Ken Griffey, Jr. may have been gone. Álex Rodríguez may have left town. Randy Johnson may have been but a memory. But Ichiro Suzuki was the new king of Seattle. Jamie Moyer and Edgar Martínez and Dan Wilson were still around. Facing the Indians at Safeco Field on October 15, 2001, things were about as joyous as in the best days when Griffey, Rodríguez and Johnson were showcasing their awesome brands of talent. On October 15, 2001, Ichiro collected three hits and scored a run, Martínez scored a run and drove in another and Wilson contributed a hit and from behind the dish, managed a staff led by Moyer and his six innings of one-run ball. After a little more than three hours, a 5-3 putout put the Mariners into the ALCS. Somehow, that celebratory Monday afternoon, giving the Mariners their 119th victory of the regular and postseason, would mark the club’s last home win in the playoffs for two dozen years.
*Tigers v. Mariners*
Julio Rodríguez doubled in the go-ahead run for the Mariners in the bottom of the eighth and Seattle slipped by Detroit, 3-2, evening the best-of-five ALDS at a game apiece. The victory gave the Mariners their first postseason win at home since 2001, snapping a losing streak that had run to four games.
~Rodríguez has secured an RBI and an extra-base hit in each of the first two games of this series; he’s the third Mariner to begin a postseason with at least one of each in the first two games, joining Ken Griffey, Jr. in 1995 and Cal Raleigh in 2022.
~One regular season note on Rodríguez, since late in the year, there was a Connections piece on him. In 2025, the 24-year-old completed his fourth big league campaign with a 6.8 bWAR (fifth in the Majors among position players) to elevate his career mark to 22.9. For all players in history through four seasons, that figure brings Rodriguez into a tie with Henry Aaron and Alex Bregman for the 19th highest.
In the victory, Jorge Polanco produced a pair of solo home runs – the fourth Mariner (and first since 1995) to have a multi-homer line in the postseason. Thirty years ago, it was Ken Griffey, Jr. (ALDS, Game 1), Edgar Martínez (ALDS, Game 4) and Jay Buhner (ALCS, Game 3) providing the dual claps of thunder.
~From a different view, Polanco is the 16th switch-hitter (and first since Kendrys Morales in 2015) to homer twice (or in one case, thrice) in a postseason game.
Most Career Multi-HR Games by a Switch-Hitter in the Postseason
3 Carlos Beltrán (2004, 2006, 2012)
2 Mickey Mantle (1958, 1960), Bernie Williams (1995, 1996), Chipper Jones (1995, 2003)
1 Willie McGee (1982), Eddie Murray (1983), Ken Caminiti (1996), Milton Bradley (2006), Pablo Sandoval (2012 *3-HR game*), Kendrys Morales (2015), Jorge Polanco (2025)
~Polanco, who also singled in the victory, tied the Mariners’ high mark for total bases in a postseason game, with nine. Previously, it was a club of three attended by Ken Griffey, Jr. (1995 ALDS, Game 1), Edgar Martínez (1995 ALDS, Game 4) and Álex Rodríguez (2000 ALCS, Game 6). Across all the land, the best anyone has done is 14 total bases, an apex shared by Bob Robertson (Game 2, 1971 NLCS) and Albert Pujols (Game 3, 2011 World Series). Roberston had three home runs and a double while Pujols had a pair (of singles) and three of a kind (home runs).
As a reminder, the Tigers took Game 1 by the same exact score as this one, 3-2. Before these Games 1 and 2, the Mariners had never before persisted through back-to-back postseason games in the same series decided by a single run. The Tigers have had a decent amount of exposure to this sort of thing, with their previous experiences identified below.
Tigers, 1903-2024: Consecutive Games Within a Series Decided by One Run
2013 ALCS: Win Game 1, Lose Game 2, Lose Game 3
1935 WS: Win Game 3, Win Game 4
1972 ALCS: Win Game 4, Lose Game 5
2013 ALDS: Win Game 1, Lose Game 2
2014 ALDS: Lose Game 2, Lose Game 3
Tarik Skubal (7.0 IP, 2 R, 9 K’s) came away with a no-decision in this start, the fifth of his postseason career.
~Skubal’s career postseason numbers include a 2.14 ERA and 43 strikeouts. Among all pitchers through their first five postseason outings, his 43 K’s tie him with Mike Mussina for the second most, with those two behind Bob Gibson and his 47. Right behind Skubal and Mussina – Sandy Koufax (39). As for ERA …
Lowest ERA Through First 5 Postseason Games (min. 25.0 IP)
Rank ERA Name
1 0.26 Waite Hoyt
2 0.38 Christy Mathewson
3 0.64 Stephen Strasburg
4 0.87 Babe Ruth
t-5 0.89 Sherry Smith
t-5 0.89 Blue Moon Odom
t-5 0.89 Corey Kluber …
t-67 2.14 Whitey Ford
t-67 2.14 Tarik Skubal
*Yankees v. Blue Jays*
Daulton Varsho – with two home runs and two doubles – led an explosive Blue Jays attack that piled up 13 runs in 13-7 win. Toronto leads New York two games to none in the best-of-five series.
~Varsho tied the Major League postseason record with four extra-base hits and established a new Blue Jays record for total bases (with 12) in a playoff contest. In this latter slot, eight previous Blue Jays had tallied eight. In the former category …
Most XBH in a Postseason Game
4 Frank Isbell in Game 5 of the 1906 World Series (four doubles)
4 Bob Robertson in Game 2 of the 1971 NLCS (three homers, double)
4 Hideki Matsui in Game 3 of the 2004 ALCS (two doubles, two homers)
4 Albert Pujols in Game 2 of the 2011 NLCS (three doubles, homer)
4 Kiké Hernández in Game 2 of the 2021 ALDS (three doubles, homer)
4 Daulton Varsho in Game 2 of the 2025 ALDS (two doubles, two homers)
~Varsho scored four times and drove in four runs. The postseason’s 4-hit, 4-run, 4-RBI club consists of six players. Varsho, Robertson and Matsui from the “Most XBH in a Postseason Game” list make up half of this other collection. Then, there’s Steve Garvey from NLCS Game 4 in 1974, Will Clark from NLCS Game 1 in 1989 and Albert Pujols from World Series Game 3 in 2011.
~Varsho is the fifth Blue Jay to produce a multi-homer line in the postseason, following José Bautista (2015 ALCS, G6), Danny Jansen (2020 ALWC, G2), Teoscar Hernández (2022 ALWC, G2) and Alejandro Kirk (2025 ALDS, Game 1).
~Varsho tied for the team lead in RBI in this rout, his four even with Vladimir Guerrero, Jr.’s tally. It’s the 14th time in postseason history teammates have driven in at least four in the same game and the second time it’s happened for a Blue Jays club. In Game 4 of the 1993 World Series, Devon White (4 RBI) and Tony Fernández (5 RBI) were the big run producers. That same game also offers another representative among the 14 – Lenny Dykstra and Milt Thompson for the Phillies.
~Guerrero drove in his four runs on a single swing, his fourth-inning swat representing the 86th grand slam in postseason history. Guerrero is the first Blue Jay to make this list, but the second Vladimir Guerrero – his father hit one for the Angels in Game 3 of the 2004 ALDS.
~Guerrero has hammered right out of this postseason’s gate, producing back-to-back games featuring three hits (including a homer) and multiple RBI. He’s the second player to open a postseason with this kind of barrage, after Davey Lopes. In Games 1 and 2 of the 1978 NLCS, Lopes totaled six hits and two homers to go along with a double and a triple and drove in five runs. Guerrero’s two-game tallies come in at six hits, two homers and six RBI.
George Springer also contributed a home run in the win – the 20th of his postseason career. He’s the sixth player to reach the milestone, joining Manny Ramírez (29), Jose Altuve (27), Bernie Williams (22), Kyle Schwarber (21) and Derek Jeter (20).
~Springer, who also doubled in this game, owns a career .535 slugging percentage across 69 postseason contests. He’s one of 109 players in postseason history with at least 200 plate appearances* and among them, ranks in tie with Mickey Mantle for the 11th highest slugging mark. That top grouping looks like this:
.631 Nelson Cruz
.614 Bryce Harper
.609 Carlos Beltrán
.572 Albert Pujols
.551 Yordan Alvarez
.550 Steve Garvey
.549 David Freese
.544 Manny Ramírez
.543 David Ortiz
.541 Hideki Matsui
.535 Mickey Mantle
.535 George Springer
*This collection of 109 is made up almost entirely of players whose postseason experiences fell/fall within the “multiple rounds of postseason series” era. Those who came before the introduction of the LCS (and later, the LDS and WC rounds) and had enough opportunity to hit the 200-mark: Frankie Frisch, Joe DiMaggio, Phil Rizzuto, Gil McDougald, Yogi Berra, Mickey Mantle and Elston Howard, who satisfies the threshold when including his postseason experience (28 PA) with the Kansas City Monarchs in 1948.
Toronto has played 69 postseason games. In this contest, the club established new highs for extra-base hits (8), home runs (5), total bases (33), slugging percentage (.868) and OPS (1.307). If you’re curious about what the highest postseason marks for any team in these categories are, you came to the right place.
XBH (13) Yankees in Game 3 of the 2004 ALCS
HR (6) Cubs in Game 3 of the 2015 NLDS; Phillies in Game 3 of the 2023 NLDS; Padres in Game 2 of the 2024 NLDS
TB (45) Red Sox in Game 4 of the 1999 ALDS
SLG (1.000) Cubs in Game 3 of the 2015 NLDS
OPS (1.491) Red Sox in Game 4 of the 1999 ALDS
Providing a different version of power, 22-year-old right-hander Trey Yesavage rang up 11 strikeouts over five-and-a-third innings. Focusing on the K’s –
~His 11 punchouts established a new Blue Jays record for postseason strikeouts, outdistancing the eight by Dave Stieb (1985 ALCS, G1), Juan Guzmán (1992 ALCS, G6) and David Price (2015 ALCS, G2, G6).
~His 11 punchouts tie for the 12th most for any pitcher in his postseason debut:
14 Joe Coleman (1972 ALCS, G3), John Candelaria (1975 NLCS, G3), Mike Boddicker (1983 ALCS, G2), Mike Scott (1986 NLCS, G1), Tim Lincecum (2010 NLDS, G1)
13 Howard Ehmke (1929 WS, G1), Jacob deGrom (2015 NLDS, G1)
12 Ed Walsh (1906 WS, G3), Bill Donovan (1907 WS, G1), Walter Johnson (1924 WS, G1), Cam Schlittler (2025 ALWC, G3)
11 Bill Dinneen (1903 WS, G2), Smoky Joe Wood (1912 WS, G1), Don Newcombe (1949 WS, G1), Moe Drabowsky (1966 WS, G1), Jonathan Sánchez (2010 NLDS, G3), Jake Arrieta (2015 NLWC), Trey Yesavage (2025 ALDS, G2)
~By age, Yesavage – at 22 years and 69 days old – is the second youngest pitcher ever to fan at least 11 in a postseason contest. In Game 3 of the 1975 NLCS, Pirates left-hander John Candelaria was 21 years and 335 days old when he fanned 14 Reds.
~Yesavage was nearly flawless in his five-and-a-third no-hit innings, issuing just one walk (there was also a baserunner via an error). Everything blended together, the right-hander’s Game Score comes out to a 78 – tied for the 55th best for any pitcher in his postseason debut. Among Blue Jays, Dave Stieb is the lone hurler to come out ahead of the team’s newest hero, with Stieb posting an 83 for his 1985 ALCS Game 1 effort in which he threw eight innings of three-hit, no-run ball with eight strikeouts and one walk.
Aaron Judge singled twice and drew two walks – the third time in his postseason career he’s produced a line that saw him reach safely at least four times. Few Yankees have had more.
NYY – Most Postseason Games Reaching Safely 4+ Times
11 Bernie Williams
7 Derek Jeter
6 Álex Rodríguez
4 Lou Gehrig
3 Babe Ruth, Yogi Berra, Mickey Mantle, Thurman Munson, Reggie Jackson, Jorge Posada, Hideki Matsui, Aaron Judge
~Judge drove in a run and scored twice. Some updated postseason numbers and rankings for Judge in Yankees annals:
53 Hits – one behind Joe DiMaggio and Álex Rodríguez for ninth all-time
39 Runs – two behind Yogi Berra for fifth all-time
36 RBI – three behind Berra and Hideki Matsui for sixth all-time
38 BB – five behind Mickey Mantle for fourth all-time
108 TB – three behind Matsui for seventh all-time
94 ToB – five behind Rodríguez for eighth all-time
Giancarlo Stanton produced his 41st and 42nd career postseason RBI. He’s tied with Jorge Posada, Jim Edmonds, Carlos Beltrán, Shane Victorino and Justin Turner for 13th most all-time.
~Stanton has played in 46 career postseason games. His 42 RBI are the most for any player at this exact stage, as are his 18 home runs.
Most RBI Through first 46 Postseason Games
42 Giancarlo Stanton
38 Lance Berkman, David Ortiz
37 Bernie Williams, Carlos Beltrán, Nelson Cruz
Most HR Through first 42 Postseason Games
18 Giancarlo Stanton
17 Nelson Cruz
16 Carlos Beltrán
15 Babe Ruth, Bryce Harper
Thanks to Baseball Reference and its extraordinary research database, Stathead, for help in assembling this piece.
Roger Schlueter
As Sr. Editorial Director for Major League Baseball Productions from 2004-2015, Roger served as a hub for hundreds of hours of films, series, documentaries and features: as researcher, fact-checker, script doctor, and developer of ideas. The years at MLB Production gave him the ideal platform to pursue what galvanized him the most – the idea that so much of what takes place on the field during the MLB regular and postseason (and is forever beautifully condensed into a box score) has connections to what has come before. Unearthing and celebrating these webs allows baseball to thrive, for the present can come alive and also reignite the past.