Polanco hits winning single in the 15th inning as the Mariners beat the Tigers to advance to ALCS

Polanco hits winning single in the 15th inning as the Mariners beat the Tigers to advance to ALCS

Sports

It was the third one-run game — all with a 3-2 score

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SEATTLE (AP) — Jorge Polanco hit a game-ending single in the 15th inning, and the Seattle Mariners advanced to the AL Championship Series by outlasting the Detroit Tigers for a 3-2 victory Friday night in the longest winner-take-all postseason game in baseball history.

With one out and the bases loaded, Polanco drove in J.P. Crawford with a liner to right on a full-count changeup from Tommy Kahnle. Crawford held his arms in the air as he touched home plate while the Mariners poured out of the dugout to celebrate in front of a frenzied crowd of 47,025.

Crawford hit a leadoff single, Randy Arozarena was hit by a pitch and Julio Rodríguez was intentionally walked before Polanco’s big swing on the 472nd pitch of an epic Game 5 that clocked in at 4 hours, 58 minutes.

It was the third one-run game — all with a 3-2 score — in a tightly contested AL Division Series.