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Less than a day after enduring one of the most exhausting defeats in Fall Classic annals, the Toronto Blue Jays played with complete command.

Vladimir Guerrero Jr smashed a two-run homer and Shane Bieber provided a steady start as the Blue Jays defeated the Dodgers 6-2 in Game 4 on Tuesday night at their home ballpark, tying the Fall Classic at two wins apiece and ensuring the matchup will return to Canada.

Toronto had passed the early hours of the next day processing their marathon third game defeat – equal to the lengthiest World Series contest ever – a loss that denied them the chance to lead the series and burned through both relief corps. Skipper John Schneider stated afterwards that “the Dodgers took a contest, not the World Series”. Twenty-three hours later, his squad offered convincing proof.

Early Action

The Dodgers again scored first. Muncy walked in the second inning, advanced on a single and crossed the plate on Hernández's fly out. But the early breakthrough did not rattle a Toronto club that led MLB with 49 comeback wins this season.

They responded right away in the third. Nathan Lukes lined a one-out base hit to centre and Guerrero stepped in looking for a breaking ball. Shohei Ohtani threw a sweeper up and he drove it screaming over the left-center wall. It was his initial long hit of the series and his 7th home run this postseason – a fresh club record – regaining the Toronto's advantage after 13 shutout frames and changing the momentum of the night.

Shohei's Night

That swing also ended Shohei Ohtani's record-setting run of 11 consecutive plate appearances reaching base. The dual-threat phenomenon had hit two homers and reached safely a historic nine times in the Dodgers' Game 3 walk-off. But on Tuesday, he took the mound on limited rest – his briefest ever – after requiring an IV to recover from the prior extra-inning game.

His pitch speed sat below his regular-season norm and he struggled more as the contest progressed. Nonetheless, he showed flashes of his typical control, retiring 11 of 12 after Guerrero's blast and fanning six. He even walked in the first inning to continue his Fall Classic record. But the Toronto made him work: six base hits and four earned runs were charged to him in six-plus innings.

Seventh Inning Rally

The larger issue for the Dodgers was what followed when Ohtani eventually lost energy.

Daulton Varsho opened the seventh inning with a clean hit to right field, and Clement drilled a double off the fence to put two on with no outs. Dave Roberts had no option but to remove Ohtani, who exited to a roaring applause from the local fans. The Los Angeles' relief corps could not complete the inning.

Anthony Banda inherited the jam and immediately fell behind. Andrés Giménez fought to a 3-2 count before scoring the runner with a single to left. Ty France came up next with a groundout to make it 4-1, and that was sufficient to knock Banda out of the contest. Treinen came in next but also failed to stem the rally: Bichette and Barger punched run-scoring singles through the infield, completing a four-run barrage that pushed the margin to 6-1.

Toronto's Resilience

The Blue Jays's capacity to absorb early blows and respond has defined their entire run. They once again did it without George Springer, the hurt top-of-the-order man who exited the third game after straining his oblique.

Shane Bieber, in contrast, was exactly what the Blue Jays required. Traded for mid-season while finishing rehab from elbow surgery, the former award-winning winner stranded multiple runners and quieted the Dodgers' dangerous batting order. He allowed one run on four hits and three free passes before the manager called on first-year pitcher Fluharty to confront the heart of the lineup in the sixth inning. Fluharty needed just four pitches to retire Max Muncy and Edman, preserving a fragile advantage that quickly grew comfortable.

Former starter Bassitt then worked a scoreless seventh and eighth innings as the Los Angeles' offense kept to struggle. The Dodgers have scored only three runs over their previous 20 frames, an sudden slowdown for a club that ranked among baseball's elite lineups all season.

Closing Innings

The Los Angeles scraped a score in the ninth when Edman hit into an out to bring home Hernández after a walk and Muncy's two-base hit put two on base. But Varland closed it down without permitting a rally to develop.

After a night when Toronto left a World Series-record 19 baserunners and collapsed after repeated of wasted chances, the fourth contest was brutally effective. 6 different Toronto players collected base hits, five drove in runs and the squad converted almost every scoring chance presented in the late stanzas.

Next Up

The victory ensures the championship title will be awarded at Rogers Centre, where the Toronto have not celebrated a championship since Carter's iconic game-winning home run in 1993. They now know they are assured a full house in Toronto on Friday evening – and perhaps the next day – no matter what occurs next in Los Angeles.

Game 5 approaches with the series even and momentum swinging north. Dodgers pitcher Snell (3-1, 2.42 ERA) will try to arrest the Toronto's surge. The Blue Jays counter with rookie Trey Yesavage (2-1, 4.26 ERA) in a rematch of Game 1, when the Blue Jays knocked out Snell early in an 11-4 win.