitters in the playoffs before the home run 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, as you know, from top to bottom,” Raleigh stated. “Our pitchers performed today, extremely impressive. They were outstanding. Especially short rest and the high pitch count the previous game.” Seattle, the AL West titleholder journeyed to AL East winner Toronto on the prior day after a 3-2 home victory over the Detroit Tigers to claim the Division Series in the longest winner-take-all game in MLB history. Record Accomplishments The Mariners, the sole MLB franchise to not have hosted a Fall Classic 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,” Blue Jays manager John Schneider commented. “These guys will be ready for it.” Springer’s 21st postseason home run broke 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 at-bats against Kevin Gausman, who took the loss. Polanco, who had the game-ending single Friday, hit a single off Brendon Little to bring home Julio RodrĂguez, who was issued a walk by the pitcher. Polanco added another RBI single against DomĂnguez. Notable Game Highlights Eugenio Suárez doubled against the top of the right-field fence in the seventh against Louis Varland. The 395-foot hit would have been a home run in half of MLB stadiums, including Seattle. 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.