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Only 24 hours after staggering through one of the most exhausting losses in Fall Classic annals, the Blue Jays displayed complete command.

Guerrero crushed a two-run home run and Shane Bieber delivered a steady outing as Toronto beat the Los Angeles Dodgers 6-2 in Game 4 on Tuesday night at Dodger Stadium, tying the World Series at two wins apiece and guaranteeing the series will head back to Canada.

Toronto had passed the early hours of Tuesday processing their marathon third game defeat – tied for the lengthiest Fall Classic game ever – a defeat that denied them the chance to take the lead in the series and burned through both relief corps. Manager John Schneider insisted later that “they took a game, not the championship”. A day later, his team offered emphatic evidence.

Early Innings

The Los Angeles again scored first. Muncy walked in the second inning, advanced on a single and crossed the plate on Hernández's sacrifice fly. But the early breakthrough did not shake a Toronto club that led Major League Baseball with 49 come-from-behind wins this year.

They answered immediately in the third. Nathan Lukes hit a one-out single to center field and Vladimir Guerrero Jr came to the plate looking for a curveball. Ohtani threw a slider up and he sent it soaring over the left-center wall. It was his initial long hit of the series and his 7th homer this postseason – a new team record – regaining the Toronto's advantage after 13 shutout innings and shifting the tone of the night.

Ohtani's Night

That hit also ended Ohtani's history-making streak of 11 consecutive at-bats reaching base. The two-way star had smashed two home runs and reached safely a historic nine times in the Dodgers' third game walk-off. But on Tuesday, he took the mound on short rest – his shortest ever – after needing an IV to recuperate from the previous marathon.

His fastball velocity sat under his regular-season average and he labored more as the contest wore on. Even so, he displayed glimpses of his typical command, setting down 11 of 12 after Guerrero Jr's blast and striking out six. He even drew a walk in the first inning to continue his Fall Classic record. But the Toronto made him work: six hits and four runs were charged to him in over six frames.

Seventh Inning Surge

The bigger problem for Los Angeles was what came next when he eventually ran out of steam.

Varsho opened the seventh inning with a sharp single to right field, and Clement smashed a double off the fence to put runners on with none out. Roberts had no option but to pull the starter, who exited to a standing ovation from the home crowd. The Dodgers' bullpen could not finish the inning.

Banda inherited the mess and right away trailed in the count. Giménez battled to a 3-2 count before scoring Varsho with a base hit to left. France followed with a groundout to make it 4-1, and that was sufficient to knock Banda out of the contest. Blake Treinen came in next but also was unable to stop the momentum: Bichette and Addison Barger hit run-scoring singles through the infield, capping a four-score outburst that extended the margin to 6-1.

Blue Jays's Toughness

The Blue Jays's capacity to withstand early blows and respond has characterized their entire run. They once again succeeded without George Springer, the injured leadoff hitter who exited the third game after straining his oblique.

Shane Bieber, in contrast, was exactly what Toronto required. Traded for during the summer while completing recovery from Tommy John surgery, the former award-winning winner stranded multiple baserunners and silenced the Los Angeles' potent lineup. He allowed one earned run on four base hits and three walks before the manager called on rookie left-hander Mason Fluharty to face the heart of the lineup in the sixth. He needed just 4 pitches to get out Max Muncy and Tommy Edman, protecting a fragile advantage that quickly became comfortable.

Converted starting pitcher Chris Bassitt then pitched a clean seventh and eighth innings as the Dodgers' offense kept to sputter. Los Angeles have produced only 3 runs over their last 20 innings, an abrupt downturn for a team that ranked among MLB's elite lineups all season.

Closing Moments

The Dodgers scraped a run in the ninth when Edman grounded out to bring home Teoscar Hernández after a walk and Muncy's two-base hit put two aboard. But Louis Varland closed it down without allowing a comeback to develop.

Following a night when the Blue Jays stranded a World Series-record 19 runners and collapsed after repeated of wasted chances, the fourth contest was ruthlessly effective. Six different Blue Jays collected base hits, 5 brought home scores and the team cashed nearly every run-scoring chance presented in the final innings.

Next Up

The victory ensures the championship trophy will be presented at their home stadium, where the Toronto have not celebrated a championship since Carter's famous walk-off home run in '93. They now know they are assured a packed crowd in Canada on Friday night – and possibly Saturday – no matter what happens next in Los Angeles.

Game 5 approaches with the matchup even and energy swinging north. Los Angeles pitcher Blake Snell (3-1, 2.42 ERA) will attempt to arrest the Toronto's momentum. The Blue Jays respond with first-year player Trey Yesavage (2-1, 4.26 ERA) in a repeat of the opener, when the Blue Jays chased Snell early in an 11-4 win.