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Only 24 hours after staggering through one of the most draining defeats in Fall Classic history, the Blue Jays displayed complete command.

Guerrero crushed a two-run home run and Shane Bieber delivered a composed start as the Blue Jays defeated the Dodgers 6-2 in Game 4 on Tuesday evening at Dodger Stadium, tying the Fall Classic at two wins apiece and guaranteeing the series will head back to Toronto.

Toronto had spent the morning of Tuesday processing their marathon Game 3 loss – tied for the longest Fall Classic contest ever – a defeat that cost them the opportunity to take the lead in the matchup and depleted both bullpens. Skipper John Schneider insisted later that “they won a contest, not the championship”. Twenty-three hours later, his squad provided emphatic evidence.

Early Innings

The Los Angeles again struck first. Muncy drew a walk in the second, moved up on a base hit and scored on Kiké Hernández's sacrifice fly. But the initial breakthrough did not rattle a Blue Jays club that led Major League Baseball with 49 come-from-behind wins this season.

They responded right away in the third. Lukes lined a one away single to centre and Vladimir Guerrero Jr came to the plate looking for a breaking ball. Shohei Ohtani threw a slider up and he sent it screaming over the left-center wall. It was his initial long hit of the World Series and his seventh home run this playoffs – a new team record – regaining the Toronto's lead after 13 scoreless frames and changing the momentum of the game.

Shohei's Night

That hit also ended Shohei Ohtani's record-setting streak of 11 consecutive plate appearances getting on base. The dual-threat phenomenon had smashed two homers and got on base a record nine times in the Los Angeles' Game 3 comeback win. But on that night, he started on limited rest – his briefest ever – after requiring an IV to recuperate from the prior marathon.

His pitch speed sat below his seasonal average and he labored more as the contest wore on. Nonetheless, he displayed flashes of his typical command, retiring 11 of 12 after Guerrero's homer and fanning six. He even drew a walk in the first inning to continue his Fall Classic record. But the Blue Jays forced him to labor: six hits and four earned runs were credited to him in six-plus innings.

Late Game Surge

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

Daulton Varsho opened the seventh inning with a clean hit to right, and Ernie Clement drilled a double off the wall to put two on with none out. Dave Roberts had no option but to pull Ohtani, who departed to a roaring applause from the local fans. The Dodgers' bullpen could not complete the inning.

Anthony Banda inherited the mess and right away fell behind. Andrés Giménez battled to a full count before driving in the runner with a single to left. Ty France followed with a fielder's choice to make it 4-1, and that was sufficient to remove the pitcher out of the contest. Treinen entered next but also failed to stem the rally: Bo Bichette and Barger hit run-scoring singles through the diamond, capping a four-score outburst that pushed the lead to 6-1.

Toronto's Resilience

The Toronto's ability to withstand initial setbacks and respond has defined their entire postseason. They once again did it without George Springer, the injured top-of-the-order hitter who left Game 3 after tweaking his right side.

Shane Bieber, in contrast, was exactly what the Blue Jays needed. Traded for during the summer while finishing rehab from Tommy John surgery, the former Cy Young winner left multiple baserunners and quieted the Dodgers' potent lineup. He allowed one run on four hits and three walks before Schneider called on rookie left-hander Fluharty to face the core of the lineup in the sixth inning. Fluharty needed just four throws to get out Muncy and Edman, protecting a fragile advantage that quickly grew safe.

Converted starting pitcher Chris Bassitt then worked a clean seventh and eighth innings as the Dodgers' bats continued to struggle. The Dodgers have scored only 3 runs over their last 20 innings, an abrupt downturn for a club that was among baseball's top lineups all season.

Final Moments

The Dodgers scraped a run in the ninth inning when Tommy Edman hit into an out to bring home Hernández after a base on balls and Max Muncy's double put runners on base. But Louis Varland finished the game without permitting a rally to build.

After a game when the Blue Jays stranded a Fall Classic-record 19 runners and fell apart after repeated of wasted opportunities, Game 4 was ruthlessly efficient. 6 different Blue Jays recorded base hits, 5 brought home scores and the team cashed nearly every scoring opportunity available in the final stanzas.

Next Up

The victory guarantees the championship trophy will be awarded at their home stadium, where the Toronto have not celebrated a championship since Carter's iconic game-winning homer in '93. They now are aware they are assured a full crowd in Canada on Friday evening – and perhaps Saturday – no matter what happens next in Los Angeles.

The fifth game approaches with the matchup reset and momentum swinging north. Dodgers left-hander Blake Snell (3-1, 2.42 ERA) will try to arrest the Blue Jays's momentum. The Blue Jays respond with first-year player Yesavage (2-1, 4.26 ERA) in a rematch of Game 1, when the Toronto chased the starter early in an 11-4 win.