Baseball is beautiful.
The Seattle Mariners' game that would never end concluded less than 24 hours ago, but it's clear the feeling of a win like that will last a lifetime, especially if what comes next finds a way to top it.
Of course it was never going to be easy for the Mariners to reach the ALCS for the first time since 2001.
Of course they had to go through Tarik Skubal, the American League's best pitcher.
But somehow, there was reason for belief. Skubal had started three games against Seattle this season, and while he hadn't pitched poorly, the Mariners had won all three.
Is that a sign of destiny, of fate?
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It just might've been, because the Mariners made it four for four.
Of course, Skubal was long gone by the time Jorge Polanco delivered the walk-off hit in the bottom of the 15th inning to call game.
Bullpens had been stretched thin. Catchers' legs were worn out. Countless baseballs had been tossed aside, forever a tiny piece of Seattle baseball history.
And in the end, the Mariners extended their season in a way they hadn't done in 24 years, and in a manner that will be hard to ever forget.
Seattle now has a chance to make that 15-inning epic a part of their legacy, and here's how: Make the World Series, and win it.
The Mariners have never even won a pennant. Just getting to the World Series would be a first. Winning it? It'd be a lot like the feeling of winning a 15-inning marathon, only magnified by 100.
Every champion has a story, one with ups and downs, highs and lows, and a few moments that you can't quite believe even long after they have passed.
The Mariners' ability to beat Skubal when it mattered most, to win in 15 innings, to continue one of their best seasons ever: That's special. That's unforgettable.
And that's the kind of moment that makes you think, no matter how much time has passed since the final run crossed home plate, that a World Series may be, for the first time ever, a thing of destiny in the Pacific Northwest.
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