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Only 24 hours following enduring one of the most exhausting losses in World Series history, the Blue Jays displayed complete control.

Guerrero crushed a two-run homer and Shane Bieber provided a composed start as the Blue Jays defeated the Los Angeles Dodgers 6-2 in the fourth game on Tuesday night at their home ballpark, squaring the World Series at two wins apiece and guaranteeing the matchup will return to Toronto.

Toronto had spent the morning of Tuesday dealing with their marathon Game 3 loss – equal to the longest Fall Classic contest ever – a loss that cost them the opportunity to take the lead in the series and depleted both relief corps. Manager Schneider stated later that “the Dodgers took a game, not the championship”. A day later, his team provided emphatic proof.

Initial Innings

The Los Angeles again scored first. Max Muncy walked in the second, advanced on a base hit and scored on Kiké Hernández's sacrifice fly. But the early breakthrough did not shake a Blue Jays team that led Major League Baseball with 49 come-from-behind wins this year.

They answered immediately in the third. Nathan Lukes hit a one-out base hit to centre and Guerrero came to the plate looking for a curveball. Shohei Ohtani threw a sweeper up and Guerrero drove it soaring over the left-center wall. It was his initial long hit of the series and his seventh home run this postseason – a new team mark – restoring the Blue Jays's lead after 13 shutout innings and shifting the tone of the game.

Shohei's Performance

That hit also halted Shohei Ohtani's history-making streak of 11 straight at-bats reaching base. The two-way phenomenon had hit two home runs and reached safely a historic nine times in the Dodgers' Game 3 comeback win. But on Tuesday, he took the mound on short rest – his briefest ever – after requiring an IV to recuperate from the previous marathon.

His fastball velocity was below his seasonal average and he labored more as the contest progressed. Even so, he displayed glimpses of his typical command, setting down 11 of 12 after Guerrero's blast and striking out six. He even walked in the first to continue his Fall Classic record. But the Blue Jays made him work: six base hits and four runs were credited to him in over six innings.

Seventh Inning Surge

The larger issue for Los Angeles was what followed when Ohtani finally lost steam.

Varsho started the seventh with a sharp single to right, and Clement smashed a two-base hit off the fence to put two on with no outs. Roberts had no option but to pull Ohtani, who exited to a standing ovation from the home crowd. The Dodgers' relief corps could not complete the escape.

Anthony Banda inherited the jam and right away trailed in the count. Andrés Giménez fought to a 3-2 count before driving in the runner with a base hit to left field. Ty France came up next with a fielder's choice to make it 4-1, and that was sufficient to remove Banda out of the contest. Blake Treinen entered next but also was unable to stem the rally: Bichette and Barger hit run-scoring base hits through the diamond, completing a four-score outburst that extended the margin to 6-1.

Blue Jays's Resilience

The Blue Jays's capacity to absorb early setbacks and answer has characterized their entire postseason. They once again did it without Springer, the injured leadoff hitter who left Game 3 after straining his right side.

Bieber, meanwhile, was everything Toronto needed. Acquired mid-season while completing recovery from elbow surgery, the former Cy Young winner stranded multiple runners and silenced the Los Angeles' potent batting order. He gave up one earned run on four hits and three walks before the manager summoned first-year left-hander Fluharty to face the core of the lineup in the sixth. Fluharty needed just 4 pitches to get out Muncy and Edman, protecting a fragile lead that quickly grew safe.

Former starter Bassitt then worked a clean seventh and eighth as the Los Angeles' offense continued to struggle. Los Angeles have scored only three scores over their last 20 innings, an sudden slowdown for a team that ranked among MLB's top offenses all year.

Final Innings

The Los Angeles scraped a run in the ninth inning when Edman hit into an out to score Teoscar Hernández after a walk and Max Muncy's double put two aboard. But Louis Varland closed it down without allowing a comeback to build.

After a night when the Blue Jays stranded a Fall Classic-record 19 baserunners and fell apart after wave upon wave of missed opportunities, Game 4 was ruthlessly effective. Six different Blue Jays collected base hits, 5 drove in runs and the team converted almost every run-scoring chance presented in the final innings.

Looking Ahead

The victory guarantees the World Series title will be awarded at their home stadium, where the Blue Jays have not celebrated a championship since Carter's famous walk-off homer in 1993. They now know they are guaranteed a full crowd in Toronto on Friday evening – and possibly Saturday – no matter what occurs next in LA.

Game 5 approaches with the series even and energy shifting to Toronto. Los Angeles left-hander Snell (3-1, 2.42 ERA) will attempt to arrest the Toronto's momentum. Toronto counter with rookie Trey Yesavage (2-1, 4.26 ERA) in a repeat of the opener, when the Toronto knocked out the starter quickly in an decisive victory.