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Only 24 hours following staggering through one of the most exhausting defeats in World Series annals, the Toronto Blue Jays played with total command.

Guerrero crushed a two-run home run and Shane Bieber provided a composed outing as the Blue Jays beat the Los Angeles Dodgers 6-2 in Game 4 on Tuesday evening at their home ballpark, tying the World Series at two wins apiece and guaranteeing the series will return to Canada.

Toronto had spent the morning of the next day dealing with their 18-inning third game defeat – equal to the lengthiest World Series game ever – a loss that denied them the opportunity to lead the matchup and depleted both bullpens. Skipper Schneider stated afterwards that “the Dodgers won a contest, not the World Series”. Twenty-three hours later, his team provided convincing evidence.

Initial Innings

The Los Angeles again scored first. Muncy walked in the second, moved up on a single and scored on Kiké Hernández's fly out. But the early score did not rattle a Blue Jays club that led Major League Baseball with 49 comeback wins this year.

They answered immediately in the third inning. Lukes hit a one-out base hit to center field and Guerrero came to the plate looking for a breaking ball. Shohei Ohtani threw a sweeper up and he drove it screaming over the left-center wall. It was his initial extra-base hit of the World Series and his 7th homer this postseason – a new club mark – restoring the Toronto's lead after 13 scoreless innings and changing the tone of the night.

Shohei's Night

That hit also ended Shohei Ohtani's history-making run of 11 consecutive at-bats reaching base. The two-way star had smashed two home runs and got on base a record nine times in the Dodgers' Game 3 comeback win. But on Tuesday, he took the mound on limited rest – his briefest ever – after requiring an IV to recuperate from the prior marathon.

Ohtani fastball velocity sat below his seasonal norm and he struggled more as the contest progressed. Nonetheless, he displayed flashes of his usual command, retiring 11 of 12 after Guerrero's blast and fanning six. He even drew a walk in the first to extend his World Series record. But the Toronto made him work: six hits and four runs were charged to him in six-plus frames.

Seventh Inning Rally

The larger issue for the Dodgers was what came next when Ohtani eventually ran out of steam.

Varsho opened the seventh inning with a sharp single to right field, and Ernie Clement drilled a double off the fence to put two on with no outs. Dave Roberts had little choice but to pull Ohtani, who exited to a standing ovation from the home crowd. The Dodgers' relief corps could not complete the inning.

Banda came into the jam and right away fell behind. Andrés Giménez fought to a full count before driving in the runner with a base hit to left field. France came up next with a fielder's choice to make it 4-1, and that was sufficient to knock Banda out of the game. Treinen came in next but also failed to stem the momentum: Bichette and Addison Barger punched run-scoring base hits through the infield, capping a four-score barrage that extended the margin to 6-1.

Toronto's Toughness

The Toronto's capacity to withstand initial setbacks and answer has characterized their whole run. They once again succeeded without Springer, the hurt top-of-the-order man who exited the third game after straining his oblique.

Shane Bieber, meanwhile, was exactly what the Blue Jays needed. Traded for mid-season while finishing recovery from Tommy John surgery, the former award-winning winner stranded multiple runners and quieted the Los Angeles' potent batting order. He allowed one run on four base hits and three free passes before the manager summoned first-year pitcher Mason Fluharty to face the heart of the order in the sixth. He required just four pitches to retire Max Muncy and Tommy Edman, preserving a narrow advantage that soon grew comfortable.

Converted starter Bassitt then pitched a clean seventh and eighth innings as the Los Angeles' bats kept to struggle. Los Angeles have scored only 3 scores over their previous 20 innings, an sudden slowdown for a club that ranked among baseball's top lineups all season.

Closing Moments

The Los Angeles managed a score in the ninth inning when Tommy Edman grounded out to score Teoscar Hernández after a base on balls and Muncy's two-base hit put runners on base. But Varland closed it down without allowing a rally to build.

Following a night when Toronto left a Fall Classic-record 19 runners and collapsed after repeated of missed chances, Game 4 was brutally effective. Six different Blue Jays recorded base hits, 5 drove in scores and the team converted almost every scoring opportunity available in the final innings.

Next Up

The win guarantees the championship title will be awarded at Rogers Centre, where the Blue Jays have not won a championship since Carter's famous walk-off homer in 1993. They now know they are assured a full house in Toronto on Friday night – and perhaps Saturday – no matter what occurs next in LA.

The fifth game looms with the matchup even and momentum swinging north. Los Angeles pitcher Blake Snell (3-1, 2.42 ERA) will attempt to arrest the Blue Jays's surge. The Blue Jays respond with first-year player Yesavage (2-1, 4.26 ERA) in a repeat of Game 1, when the Toronto knocked out Snell quickly in an 11-4 victory.