Eugenio Suarez, M’s slam Jays, close in on first World Series

SEATTLE — In the hallway outside the Seattle Mariners’ clubhouse is a sign that reads “Good Vibes Only,” a phrase coined by Eugenio Suarez when he helped the franchise snap a 21-year postseason drought in 2022.

After Suarez subsequently spent 1 1/2 years in Arizona, the Mariners reacquired the slugging third baseman at this summer at the trade deadline.

That move more than paid off on Friday, when Suarez’s second home run of the game, an eighth-inning grand slam, broke a tie as the Mariners defeated the Toronto Blue Jays 6-2 to regain control of the American League Championship Series.

Cal Raleigh sparked the rally with a leadoff homer in the eighth as the Mariners took a 3-2 lead in the best-of-seven series.

A win in Game 6 at Toronto on Sunday would send Seattle to the World Series for the first time.

“My emotions right now, it’s very high,” said Suarez, who entered the day hitting .162 with one homer and two RBIs in the 2025 postseason. “I feel so grateful. God gave me the ability to do something good for this city, and the vibe is always going to be high.

“Even when you’re struggling, you’ve got to keep your good vibes because it’s a gift. Today our vibe was so high. We know what is in front of us, and we want to take it.”

Mariners manager Dan Wilson made some lineup changes after his team dropped Games 3 and 4 at home, notably moving Julio Rodriguez into the leadoff spot and dropping Randy Arozarena to fifth, but it was the two players who maintained their spots in the batting order who did the most damage.

Raleigh just cleared the left field fence on a pitch from left-hander Brendon Little (0-1) to tie the score at 2-2. It was the fourth homer of the playoffs for Raleigh after he hit a major-league-leading 60 during the regular season.

Little then walked Jorge Polanco and Josh Naylor before being pulled for Seranthony Dominguez, who hit Randy Arozarena with a pitch to load the bases with no outs.

Suarez, who opened the scoring with a solo shot in the second, went deep with an opposite-field blast to right, shaking the foundation at T-Mobile Park.

“It felt like Cal’s ball was in the air for, like, an hour,” Wilson said. “But to see that one go over and tie the score … and then after Geno’s grand slam, I’m not sure I’ve heard that building any louder than that.”

Gabe Speier (1-1) pitched a scoreless inning of relief for the victory, and Seattle closer Andres Munoz worked a 1-2-3 ninth in a non-save situation.

Blue Jays leadoff man and designated hitter George Springer, who drove home the tying run with a fifth-inning double, had to leave the game after being hit by a pitch on the right knee in the seventh.

“He’s got a right knee contusion. He had X-rays, which were negative, which is a good thing,” Blue Jays manager John Schneider said, “He’ll probably do some more testing (Friday night) when we get home. George is about as tough as they come. I think he’ll have to really, really be hurting to not be in the lineup on Sunday.”

Toronto took the lead in the sixth off Bryan Woo, who was making the first relief appearance of his career other than this summer’s All-Star Game in Atlanta.

Woo, who hadn’t pitched since Sept. 19 because of a strained pectoral muscle that kept him off the AL Division Series roster, was greeted by Alejandro Kirk’s double to right-center. An out later, Ernie Clement, who had grounded into an inning-ending double play with the bases loaded in the fourth, lined a single to right, giving Toronto a 2-1 lead.

“It worked out well for him to be able to get in there, to get his feet wet again, and to see what it was like coming out of the bullpen and be able to get two innings in,” Wilson said. “That’s what we’re trying to do is keep the game close and allow our offense to do some damage late.”

Blue Jays starter Kevin Gausman went 5 2/3 innings and gave up one run on three hits. The right-hander walked three and struck out four.

Seattle starter Bryce Miller pitched four-plus innings and was charged with one run on four hits, with two walks and four strikeouts.

Schneider vowed the Blue Jays would be ready for Game 6.

“Yeah, we still have home-field advantage. As cool of an environment it is to play here, I know that our fans are going to be ready for us to get home on Sunday,” he said. “It’s a seven-game series, and we did our job coming in here taking two out of three, and we’re going to go home and we’re going to definitely be ready to play.”

–Gene Warnick, Field Level Media