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

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

Toronto had spent the early hours of the next day processing their 18-inning third game defeat – equal to the lengthiest World Series contest ever – a loss that cost them the chance to take the lead in the matchup and depleted both relief corps. Skipper Schneider insisted later that “they took a game, not the championship”. Twenty-three hours later, his team offered convincing proof.

Initial Innings

The Dodgers again scored first. Max Muncy drew a walk in the second, advanced on a base hit and crossed the plate on Hernández's fly out. But the early breakthrough did not shake a Toronto team that led Major League Baseball with 49 comeback victories this year.

They answered right away in the third inning. Nathan Lukes hit a one away base hit to center field and Guerrero came to the plate hunting a breaking ball. Shohei Ohtani left a slider up and he sent it screaming over the outfield fence. It was his first extra-base hit of the series and his 7th homer this postseason – a fresh team mark – regaining the Blue Jays's lead after 13 scoreless frames and shifting the momentum of the night.

Shohei's Night

That hit also halted Ohtani's record-setting streak of 11 straight plate appearances getting on base. The dual-threat phenomenon had hit two homers and got on base a record nine times in the Los Angeles' Game 3 comeback win. But on Tuesday, he started on limited rest – his shortest ever – after requiring an IV to recover from the prior extra-inning game.

Ohtani pitch speed was below his regular-season norm and he labored more as the game progressed. Nonetheless, he displayed glimpses of his typical control, retiring 11 of 12 after Guerrero's blast and fanning six. He even walked in the first inning to extend his Fall Classic record. But the Blue Jays forced him to labor: six base hits and four runs were credited to him in over six frames.

Seventh Inning Surge

The bigger problem for the Dodgers was what came next when he finally lost energy.

Daulton Varsho started the seventh inning with a clean hit to right field, and Clement smashed a double off the fence to put two on with none out. Dave Roberts had little choice but to pull the starter, who exited to a roaring applause from the home crowd. The Dodgers' relief corps could not complete the escape.

Anthony Banda came into the jam and immediately fell behind. Giménez battled to a full count before scoring Varsho with a single to left. France came up next with a fielder's choice to make it 4-1, and that was enough to knock the pitcher out of the contest. Treinen entered next but also failed to stem the rally: Bo Bichette and Addison Barger punched run-scoring singles through the infield, completing a four-run barrage that pushed the margin to 6-1.

Blue Jays's Resilience

The Toronto's capacity to withstand initial blows and answer has defined their entire postseason. They once again did it without Springer, the injured leadoff man who left the third game after straining his right side.

Bieber, meanwhile, was everything Toronto required. Traded for during the summer while finishing recovery from Tommy John surgery, the former award-winning winner left several runners and quieted the Los Angeles' potent batting order. He gave up one run on four hits and three free passes before Schneider summoned rookie pitcher Mason Fluharty to face the core of the lineup in the sixth inning. He needed just four throws to retire Muncy and Tommy Edman, protecting a fragile advantage that soon became safe.

Converted starter Bassitt then worked a scoreless seventh and eighth innings as the Los Angeles' offense kept to struggle. The Dodgers have produced only 3 scores over their previous 20 innings, an abrupt downturn for a club that ranked among MLB's top lineups all season.

Final Moments

The Los Angeles scraped a score in the ninth when Edman grounded out to bring home Hernández after a base on balls and Muncy's two-base hit put runners aboard. But Louis Varland closed it down without allowing a rally to build.

Following a night when the Blue Jays left a World Series-record 19 baserunners and collapsed after wave upon wave of wasted opportunities, Game 4 was brutally effective. Six separate Toronto players collected hits, 5 drove in scores and the team converted almost every scoring opportunity presented in the final innings.

Looking Ahead

The win guarantees the World Series trophy will be presented at Rogers Centre, where the Toronto have not won a title since Joe Carter's iconic game-winning home run in 1993. They now are aware they are assured a full crowd in Canada on Friday evening – and perhaps Saturday – no matter what happens next in LA.

Game 5 looms with the matchup reset and energy shifting north. Los Angeles pitcher Snell (3-1, 2.42 ERA) will try to halt the Blue Jays's momentum. Toronto counter with rookie Yesavage (2-1, 4.26 ERA) in a rematch of the opener, when the Blue Jays chased the starter quickly in an decisive victory.