Mariners blank Blue Jays in first playoff game since 2001

TORONTO -- Right-hander Luis Castillo pitched 7 1/3 innings, Cal Raleigh homered and the visiting Seattle Mariners defeated the Toronto Blue Jays 4-0 Friday in the opener of an American League wild-card series. Castillo (1-0) allowed six hits and a hit batter while striking out five. Raleigh's two-run home run keyed a three-run first inning for the Mariners, who were playing in their postseason game since 2001. The second game of the best-of-three series will be played Saturday afternoon. Toronto right-hander Alek Manoah (0-1) allowed four runs, four hits, one walk and two hit batters while striking out four in 5 2/3 innings. Julio Rodriguez was hit by a pitch to lead off the first. He took second on a groundout and scored on Eugenio Suarez's double. Raleigh followed with a home run to right. After a second-inning walk, Manoah retired nine batters in a row before he hit Rodriguez with a pitch again with one out in the fifth. Rodriguez took third on Ty France's single to right and scored on Suarez's fielder's choice grounder to third. Tim Mayza replaced Manoah with two outs and nobody on base in the sixth to end the inning on a groundout. Mayza retired the first two batters in the seventh before Yimi Garcia replaced him and allowed a single to Rodriguez before retiring France on a comebacker. Castillo, meanwhile, pitched around two singles in the second, the third and the fifth. After tossing just two strikeouts over the first six innings, he struck out the side in the bottom of the seventh. Suarez led off the eighth for Seattle with a single against Zach Pop and took third on Mitch Haniger's one-out double to left. Trevor Richards replaced Pop and worked out of the jam with a strikeout and a groundout. Castillo hit George Springer with a pitch with one out in the home eighth and was replaced by Andres Munoz, who completed the inning with a flyout and a groundout. Adam Cimber replaced Richards after J.P. Crawford walked with one out in the ninth. Munoz pitched around Matt Chapman's two-out double in the bottom of the ninth. Munoz had two strikeouts in his 1 2/3 innings. --By Larry Millson, Field Level Media