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

Guerrero crushed a two-run homer and Shane Bieber delivered a composed start as the Blue Jays beat the Dodgers 6-2 in Game 4 on Tuesday evening at their home ballpark, tying the World Series at two games each and ensuring the series will return to Canada.

Toronto had spent the morning of Tuesday processing their marathon third game defeat – tied for the longest Fall Classic game ever – a defeat that denied them the opportunity to lead the series and burned through both relief corps. Manager Schneider stated later that “the Dodgers took a contest, not the World Series”. A day later, his squad offered emphatic evidence.

Initial Innings

The Dodgers again struck first. Max Muncy walked in the second inning, advanced on a base hit and scored on Hernández's sacrifice fly. But the initial score did not rattle a Blue Jays team that led MLB with 49 come-from-behind wins this season.

They responded right away in the third. Lukes hit a one away single to center field and Guerrero came to the plate looking for a breaking ball. Ohtani threw a sweeper up and he drove it screaming over the outfield fence. It was his initial extra-base hit of the series and his seventh home run this postseason – a fresh club mark – regaining the Toronto's advantage after 13 shutout frames and shifting the tone of the night.

Ohtani's Night

That swing also halted Shohei Ohtani's history-making run of 11 straight at-bats getting on base. The dual-threat star had hit two home runs and reached safely a record nine times in the Dodgers' third game comeback win. But on Tuesday, he took the mound on short rest – his shortest ever – after requiring an IV to recuperate from the prior extra-inning game.

Ohtani fastball velocity was under his seasonal average and he struggled more as the contest wore on. Nonetheless, he showed glimpses of his usual command, retiring 11 of 12 after Guerrero's blast and striking out six. He even walked in the first inning to extend his World Series streak. But the Toronto forced him to labor: six hits and four runs were charged to him in over six frames.

Seventh Inning Surge

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

Varsho opened the seventh inning with a sharp hit to right, and Clement smashed a two-base hit off the wall to put runners on with none out. Dave Roberts had no option but to pull Ohtani, who exited to a standing ovation from the local fans. The Los Angeles' relief corps could not finish the inning.

Anthony Banda came into the mess and immediately fell behind. Andrés Giménez battled to a 3-2 count before scoring the runner with a base hit to left. France came up next with a fielder's choice to make it 4-1, and that was sufficient to knock the pitcher out of the contest. Blake Treinen came in next but also was unable to stop the momentum: Bo Bichette and Addison Barger punched run-scoring singles through the infield, capping a four-score barrage that extended the lead to 6-1.

Blue Jays's Toughness

The Blue Jays's capacity to withstand early setbacks and respond has characterized their whole postseason. They once again succeeded without Springer, the injured top-of-the-order hitter who exited Game 3 after tweaking his oblique.

Bieber, in contrast, was everything Toronto required. Traded for during the summer while completing rehab from elbow surgery, the ex- Cy Young winner stranded multiple baserunners and silenced the Dodgers' dangerous lineup. He gave up one run on four base hits and three free passes before the manager summoned first-year pitcher Fluharty to confront the core of the order in the sixth inning. Fluharty needed just four throws to retire Muncy and Tommy Edman, preserving a narrow advantage that soon became safe.

Former starting pitcher Bassitt then pitched a clean seventh and eighth as the Los Angeles' bats kept to sputter. The Dodgers have produced only three runs over their last 20 frames, an sudden slowdown for a team that ranked among MLB's elite offenses all season.

Final Innings

The Los Angeles scraped a score in the ninth inning when Edman grounded out to score Teoscar Hernández after a walk and Muncy's two-base hit put two aboard. But Varland closed it down without permitting a rally to develop.

After a game when Toronto stranded a Fall Classic-record 19 baserunners and collapsed after wave upon wave of wasted opportunities, the fourth contest was ruthlessly effective. Six separate Toronto players recorded base hits, five drove in scores and the team cashed nearly every scoring chance presented in the late innings.

Next Up

The win ensures the World Series trophy will be awarded at their home stadium, where the Blue Jays have not won a title since Joe Carter's famous game-winning home run in 1993. They now know they are assured a packed house in Toronto on Friday evening – and perhaps the next day – no matter what happens next in Los Angeles.

Game 5 approaches with the series reset and energy shifting north. Los Angeles left-hander Blake Snell (3-1, 2.42 ERA) will attempt to arrest the Blue Jays's momentum. The Blue Jays counter with rookie Trey Yesavage (2-1, 4.26 ERA) in a rematch of the opener, when the Blue Jays chased Snell quickly in an 11-4 victory.