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Only 24 hours after staggering through one of the most draining defeats in Fall Classic history, the Blue Jays played with complete control.

Vladimir Guerrero Jr smashed a two-run home run and Shane Bieber delivered a steady start as Toronto beat the Los Angeles Dodgers 6-2 in Game 4 on Tuesday night at Dodger Stadium, tying the World Series at two wins apiece and guaranteeing the series will head back to Canada.

Toronto had spent the morning of the next day dealing with their 18-inning third game defeat – equal to the longest Fall Classic game ever – a defeat that denied them the opportunity to lead the matchup and burned through both bullpens. Skipper John Schneider stated later that “they took a game, not the World Series”. Twenty-three hours later, his team offered emphatic evidence.

Initial Innings

The Los Angeles again scored first. Max Muncy walked in the second inning, advanced on a single and crossed the plate on Kiké Hernández's sacrifice fly. But the early score did not rattle a Toronto team that topped MLB with 49 come-from-behind wins this season.

They responded right away in the third. Lukes lined a one away single to centre and Guerrero stepped in hunting a breaking ball. Shohei Ohtani threw a sweeper up and he drove it soaring over the outfield fence. It was his first long hit of the series and his 7th home run this playoffs – a new club mark – regaining the Toronto's advantage after 13 shutout frames and changing the tone of the night.

Shohei's Performance

That hit also ended Shohei Ohtani's history-making run of 11 straight at-bats reaching base. The dual-threat star had hit two homers and got on base a record nine times in the Los Angeles' Game 3 comeback win. But on that night, he took the mound on limited rest – his shortest ever – after needing an IV to recover from the previous marathon.

Ohtani pitch speed sat under his regular-season norm and he labored more as the contest wore on. Nonetheless, he displayed flashes of his usual command, setting down 11 of 12 after Guerrero's homer and striking out six. He even walked in the first to extend his World Series record. But the Blue Jays made him work: six hits and four earned runs were charged to him in over six frames.

Seventh Inning Rally

The larger problem for Los Angeles was what followed when he eventually lost steam.

Varsho started the seventh inning with a clean single to right field, and Clement drilled a two-base hit off the fence to put two on with none out. Roberts had no option but to remove the starter, who departed to a roaring applause from the local fans. The Los Angeles' bullpen could not finish the inning.

Anthony Banda inherited the mess and right away trailed in the count. Andrés Giménez fought to a full count before scoring Varsho with a base hit to left. Ty France came up next with a fielder's choice to make it 4-1, and that was enough to remove Banda out of the contest. Blake Treinen entered next but also failed to stem the momentum: Bichette and Addison Barger hit RBI base hits through the infield, capping a four-run barrage that pushed the lead to 6-1.

Blue Jays's Resilience

The Blue Jays's capacity to withstand initial blows and respond has defined their whole postseason. They once again did it without George Springer, the hurt top-of-the-order man who exited the third game after tweaking his oblique.

Shane Bieber, in contrast, was everything the Blue Jays required. Acquired during the summer while completing recovery from Tommy John surgery, the former Cy Young winner stranded multiple runners and quieted the Los Angeles' dangerous lineup. He gave up one run on four hits and three walks before Schneider summoned rookie left-hander Mason Fluharty to confront the heart of the order in the sixth. He required just four pitches to get out Max Muncy and Edman, protecting a narrow advantage that soon grew comfortable.

Converted starting pitcher Chris Bassitt then pitched a clean seventh and eighth innings as the Dodgers' offense continued to sputter. Los Angeles have produced only three runs over their previous 20 innings, an sudden downturn for a club that was among MLB's elite lineups all year.

Final Innings

The Dodgers managed a run in the ninth when Tommy Edman grounded out to score Teoscar Hernández after a base on balls and Muncy's double put runners on base. But Varland closed it down without allowing a comeback to develop.

After a game when Toronto left a Fall Classic-record 19 runners and fell apart after wave upon wave of missed chances, Game 4 was ruthlessly efficient. 6 different Toronto players collected base hits, 5 drove in scores and the team cashed almost every run-scoring opportunity presented in the late stanzas.

Next Up

The victory ensures the championship trophy will be presented at their home stadium, where the Blue Jays have not won a title since Joe Carter's iconic game-winning homer in 1993. They now are aware they are assured a packed house in Toronto on Friday night – and possibly Saturday – no matter what occurs next in Los Angeles.

Game 5 looms with the series even and momentum swinging north. Dodgers pitcher Snell (3-1, 2.42 ERA) will try to arrest the Blue Jays's momentum. Toronto respond with rookie Yesavage (2-1, 4.26 ERA) in a repeat of Game 1, when the Blue Jays knocked out Snell quickly in an 11-4 victory.