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Less than a day after staggering through one of the most exhausting losses in Fall Classic history, the Blue Jays displayed total control.

Vladimir Guerrero Jr crushed a two-run homer and Shane Bieber delivered a steady start as the Blue Jays beat the Dodgers 6-2 in Game 4 on Tuesday night at Dodger Stadium, squaring the Fall Classic at two games each and ensuring the series will head back to Canada.

Toronto had spent the early hours of Tuesday processing their marathon third game defeat – tied for the longest Fall Classic game ever – a loss that denied them the chance to lead the matchup and depleted both relief corps. Manager John Schneider stated later that “the Dodgers took a game, not the World Series”. A day later, his team provided convincing evidence.

Initial Action

The Dodgers again scored first. Muncy walked in the second, advanced on a single and crossed the plate on Hernández's fly out. But the early breakthrough did not shake a Blue Jays team that topped MLB with 49 comeback victories this season.

They answered immediately in the third. Nathan Lukes lined a one away single to centre and Guerrero stepped in looking for a breaking ball. Shohei Ohtani left a sweeper up and he sent it screaming over the outfield fence. It was his initial long hit of the World Series and his seventh home run this playoffs – a fresh club record – regaining the Toronto's lead after 13 shutout innings and changing the momentum of the night.

Shohei's Night

That swing also ended Ohtani's history-making streak of 11 consecutive at-bats reaching base. The two-way phenomenon had smashed two home runs and reached safely a historic nine times in the Los Angeles' Game 3 comeback win. But on that night, he started on short rest – his shortest ever – after requiring an IV to recover from the previous marathon.

Ohtani pitch speed sat below his seasonal norm and he struggled more as the game progressed. Even so, he showed flashes of his typical command, setting down 11 of 12 after Guerrero Jr's homer and fanning six. He even walked in the first to extend his World Series streak. But the Blue Jays made him work: six base hits and four runs were charged to him in over six innings.

Late Game Rally

The bigger issue for Los Angeles was what followed when Ohtani eventually ran out of steam.

Varsho opened the seventh inning with a clean single to right, and Clement drilled a two-base hit off the wall to put two on with no outs. Dave Roberts had no option but to remove Ohtani, who departed to a roaring applause from the home crowd. The Los Angeles' bullpen could not finish the escape.

Anthony Banda came into the jam and immediately trailed in the count. Andrés Giménez battled to a full count before scoring the runner with a single to left field. Ty France came up next with a groundout to make it 4-1, and that was enough to knock the pitcher out of the contest. Treinen came in next but also was unable to stop the momentum: Bichette and Addison Barger punched run-scoring base hits through the infield, completing a four-run barrage that extended the lead to 6-1.

Toronto's Toughness

The Blue Jays's capacity to absorb early setbacks and answer has characterized their entire postseason. They once again did it without George Springer, the hurt leadoff hitter who exited Game 3 after tweaking his oblique.

Bieber, meanwhile, was exactly what the Blue Jays required. Acquired mid-season while completing rehab from elbow surgery, the former award-winning winner stranded multiple baserunners and quieted the Los Angeles' dangerous lineup. He gave up one run on four hits and three walks before Schneider summoned first-year left-hander Fluharty to face the heart of the lineup in the sixth inning. He needed just 4 pitches to get out Max Muncy and Tommy Edman, preserving a fragile lead that quickly became comfortable.

Converted starter Bassitt then worked a scoreless seventh and eighth innings as the Dodgers' bats kept to struggle. The Dodgers have produced only three runs over their last 20 innings, an sudden downturn for a club that was among MLB's top lineups all year.

Closing Moments

The Dodgers scraped a run in the ninth inning when Edman grounded out to bring home Teoscar Hernández after a walk and Max Muncy's double put two on base. But Varland closed it down without permitting a rally to develop.

After a night when Toronto stranded a Fall Classic-record 19 baserunners and collapsed after repeated of wasted opportunities, the fourth contest was brutally efficient. 6 different Blue Jays recorded hits, 5 brought home scores and the squad converted nearly every run-scoring opportunity available in the final innings.

Looking Ahead

The win guarantees the World Series trophy will be awarded at their home stadium, where the Blue Jays have not won a title since Joe Carter's iconic walk-off home run in '93. They now know they are assured a packed crowd in Toronto on Friday evening – and possibly Saturday – no matter what happens next in Los Angeles.

Game 5 looms with the matchup reset and energy shifting to Toronto. Los Angeles pitcher Blake Snell (3-1, 2.42 ERA) will try to arrest the Toronto's momentum. Toronto counter with first-year player Yesavage (2-1, 4.26 ERA) in a repeat of the opener, when the Blue Jays chased Snell early in an decisive win.