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Less than a day following staggering through one of the most exhausting losses in Fall Classic history, the Toronto Blue Jays played with complete command.

Vladimir Guerrero Jr crushed a two-run home run and Shane Bieber provided a steady start as Toronto defeated the Los Angeles Dodgers 6-2 in Game 4 on Tuesday night at Dodger Stadium, tying the Fall Classic at two games each and guaranteeing the matchup will head back to Toronto.

The Blue Jays had spent the morning of the next day dealing with their marathon third game defeat – equal to the lengthiest World Series contest ever – a loss that denied them the chance to lead the matchup and depleted both bullpens. Skipper Schneider stated later that “the Dodgers took a game, not the World Series”. Twenty-three hours later, his team offered convincing proof.

Early Action

The Los Angeles again struck first. Max Muncy walked in the second inning, moved up on a base hit and scored on Kiké Hernández's fly out. But the initial score did not rattle a Toronto club that led Major League Baseball with 49 comeback wins this year.

They responded immediately in the third inning. Lukes lined a one-out base hit to centre and Guerrero stepped in looking for a curveball. Shohei Ohtani left a slider up and he sent it soaring over the left-center wall. It was his first extra-base hit of the World Series and his 7th homer this playoffs – a fresh club mark – regaining the Toronto's advantage after 13 scoreless frames and shifting the tone of the night.

Ohtani's Night

That hit also ended Ohtani's record-setting streak of 11 straight plate appearances reaching base. The dual-threat phenomenon had smashed two home runs and reached safely a historic nine times in the Dodgers' third game comeback win. But on that night, he took the mound on short rest – his briefest ever – after needing an IV to recover from the previous marathon.

His pitch speed was below his regular-season norm and he labored more as the contest wore on. Even so, he displayed flashes of his typical command, retiring 11 of 12 after Guerrero's homer and fanning six. He even drew a walk in the first to continue his World Series record. But the Toronto forced him to labor: six base hits and four earned runs were charged to him in over six frames.

Late Game Rally

The larger issue for the Dodgers was what followed when Ohtani finally ran out of steam.

Varsho started the seventh inning with a clean single to right, and Clement smashed a double off the wall to put runners on with none out. Roberts had no option but to pull Ohtani, who departed to a standing ovation from the home crowd. The Dodgers' relief corps could not complete the escape.

Banda came into the jam and right away fell behind. Andrés Giménez fought to a 3-2 count before driving in the runner with a single to left field. France came up next with a fielder's choice to make it 4-1, and that was sufficient to remove the pitcher out of the game. Treinen came in next but also was unable to stop the rally: Bo Bichette and Addison Barger hit RBI base hits through the infield, capping a four-score outburst that extended the lead to 6-1.

Blue Jays's Resilience

The Blue Jays's ability to withstand early setbacks and respond has characterized their whole run. They once again succeeded without Springer, the hurt leadoff hitter who left the third game after tweaking his oblique.

Shane Bieber, in contrast, was everything Toronto required. Traded for mid-season while finishing rehab from elbow surgery, the ex- award-winning winner stranded several runners and quieted the Dodgers' potent lineup. He allowed one run on four hits and three walks before Schneider called on rookie left-hander Fluharty to confront the heart of the lineup in the sixth. Fluharty needed just four pitches to get out Max Muncy and Tommy Edman, preserving a narrow advantage that quickly became comfortable.

Former starter Bassitt then worked a scoreless seventh and eighth as the Dodgers' offense kept to sputter. The Dodgers have scored only three scores over their last 20 innings, an sudden downturn for a club that was among baseball's elite lineups all season.

Closing Moments

The Los Angeles scraped a score in the ninth when Edman hit into an out to bring home Teoscar Hernández after a walk and Max Muncy's double put runners aboard. But Varland closed it down without permitting a comeback to build.

After a night when the Blue Jays stranded a Fall Classic-record 19 runners and collapsed after wave upon wave of wasted opportunities, the fourth contest was ruthlessly efficient. Six different Blue Jays collected hits, five brought home runs and the squad converted almost every run-scoring chance available in the late innings.

Looking Ahead

The victory guarantees the championship trophy will be awarded at Rogers Centre, where the Blue Jays have not won a title since Carter's iconic walk-off home run in '93. They now are aware they are assured a packed crowd in Canada on Friday night – and perhaps Saturday – no matter what happens next in Los Angeles.

Game 5 looms with the matchup even and momentum shifting north. Los Angeles left-hander Snell (3-1, 2.42 ERA) will try to arrest the Blue Jays's surge. Toronto counter with first-year player Yesavage (2-1, 4.26 ERA) in a repeat of the opener, when the Toronto knocked out the starter early in an 11-4 win.