đź”— Share this article Raleigh Homers as Seattle Mariners Defeat Blue Jays in Much-Anticipated Return to AL Championship Series Cal Raleigh blasted a home run, Jorge Polanco drove in the winning run with a sixth frame single, and the Mariners defeated the Blue Jays 3-1 Sunday night as they made their return to the ALCS for the first time in two dozen years. Defensive Dominance on Display George Springer homered on the first pitch from Miller, who then escaped a bases-threatening situation in a 27-delivery first inning. Anthony Santander hit a single in the second inning 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 combined to throw just 100 pitches less than 48 hours after the Mariners needed 209 pitches to outplay Detroit over 15 innings. Key Offensive Moments Raleigh, the major league home run leader with 60, evened the game in the sixth 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 Raleigh. Polanco hit a go-ahead single subsequently in the frame and contributed 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. Especially short rest and the high pitch count the previous game.” Seattle, the AL West titleholder journeyed to AL East winner Toronto on Saturday after a 3-2 home victory over the Detroit Tigers to claim the Division Series in the most extended decisive contest in MLB history. Record Achievements The Mariners, the sole MLB franchise 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 pitches. The bullpen trio each had 1-2-3 innings, with Muñoz getting the save. “This will be a fiercely contested series, man,” Blue Jays manager John Schneider commented. “Our team will be prepared for it.” Springer’s 21st postseason home run 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 Gausman, who suffered the defeat. Polanco, who had the game-ending single Friday, hit a single off Brendon Little to bring home Julio RodrĂguez, who was walked by the pitcher. Polanco added another RBI single against Seranthony DomĂnguez. Notable Contest Moments Eugenio Suárez hit a double off the top of the right-field wall in the seventh against Louis Varland. The 395-foot hit would have been a home run in half of MLB stadiums, Seattle’s field included. Toronto outfielder Nathan Lukes exited in the fourth. Lukes bruised his right knee when he fouled a ball into his knee in the first inning.