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Less than a day after staggering through one of the most exhausting defeats in Fall Classic history, the Toronto Blue Jays displayed complete command.

Guerrero smashed a two-run homer and Shane Bieber provided a steady outing as the Blue Jays beat the Los Angeles Dodgers 6-2 in Game 4 on Tuesday evening at their home ballpark, squaring the World Series at two games each and ensuring the series will return to Canada.

The Blue Jays had passed the early hours of the next day processing their 18-inning third game defeat – tied for the lengthiest Fall Classic game ever – a defeat that cost them the chance to take the lead in the series and burned through both bullpens. Skipper John Schneider stated later that “the Dodgers won a game, not the World Series”. A day later, his team offered convincing proof.

Initial Action

The Dodgers again struck first. Muncy walked in the second inning, advanced on a single and scored on Hernández's sacrifice fly. But the initial breakthrough did not rattle a Blue Jays team that topped Major League Baseball with 49 come-from-behind victories this year.

They answered right away in the third inning. Nathan Lukes hit a one away single to center field and Vladimir Guerrero Jr came to the plate hunting a breaking ball. Shohei Ohtani left a sweeper up and Guerrero drove it soaring over the outfield fence. It was his first extra-base hit of the World Series and his seventh homer this postseason – a fresh team record – regaining the Toronto's advantage after 13 shutout frames and shifting the tone of the night.

Shohei's Performance

That hit also ended Ohtani's history-making run of 11 straight plate appearances getting on base. The two-way phenomenon had smashed two homers and got on base a record nine times in the Dodgers' Game 3 comeback win. But on that night, he started on limited rest – his shortest ever – after requiring an IV to recover from the previous extra-inning game.

Ohtani fastball velocity sat below his regular-season average and he labored more as the game progressed. Nonetheless, he displayed glimpses of his typical control, retiring 11 of 12 after Guerrero Jr's blast and striking out six. He even walked in the first inning to extend his World Series streak. But the Toronto made him work: six hits and four runs were charged to him in six-plus innings.

Late Game Surge

The larger issue for Los Angeles was what followed when he eventually ran out of energy.

Varsho opened the seventh inning with a clean single to right, and Ernie Clement smashed a two-base hit off the fence to put two on with none out. Roberts had little choice but to pull the starter, who exited to a standing ovation from the local fans. The Dodgers' relief corps could not complete the escape.

Banda inherited the jam and immediately trailed in the count. Giménez battled to a full count before driving in Varsho with a base hit to left field. France followed with a fielder's choice to make it 4-1, and that was sufficient to knock Banda out of the game. Blake Treinen entered next but also was unable to stop the rally: Bichette and Barger punched RBI base hits through the diamond, capping a four-score outburst that pushed the lead to 6-1.

Blue Jays's Resilience

The Blue Jays's ability to withstand early blows and answer has characterized their entire postseason. They once again succeeded without Springer, the hurt top-of-the-order hitter who left Game 3 after straining his right side.

Shane Bieber, in contrast, was everything the Blue Jays required. Traded for mid-season while completing rehab from Tommy John surgery, the former Cy Young winner left multiple baserunners and silenced the Los Angeles' potent lineup. He allowed one run on four base hits and three free passes before the manager called on rookie pitcher Mason Fluharty to confront the heart of the order in the sixth. He required just four pitches to retire Muncy and Edman, preserving a narrow advantage that soon became safe.

Former starting pitcher Bassitt then worked a scoreless seventh and eighth as the Los Angeles' offense kept to sputter. Los Angeles have produced only three runs over their last 20 innings, an abrupt slowdown for a club that ranked among baseball's top lineups all season.

Closing Innings

The Los Angeles scraped a run in the ninth when Edman grounded out to bring home Hernández after a walk and Max Muncy's double put two on base. But Louis Varland finished the game without permitting a rally to build.

Following a game when Toronto stranded a Fall Classic-record 19 runners and fell apart after repeated of wasted chances, the fourth contest was ruthlessly efficient. Six separate Toronto players recorded base hits, five drove in scores and the squad converted almost every run-scoring chance available in the final innings.

Looking Ahead

The victory guarantees the World Series title will be presented at Rogers Centre, where the Blue Jays have not celebrated a championship since Carter's famous game-winning home run in '93. They now are aware they are guaranteed a full house in Canada on Friday evening – and possibly the next day – no matter what occurs next in LA.

The fifth game approaches with the matchup reset and momentum shifting north. Dodgers left-hander Blake Snell (3-1, 2.42 ERA) will try to halt the Toronto's momentum. The Blue Jays respond with rookie Yesavage (2-1, 4.26 ERA) in a rematch of the opener, when the Blue Jays knocked out Snell quickly in an decisive victory.