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Mariners vs Tigers ALDS Game 5: Jorge Polanco’s single finally ended it — a 3-2 Mariners win over the Tigers in 15 exhausting innings late Friday night. With that swing, Seattle punched its ticket to the American League Championship Series for the first time since 2001.
The marathon lasted four hours and 58 minutes. Fifteen pitchers took the mound, combining for 472 pitches. Even starters Logan Gilbert and Luis Castillo came out of the bullpen — a first in their careers.
Both teams had their chances in extra innings but couldn’t cash in. The crowd at T-Mobile Park — 47,025 strong — never lost its voice. The energy, the emotion, and the noise carried deep into the night.
“It was an incredible night for Seattle,” said Tigers manager A.J. Hinch. “For us, it was the opposite — a brutal loss. That game had everything.”
Mariners pitcher George Kirby shared how draining it was. “By the eighth inning, my head was pounding,” he said. “I’m just relieved it’s done.”
After the game, a few players admitted it felt like they’d played two separate games in one night. Kirby even joked that his early matchup with Tigers ace Tarik Skubal seemed like it happened days ago.
Seattle grabbed a 1-0 lead in the second inning. But when manager Dan Wilson took Kirby out in the sixth, Kerry Carpenter made them pay.
He crushed a two-run shot that flipped the score — and with the way Skubal was pitching, it looked like Detroit might have it wrapped up.
Skubal had the Mariners completely off balance with his changeup. They tried to work his pitch count up, but he kept striking batters out with ease.
He fanned two in the first, two in the second, and three in the third. At one stretch, he struck out seven hitters in a row.
Before this game, his season high was 107 pitches.
As he neared 100, he and manager A.J. Hinch agreed the sixth inning would be his final frame. His last pitch — a 101 mph fastball to MVP hopeful Cal Raleigh — earned him his 13th strikeout on pitch number 99.
For the Mariners, Skubal’s exit was a welcome break. They wasted no time, tying the game with a pinch-hit single from Leo Rivas on his 28th birthday.
What followed no one could have expected. The score stayed deadlocked for nearly three hours. Managers Dan Wilson and A.J. Hinch cycled through their bullpens, and every reliever delivered.
Detroit relied on Will Vest, Rafael Montero, and Jack Flaherty. Seattle countered with Matt Brash, Andres Munoz, Logan Gilbert, and even Luis Castillo, pitching out of the bullpen for the first time in nine years.
“Our bullpen was incredible,” Wilson said. “You can’t praise them enough.”
They delivered under constant pressure. The Mariners had two runners on in the 10th and two more in the 12th.
The Tigers turned double plays twice to escape trouble. After leaving the mound, Kirby headed to the clubhouse for his postgame routine, then returned to the dugout to watch.
Skubal did the same. Players from both teams leaned over the rails, hanging on every pitch that could decide the game — and their season.
Tommy Kahnle took the mound for Detroit in the bottom of the 15th. J.P. Crawford wasted no time, blasting a single to spark hope for the inning. Then Kahnle hit Randy Arozarena with a pitch, putting Raleigh in the spotlight.
Raleigh sent a deep fly ball to center. Crawford tagged up and advanced to third, while Arozarena moved to second. Hinch called for an intentional walk to Julio Rodriguez, leaving Polanco with the chance to end it.
“I was just waiting for a pitch I could drive,” Polanco said afterward. He zeroed in on Kahnle’s changeup and made it count.
As Polanco sent the ball skimming between first and second, Crawford dashed home.
“I still can’t believe it’s over,” Raleigh said, joining the other Mariners as they ran after Polanco in celebration.
T-Mobile Park exploded with noise. The crowd’s roar was so intense that players standing side by side could hardly hear each other.
It could have been the loudest moment ever in Mariners history. Or maybe the second loudest. The last time a winner-take-all AL Division Series went to extra innings was 30 years ago.
Back then, Seattle’s designated hitter Edgar Martinez — now the team’s hitting coach — drove a ball into the left-field corner. Future Hall of Famer Ken Griffey Jr. sprinted around the bases to score the series-winning run against the Yankees.
Before Game 5, the Mariners’ pregame show stole the spotlight. A shiny sports car drove through an alley in the right-field wall. On top of the back seat sat a familiar hero to the fans — Ken Griffey Jr.
What came next was pure extra-inning drama. The pitching feats, the runners left stranded, and the Mariners mobbing Polanco after his walk-off hit will live on in memory, just like the legendary 1995 showdown.
Polanco still had champagne dripping from the back of his hat when he faced the media. “I’m overflowing with gratitude,” he said. Fans who witnessed this 15-inning marathon could feel every bit of it.
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