The Seattle Mariners once again proved that no one can beat them when it comes to mental fortitude, resilience and just plain hard work.
When Bryce Miller allowed a solo home run by George Stringer on the very first pitch he threw on Sunday evening, there was plenty of concern back in Seattle. Concern for Miller specifically given his underwhelming season on the mound, and concern for the Mariners in general with them less than 48 hours removed from the conclusion of a 15-inning slog in Game Five of the AL Division Series.
However, for anyone who was worried that a tired Mariners team was going to be blown out of sight during Game One in Toronto, they clearly haven’t been paying attention to what this team is all about. They have time and time again proven people wrong when they seemed destined to lose, repeatedly snatching victory from the jaws of defeat.
This was once again the case on Sunday versus an underrated rival, as the Mariners came back from that early blow by Stringer to beat the Blue Jays 3-1. And in all truthfulness it was about as dominating as a 3-1 win can be thanks to a superior pitching masterclass by, as Jerry Dipoto described them, Miller and friends.
Bryce Miller digs deep to pull out an all-time performance
Of course you have to start with Miller, who dug deep into the recesses of what he’s capable of to pull out the best performance of his Major League career. And we don’t consider that to be hyperbole in any way, when considering the stage combined with the challenging, injury-impacted season he’s endured in Seattle.
This was a rotation and indeed a team full stop, which was running on fumes after the heroics of just two nights earlier. In many ways – as harsh as it might sound – Miller was a last resort; if everyone was healthy and rested, he would be the fifth option to start.
Not that this mattered to the unassuming Miller, who encapsulates the team-first selfishness of this Mariners roster and was pitching on three days rest himself for the first time in his career. He’d already proven he was able to put his ego to one side heading into the playoffs by accepting he would likely just be a reliever but would help however he could, before everything was turned on its head.
Bryan Woo’s injury kept him off the ALDS roster and suddenly Miller was back in the rotation and starting Game Four versus the Tigers. And Miller performed decently enough even though the M’s went on to lose 9-3, but it couldn’t have prepared anyone for what was to come on Sunday evening in Toronto.
Bryce Miller on fire all night for the Mariners
It would have been so easy for Miller to self-capitulate after Springer’s solo blast and then facing a two-on, one-out situation while still in the first inning, but instead he rebounded and pitched the game of his life from that point onward. The righty’s tremendous outing was highlighted by averaging 96.3 mph on his fastball, which was the highest in any of his 76 career starts.
Over six innings Miller only allowed two hits, three walks and the aforementioned one earned run, while also striking out three. He proved to be efficient as well, taking just 76 pitches to get through his six innings, with 52 going for called strikes.
Miller was understandably delighted when speaking to the media postgame. He said:
“It feels great. The year personally didn’t go how I had planned and how I had hoped for, but we’re in the ALCS. I got to go out there and set the tone and I felt great. Arm, body, mentally, everything feels really good right now so I couldn’t ask for anything more.”
This was also a night of redemption for Gabe Speier, who has had a magnificent season overall but had struggled in his past two outings during the Tigers series. Well, it didn’t matter on Sunday evening as he took just eight pitches to record a 1-2-3 seventh inning after replacing Miller.
In a beautiful case of mirroring, Matt Brash and Andrés Muñoz repeated Speier’s example of 1-2-3 innings on just eight pitches. On the night it couldn’t have gone much better for a worn out pitching staff, with Miller and friends combining to allow just two hits, three walks and one earned run versus the potent Blue Jays.
Cal Raleigh and Jorge Polanco lead the offense
Of course sublime pitching like this can only help so much if you don’t get any offensive help, but fortunately for the Mariners their lineup did just enough to contribute. The sixth inning proved to be key for the M’s, as they came back from their 1-0 deficit to take a lead they would not relinquish.
First up it was that man Cal Raleigh, who came back to once again haunt Blue Jays manager John Schneider, who previously said the catcher isn’t very tough to pitch to if you execute your pitches. Which was an interesting thing to say about a player with eight career home runs in 13 appearances versus the Blue Jays in Toronto.
Schneider did attempt to pull back those comments prior to this ALCS, but regardless Raleigh reminded him again of what he can do in the top of the sixth. His homer to right field tied the game at 1-1 and was further notable for ending Kevin Gausman’s streak of holding batters hitless on 16 splitters during this postseason.
Gausman was shaken up and subsequently walked Julio RodrÃguez, which ended his outing. That set the stage for the hero of Game Five in the ALDS, and Jorge Polanco delivered once again with a RBI single off Brendon Little which scored RodrÃguez – who had advanced to second on a wild pitch – and made it 2-1 to the Mariners.
Jorge Polanco keeps things calm with the Mariners
Polanco has proven so many people wrong during a season of redemption and he continues to do so in these playoffs, with his low-key and level-headed approach to each at-bat. As per Tim Booth of The Seattle Times, he said:
“I’m just trying to keep everything simple. You know, don’t try to get too big in the moment. Just trying to keep it simple, trying to focus on having a good approach.”
As sublime as the pitching was, it was always going to be a nervous affair with just a one-run lead and on a night when hitting was at a premium for both teams. So Polanco took matters into his own hands and recorded his second hit – and one of just seven overall for the M’s – in the top of the eighth, with his second RBI single bringing Randy Arozarena home and increasing the lead to 3-1.
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Dan Wilson lauds his players
Wilson was full of praise for what his players accomplished following the longest winner-takes-all game in Major League history on Friday and then having a travel day on Saturday (with a delayed flight no less). Speaking to the media he said:
“Tremendous. We’ve talked about how resilient these guys are and tonight was one of those instances again. Great job all around and coming back tonight, and getting Game One is obviously a big momentum shift for us.”
The 44,474 in attendance at Rogers Centre were stunned by the result and rightly so, after a regular season when the Blue Jays had the best home record in the AL and were one win off the best overall home record in the majors. Instead, memories came flooding back for the fan base of a similar outcome back in Game One of the 2022 wild card matchup between these two teams in Toronto, when the M’s blanked their hosts 3-0.
It wasn’t meant to be the case this time around, for a rested and explosive Blue Jays facing a tired opponent which had just gone 15 rounds less than 48 hours earlier and then had to fly to Toronto. Clearly though, people haven’t been paying attention regarding what this Mariners team is all about.
Photos court​‌esy of Tim Rodgers Photography
How much confidence does the Game One win give you that this is finally the year the Mariners make it to their first ever World Series? As for Game Two specifically in Toronto, what is your prediction for how Logan Gilbert will pitch on just two days rest? Let us know your thoughts in the comments section below
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