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Only 24 hours after staggering through one of the most draining losses in World Series annals, the Toronto Blue Jays played with total control.

Guerrero crushed a two-run homer and Shane Bieber provided a steady outing as the Blue Jays beat the Dodgers 6-2 in Game 4 on Tuesday evening at Dodger Stadium, squaring the World Series at two games each and ensuring the matchup will return to Canada.

Toronto had passed the early hours of the next day dealing with their marathon third game defeat – tied for the lengthiest World Series game ever – a loss that cost them the chance to take the lead in the matchup and depleted both relief corps. Manager Schneider insisted later that “they took a contest, not the championship”. A day later, his team provided emphatic evidence.

Initial Action

The Dodgers again scored first. Max Muncy drew a walk in the second inning, advanced on a base hit and scored on Hernández's fly out. But the early score did not rattle a Toronto team that led MLB with 49 comeback wins this year.

They responded right away in the third. Nathan Lukes hit a one-out base hit to center field and Guerrero stepped in looking for a curveball. Shohei Ohtani left a slider up and Guerrero drove it soaring over the left-center wall. It was his initial long hit of the series and his 7th home run this playoffs – a new club record – regaining the Blue Jays's advantage after 13 shutout innings and changing the momentum of the night.

Ohtani's Performance

That hit also ended Shohei Ohtani's history-making run of 11 consecutive plate appearances reaching base. The two-way star had smashed two home runs and got on base a record nine times in the Los Angeles' Game 3 walk-off. But on Tuesday, he took the mound on short rest – his briefest ever – after requiring an IV to recover from the prior extra-inning game.

His fastball velocity sat below his regular-season norm and he labored more as the contest progressed. Nonetheless, he showed flashes of his usual command, setting down 11 of 12 after Guerrero Jr's homer and fanning six. He even walked in the first inning to continue his World Series streak. But the Toronto forced him to labor: six base hits and four earned runs were credited to him in six-plus innings.

Seventh Inning Surge

The bigger problem for the Dodgers was what followed when he eventually lost steam.

Daulton Varsho opened the seventh inning with a sharp single to right field, and Ernie Clement smashed a double off the fence to put two on with none out. Dave Roberts had little choice but to remove Ohtani, who exited to a standing ovation from the home crowd. The Los Angeles' relief corps could not complete the inning.

Anthony Banda inherited the mess and right away fell behind. Giménez fought to a full count before driving in Varsho with a single to left field. Ty France followed with a groundout to make it 4-1, and that was sufficient to remove the pitcher out of the game. Blake Treinen entered next but also failed to stop the rally: Bo Bichette and Barger hit RBI base hits through the diamond, capping a four-run barrage that pushed the margin to 6-1.

Blue Jays's Toughness

The Toronto's ability to absorb initial blows and respond has defined their whole postseason. They once again did it without Springer, the hurt top-of-the-order hitter who left the third game after tweaking his right side.

Bieber, in contrast, was everything the Blue Jays required. Acquired during the summer while completing rehab from Tommy John surgery, the former award-winning winner left several baserunners and silenced the Los Angeles' potent lineup. He allowed one run on four hits and three free passes before Schneider summoned first-year left-hander Fluharty to confront the heart of the order in the sixth. Fluharty required just 4 throws to retire Muncy and Tommy Edman, protecting a fragile lead that quickly grew safe.

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

Closing Moments

The Los Angeles scraped a run in the ninth when Tommy Edman grounded out to score Hernández after a base on balls and Max Muncy's double put runners aboard. But Varland finished the game without permitting a rally to develop.

After a game when Toronto left a World Series-record 19 baserunners and fell apart after repeated of wasted chances, Game 4 was brutally effective. Six different Toronto players collected base hits, five brought home scores and the squad converted nearly every scoring opportunity presented in the final innings.

Looking Ahead

The win guarantees the World Series trophy will be awarded at Rogers Centre, where the Toronto have not won a championship since Joe Carter's famous walk-off homer in '93. They now are aware they are assured a packed crowd in Toronto on Friday night – and possibly the next day – no matter what occurs next in LA.

The fifth game looms with the series reset and momentum shifting north. Los Angeles left-hander Snell (3-1, 2.42 ERA) will attempt to halt the Toronto's surge. Toronto counter with rookie Yesavage (2-1, 4.26 ERA) in a rematch of Game 1, when the Blue Jays chased Snell early in an decisive win.