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

Guerrero crushed a two-run homer and Shane Bieber delivered a composed start as Toronto beat the Dodgers 6-2 in Game 4 on Tuesday evening at their home ballpark, tying the World Series at two wins apiece and ensuring the matchup will head back to Toronto.

Toronto had spent the morning of Tuesday dealing with their 18-inning Game 3 loss – equal to the lengthiest World Series contest ever – a defeat that cost them the chance to take the lead in the matchup and burned through both relief corps. Manager John Schneider insisted later that “the Dodgers took a contest, not the championship”. A day later, his squad offered emphatic evidence.

Initial Innings

The Dodgers again scored first. Muncy drew a walk in the second inning, advanced on a single and scored on Kiké Hernández's sacrifice fly. But the initial score did not rattle a Toronto club that led MLB with 49 comeback victories this season.

They responded right away in the third inning. Nathan Lukes hit a one-out base hit to centre and Guerrero stepped in hunting a breaking ball. Shohei Ohtani threw a sweeper up and he sent it soaring over the outfield fence. It was his initial long hit of the World Series and his 7th homer this postseason – a new team record – regaining the Blue Jays's advantage after 13 scoreless frames and shifting the tone of the game.

Shohei's Night

That hit also halted Shohei Ohtani's record-setting run of 11 straight at-bats getting on base. The two-way star had smashed two home runs and got on base a record nine times in the Los Angeles' third game comeback win. But on Tuesday, he took the mound on short rest – his briefest ever – after needing an IV to recuperate from the previous marathon.

His fastball velocity sat below his regular-season average and he labored more as the contest wore on. Even so, he displayed glimpses of his usual command, retiring 11 of 12 after Guerrero Jr's blast and striking out six. He even walked in the first inning to continue his Fall Classic record. But the Blue Jays made him work: six hits and four earned runs were credited to him in six-plus frames.

Late Game Surge

The larger problem for the Dodgers was what followed when he eventually lost steam.

Daulton Varsho started the seventh inning with a sharp single to right, and Ernie Clement drilled a two-base hit off the wall to put two on with none out. Roberts had no option but to remove Ohtani, who exited to a roaring applause from the home crowd. The Dodgers' relief corps could not complete the escape.

Banda inherited the jam and immediately trailed in the count. Giménez fought to a full count before driving in the runner with a base hit to left field. Ty France came up next with a groundout to make it 4-1, and that was sufficient to knock the pitcher out of the game. Treinen entered next but also was unable to stop the momentum: Bo Bichette and Barger hit RBI base hits through the diamond, completing a four-score outburst that extended the margin to 6-1.

Blue Jays's Resilience

The Blue Jays's capacity to absorb early setbacks and answer has characterized their whole run. They once again did it without Springer, the hurt leadoff man who left Game 3 after tweaking his right side.

Shane Bieber, meanwhile, was exactly what Toronto needed. Traded for during the summer while completing rehab from elbow surgery, the former Cy Young winner left multiple runners and quieted the Los Angeles' potent batting order. He gave up one run on four base hits and three free passes before the manager summoned first-year left-hander Mason Fluharty to face the core of the order in the sixth. He needed just 4 throws to get out Muncy and Tommy Edman, protecting a narrow advantage that soon became safe.

Converted starting pitcher Chris Bassitt then pitched a clean seventh and eighth innings as the Dodgers' bats continued to struggle. The Dodgers have scored only three runs over their previous 20 innings, an sudden downturn for a team that was among baseball's elite lineups all year.

Closing Moments

The Dodgers scraped a score in the ninth when Tommy Edman grounded out to score Hernández after a walk and Muncy's two-base hit put two aboard. But Louis Varland finished the game without permitting a comeback to build.

Following a game when Toronto stranded a Fall Classic-record 19 baserunners and fell apart after repeated of wasted opportunities, Game 4 was ruthlessly efficient. Six separate Blue Jays recorded hits, 5 drove in scores and the team cashed nearly every run-scoring opportunity presented in the final innings.

Next Up

The win ensures the championship title will be presented at their home stadium, where the Blue Jays have not celebrated a championship since Joe Carter's iconic walk-off home run in 1993. They now are aware they are assured a full crowd in Canada on Friday evening – and perhaps the next day – no matter what happens next in LA.

The fifth game approaches with the matchup reset and energy swinging to Toronto. Los Angeles pitcher Snell (3-1, 2.42 ERA) will attempt to arrest the Blue Jays's surge. Toronto respond with first-year player Trey Yesavage (2-1, 4.26 ERA) in a rematch of the opener, when the Toronto knocked out the starter early in an decisive win.