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Less than a day following enduring one of the most exhausting defeats in World Series history, the Toronto Blue Jays displayed complete command.

Guerrero smashed a two-run home run and Shane Bieber delivered 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 wins apiece and ensuring the series will return to Canada.

The Blue Jays had spent the early hours of Tuesday dealing with their marathon third game defeat – equal to the lengthiest World Series game ever – a loss that denied them the opportunity to take the lead in the series and burned through both relief corps. Manager Schneider stated later that “the Dodgers won a contest, not the championship”. Twenty-three hours later, his squad offered emphatic proof.

Initial Innings

The Dodgers again scored first. Max Muncy drew a walk in the second inning, advanced on a single and scored on Hernández's sacrifice fly. But the initial score did not shake a Toronto team that topped Major League Baseball with 49 comeback victories this season.

They answered right away in the third. Nathan Lukes lined a one-out single to center field and Vladimir Guerrero Jr stepped in hunting a breaking ball. Shohei Ohtani left a sweeper up and Guerrero sent it soaring over the left-center wall. It was his initial extra-base hit of the World Series and his 7th home run this postseason – a new team mark – restoring the Blue Jays's lead after 13 scoreless innings and changing the momentum of the game.

Shohei's Performance

That swing also halted Ohtani's history-making run of 11 straight plate appearances reaching base. The dual-threat star had smashed two homers and got on base a historic nine times in the Los Angeles' Game 3 comeback win. But on Tuesday, he started on limited rest – his shortest ever – after needing an IV to recover from the prior extra-inning game.

His pitch speed sat under his seasonal norm and he struggled more as the contest wore on. Nonetheless, he displayed glimpses of his usual command, retiring 11 of 12 after Guerrero Jr's blast and fanning six. He even walked in the first inning to extend his Fall Classic record. But the Toronto made him work: six hits and four runs were credited to him in over six innings.

Seventh Inning Rally

The larger problem for the Dodgers was what came next when he finally lost energy.

Daulton Varsho started the seventh inning with a sharp hit to right field, and Clement drilled a double off the wall to put runners on with none out. Dave Roberts had little choice but to remove the starter, who exited to a standing ovation from the home crowd. The Dodgers' bullpen could not complete the escape.

Banda came into the jam and immediately trailed in the count. Andrés Giménez battled to a 3-2 count before driving in Varsho with a base hit to left field. France came up next with a groundout to make it 4-1, and that was sufficient to remove Banda out of the contest. Treinen came in next but also was unable to stop the rally: Bo Bichette and Addison Barger punched RBI singles through the infield, completing a four-score barrage that pushed the lead to 6-1.

Blue Jays's Resilience

The Blue Jays's ability to withstand early blows and answer has defined their whole postseason. They once again did it without Springer, the injured top-of-the-order man who exited the third game after tweaking his oblique.

Bieber, in contrast, was exactly what Toronto required. Acquired during the summer while finishing rehab from Tommy John surgery, the ex- Cy Young winner left several baserunners and quieted the Los Angeles' dangerous batting order. He allowed one earned run on four base hits and three free passes before the manager summoned rookie pitcher Mason Fluharty to face the core of the order in the sixth inning. He required just four pitches to retire Muncy and Edman, preserving a fragile lead that quickly grew comfortable.

Converted starting pitcher Bassitt then pitched a clean seventh and eighth as the Los Angeles' offense kept to struggle. The Dodgers have produced only 3 runs over their previous 20 frames, an sudden slowdown for a team that was among baseball's top offenses all year.

Closing Innings

The Los Angeles scraped a score in the ninth inning when Edman grounded out to bring home Hernández after a base on balls and Muncy's two-base hit put two on base. But Varland finished the game without permitting a comeback to develop.

After a game when the Blue Jays stranded a Fall Classic-record 19 baserunners and fell apart after repeated of missed opportunities, the fourth contest was ruthlessly effective. 6 separate Toronto players collected base hits, five drove in runs and the squad converted almost every run-scoring opportunity available in the final innings.

Next Up

The win ensures the championship title will be presented at Rogers Centre, where the Blue Jays have not celebrated a championship since Joe Carter's iconic game-winning home run in '93. They now know they are guaranteed a full house in Toronto on Friday night – and possibly the next day – no matter what happens next in Los Angeles.

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