Mariners' Late Rally Puts Blue Jays on Brink of Elimination After ALCS Game 5
In this story:
The American League Championship Series between the Seattle Mariners and the Toronto Blue Jays reached a pivot point in Seattle, and that was before Friday's Game 5.
Once arriving in Seattle the Blue Jays looked like an entire different team than the one that fell behind 0-2 in the series. They scored a combined 21 runs on 29 hits in games three and four to even the series. However, an eighth inning rally by the Mariners on Friday ensured Seattle a 6-2 win and put Toronto on the brink of playoff elimination.
Pivotal Moments of the Final Game in Seattle
Game five had a slower pace of offense than the games prior. The Mariners struck first in the second inning with a Eugenio Suárez homer off of Kevin Gausman's 95 mph fastball. Other than that the Mariners' bat didn't find much of a groove.
The Blue Jays had a couple of times to break the game wide open. They were getting hits, but couldn't get runners home. That included loading the bases in the fourth inning but leaving all three stranded. It wasn't until the top of the fifth that Toronto got on the scoreboard on a George Springer RBI double, which tied the game at 1-1.
The Blue Jays could have had more as the inning ended with a double play and Toronto baserunners stranded. Toronto did get the lead the following inning after Ernie Clement singled home Alejandro Kirk, making it 2-1.
Kevin Gasuman has been great in this series and this was his second start against the Mariners. Gausman finished nearly six innings and allowed three hits, one earned run and struck out five. Reliever Louis Varland has been one of the Blue Jays' best bullpen options. He finished the sixth, took care of the seventh and didn't allow a hit while he struck out two.
But the game was far from over and Seattle catcher Cal Raleigh reminded everyone in the eighth as he led off with a 350-foot solo home run off of Blue Jays reliever Brendon Little. That tied the game at 2-2.
EUGENIO SUÁREZ GRAND SLAM!!
— FOX Sports: MLB (@MLBONFOX) October 18, 2025
SEATTLE IS SHAKING!!
📺: FS1 pic.twitter.com/lOId9STGLB
Little got the Jays in a bind. Manager John Schneider pulled him after he walked a pair of Mariners. Seranthony Domínguez was unable to clean it up as he hit Randy Arozarena with a pitch to load the bases with no outs and a tie score.
It only got worse from there. Domínguez threw a 99 mph fastball to Suárez which ended up being a a 350 foot grand slam, his fourth of the year. It put the Mariners up by four runs and ultimately ended Toronto's hopes of a road sweep and a 3-2 lead in the series.
Toronto's George Springer was hit by a pitch the seventh. The pitch went directly into his knee and he was on the ground for a concerning amount of time. He wanted to stay in the game but the Jays removed him.
The ALCS is now headed back to Toronto. The Jays must win both games to punch a ticket to the World Series. Game six will be played on Sunday with the first pitch expected to be thrown at 8:03 p.m. ET.
Recommended Articles
Maddy Dickens resides in Loveland, Colorado. She grew up with two older brothers, where their lives revolved around sports. She earned a master's degree in business management from Tarleton State University while simultaneously playing basketball and competing in rodeo at the collegiate level. She successfully parlayed a reserve national championship into a professional rodeo career and now stays involved in upper-level athletics by writing for On SI on several different MLB teams' pages, along with some NCAA sites.