The Seattle Mariners defeated the Detroit Tigers 3-2 in a grueling 15-inning winner-take-all Game 5 of the American League Division Series (ALDS) on Friday. The game was the longest elimination contest in a Division Series since the 1999 NLCS between the Atlanta Braves and New York Mets.
Seattle opened the scoring in the second inning. Josh Naylor doubled, stole third, and scored on a sacrifice fly by Mitch Garver to give the Mariners a 1-0 lead. Detroit answered in the sixth when Kerry Carpenter launched a two-run homer off left-handed reliever Gabe Speier, giving the Tigers a 2-1 advantage.
Starter Tarik Skubal was exceptionally effective through six innings, allowing only two hits and one run while striking out 13 batters, setting a record for the most strikeouts in a winner-take-all postseason game. Skubal also set another MLB postseason record with seven consecutive strikeouts, the most ever in a playoff game.
Seattle tied the game 2-2 in the seventh inning. Jorge Polanco reached on a walk and advanced to second on a single by Josh Naylor. Pinch-hitter Leo Rivas, in his first postseason plate appearance, singled to left off Tyler Holton, driving in Polanco to knot the game. From the eighth through the 14th innings, neither team could score.
The game-winning run came in the bottom of the 15th inning. J.P. Crawford singled, was hit by a pitch, and advanced to third on a sacrifice fly. With the bases loaded and one out, Polanco lined a single off Detroit reliever Tommy Kahnle, scoring Crawford and securing a 3-2 Mariners win on the 472nd pitch of the game. Seattle left 12 runners on base but still managed to advance to the ALCS.
Luis Castillo earned the win in relief, pitching 1 1/3 innings in his first major league relief appearance, while Logan Gilbert contributed two scoreless innings in his first relief outing since college in 2017.
The Mariners now advance to the American League Championship Series (ALCS) for the first time since 2001, where they will face the AL East champion Toronto Blue Jays beginning Sunday at 8:03 p.m. ET at Rogers Centre.
Toronto’s roster could see the return of shortstop Bo Bichette, who missed the end of the regular season and ALDS due to a knee injury, along with pitchers Max Scherzer and Chris Bassitt. The Mariners enter the series led by power hitters Cal Raleigh, who hit a major-league-leading 60 home runs with 125 RBIs this season, and Randy Arozarena, who amassed a career-high 27 homers, 31 stolen bases, and 76 RBIs.
Meanwhile, the Tigers’ search for their first World Series appearance continues, with their last appearance in 2012 and their last championship in 1984. Be that as it may, Detroit went just 1-for-9 with runners in scoring position and left 10 on base in Game 5, finishing short in a historic matchup.
