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Cal Raleigh homered, Jorge Polanco delivered the decisive run with a sixth-inning single, and the Mariners defeated the Blue Jays 3-1 Sunday night as they made their return to the AL Championship Series for the initial occasion in 24 years.

Pitching Dominance on Show

George Springer homered on the first pitch from Miller, who then got out of a two-on jam in a 27-delivery opening frame. Anthony Santander hit a single in the second for the Blue Jays' only other hit, and Mariners pitchers set down 23 of the Blue Jays’ final 24 batters. Miller, Gabe Speier, Matt Brash and Andrés Muñoz joined forces to throw just 100 pitches less than 48 hours after the Mariners needed 209 pitches to outlast the Tigers over 15 innings.

Key Batting Plays

Raleigh, who led the major leagues with 60 homers, evened the game in the sixth 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 homer by the catcher.

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

“We are a resilient squad, you know, from top to bottom,” Raleigh said. “Our pitchers performed today, really, really impressed us. They did awesome. Especially short rest and how many pitches they threw the other day.”

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

Record Achievements

Seattle, the sole MLB franchise to never host a World Series game, held Toronto to two hits after the Blue Jays 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 innings, throwing 72 pitches. The bullpen trio each had perfect 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 Derek Jeter of the Yankees, placing him alone in fifth position on the career list. Raleigh’s homer was his fourth in 15 appearances against Gausman, who took the loss.

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

Memorable Game Moments

Eugenio Suárez doubled against the top of the right-field fence in the seventh against Varland. The 395-foot hit would have been a home run in half of MLB stadiums, Seattle’s field included.

Toronto outfielder Nathan Lukes left in the fourth inning. Lukes bruised his right knee when he fouled a ball into his knee in the opening frame.