A late-game offensive onslaught by the Mariners led Seattle to a 6-2 victory over the Toronto Blue Jays during Game 5 of the American League Championship Series (ALCS) on Friday.

The Mariners now have a 3-2 lead in the best-of-seven series, and the Jays are on the brink of elimination from the post-season as they head back to Toronto for a must-win Game 6 on Sunday.

Things fell apart for Toronto in the eighth inning, when Seattle slugger Cal Raleigh hit a leadoff home run off Brendon Little, who had just entered the game.

A man in a baseball uniform looks dejected. Jays reliever Brendon Little reacts after giving up a home run to Seattle Mariners catcher Cal Raleigh during the eighth inning in Game 5. (Abbie Parr/The Associated Press)

That solo shot tied the game up, erasing the slim 2-1 lead the Jays had clung to for several innings.

Little then issued back-to-back walks before being yanked by Blue Jays manager John Schneider, who brought in Seranthony Dominguez to try to stop the bleeding.

But he hit the next batter, Randy Arozarena, to load the bases before giving up a grand slam to Eugenio Suárez, making the score 6-2.

The Jays couldn’t answer with any additional runs in the ninth, bringing Game 5 to a disappointing end.

The Jays also seemed thrown by the sudden exit of slugger George Springer in the seventh inning after he was hit on the knee by a pitch. Though he tried to walk it off, he had to come out.

A man in a baseball uniform stands with his back to the camera at home plate as a baseball comes at his knee. A catcher holds out his glove behind the batter. George Springer was hit by a pitch on the knee during the seventh inning and came out of the game. (Alika Jenner/Getty Images)Jays clung to slim lead

Before the bottom of the eighth, the Jays had clung to a 2-1 lead that came when Ernie Clement’s RBI single scored Alejandro Kirk in the sixth.

Earlier in the fifth, an RBI double from Springer tied the game 1-1.

Seattle got off to an early lead in Game 5, after Suárez hit a solo home run off Toronto starter Kevin Gausman in the bottom of the second inning.

Gausman stayed in the game into the sixth inning, but was pulled after walking a batter with two outs. Blue Jays manager John Schneider called in reliever Louis Varland to take the ball for Toronto.

Series moves back to Toronto

The series returns to Toronto’s Rogers Centre for Game 6 on Sunday, with rookie pitcher Trey Yesavage getting the critical start for the Jays. If they can pull out a win and force a Game 7, that final game will be played Monday, also in Toronto.

The winner of the ALCS will advance to the World Series — a stage Toronto last reached in the ’90s. Seattle, meanwhile, has never been part of the Fall Classic.

The team that goes to the World Series will play the winner of the National League Championship Series (NLCS) — either the Los Angeles Dodgers or the Milwaukee Brewers.

The Dodgers — the winners of two of the past five World Series — are leading the best-of-seven NLCS 3-0 ahead of their own Friday night game with the Brewers.

WATCH | Blue Jays pull even with Seattle in ALCS:

Blue Jays beat Seattle 8-2 to even up American League championship at 2 games each

The Toronto Blue Jays combined hot bats and solid pitching to secure a critical 8-2 win over the Seattle Mariners in Game 4 of the American League Championship Series, tying up the best-of-seven series at two games apiece.