Robinson Cano’s sacrifice fly helps Mariners salvage 12-inning victory

Robinson Cano points to his teammates in the Mariner dugout as he lets loose with the sacrifice fly that scores the winning run in the 12th inning against Toronto. (Dean Rutz/The Seattle Times) Robinson Cano’s sacrifice fly in the 12th inning lifted the Mariners to a 2-1 extra-inning victory on Wednesday afternoon at Safeco Field.

Seattle (80-72) temporarily pulled within 2.5 games of Baltimore, which plays at Boston later on Wednesday afternoon, avoided a series sweep and belatedly picked up a game on the wild-card-leading Blue Jays.

There was plenty about the matchup that did not look good for the hosts.

To start, there was the matter of Seattle’s rapidly fading playoff prospects — despite…