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

Vladimir Guerrero Jr crushed a two-run home run and Shane Bieber delivered a steady outing as the Blue Jays defeated the Dodgers 6-2 in Game 4 on Tuesday evening at their home ballpark, squaring the World Series at two wins apiece and ensuring the matchup will return to Toronto.

Toronto had passed the morning of the next day dealing with their 18-inning Game 3 loss – tied for the longest Fall Classic contest ever – a defeat that denied them the chance to lead the matchup and burned through both bullpens. Manager Schneider stated later that “they took a contest, not the World Series”. Twenty-three hours later, his team offered emphatic proof.

Initial Action

The Dodgers again scored first. Max Muncy walked in the second inning, moved up on a base hit and crossed the plate on Kiké Hernández's sacrifice fly. But the early score did not rattle a Toronto club that led MLB with 49 comeback wins this year.

They responded right away in the third inning. Lukes lined a one away single to centre and Vladimir Guerrero Jr stepped in looking for a curveball. Shohei Ohtani left a sweeper up and he drove it soaring over the left-center wall. It was his first extra-base hit of the World Series and his 7th home run this playoffs – a new club mark – restoring the Toronto's lead after 13 scoreless frames and changing the tone of the night.

Ohtani's Night

That swing also ended Ohtani's history-making streak of 11 straight plate appearances reaching base. The dual-threat star had hit two homers and reached safely a historic nine times in the Los Angeles' 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.

His fastball velocity was under his seasonal average and he struggled more as the game progressed. Even so, he showed glimpses of his typical control, retiring 11 of 12 after Guerrero Jr's blast and fanning six. He even drew a walk in the first inning to continue his World Series streak. But the Blue Jays forced him to labor: six hits and four runs were charged to him in six-plus frames.

Late Game Surge

The larger problem for the Dodgers was what followed when Ohtani finally ran out of energy.

Daulton Varsho opened the seventh inning with a clean hit to right field, and Clement smashed a double off the wall to put two on with none out. Dave Roberts had little choice but to pull Ohtani, who departed to a standing ovation from the local fans. The Dodgers' bullpen could not complete the escape.

Anthony Banda inherited the jam and right away fell behind. Andrés Giménez battled to a full count before scoring the runner with a base hit to left. Ty France came up next with a fielder's choice to make it 4-1, and that was enough to knock Banda out of the game. Blake Treinen entered next but also was unable to stem the momentum: Bo Bichette and Addison Barger punched RBI singles through the infield, capping a four-run outburst that pushed the margin to 6-1.

Toronto's Resilience

The Blue Jays's ability to absorb initial blows and answer has characterized their whole postseason. They once again did it without Springer, the injured top-of-the-order hitter who exited Game 3 after straining his right side.

Shane Bieber, in contrast, was everything the Blue Jays required. Acquired during the summer while finishing recovery from elbow surgery, the ex- award-winning winner left several runners and quieted the Dodgers' potent lineup. He gave up one earned run on four hits and three free passes before Schneider called on first-year pitcher Fluharty to face the heart of the order in the sixth. Fluharty needed just four pitches to retire Max Muncy and Tommy Edman, preserving a narrow advantage that soon became comfortable.

Converted starting pitcher Chris Bassitt then pitched a clean seventh and eighth innings as the Dodgers' bats continued to struggle. Los Angeles have produced only three scores over their previous 20 innings, an sudden slowdown for a club that was among baseball's top offenses all season.

Final Moments

The Los Angeles managed a score in the ninth inning when Tommy Edman hit into an out to bring home Teoscar Hernández after a walk and Max Muncy's two-base hit put two on base. But Varland finished the game without permitting a rally to develop.

Following a game when the Blue Jays stranded a World Series-record 19 runners and fell apart after repeated of wasted opportunities, the fourth contest was ruthlessly efficient. 6 different Toronto players collected hits, five brought home runs and the team cashed almost every scoring chance available in the late stanzas.

Next Up

The victory guarantees the World Series title will be presented at their home stadium, where the Toronto have not celebrated a title since Joe Carter's iconic game-winning home run in '93. They now are aware they are assured a full crowd in Canada on Friday night – and perhaps the next day – no matter what happens next in LA.

Game 5 looms with the matchup reset and energy swinging north. Los Angeles pitcher Blake Snell (3-1, 2.42 ERA) will try to halt the Toronto's surge. Toronto respond with rookie Trey Yesavage (2-1, 4.26 ERA) in a rematch of the opener, when the Toronto chased the starter early in an decisive victory.