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Less than a day following enduring one of the most draining defeats in World Series annals, the Blue Jays displayed complete control.

Guerrero smashed a two-run home run and Bieber delivered a composed outing as the Blue Jays beat the Los Angeles Dodgers 6-2 in the fourth game on Tuesday evening at Dodger Stadium, squaring the Fall Classic at two games each and ensuring the matchup will head back to Canada.

The Blue Jays had spent the morning of Tuesday processing their marathon Game 3 loss – tied for the lengthiest World Series contest ever – a defeat that cost them the chance to take the lead in the series and depleted both relief corps. Skipper John Schneider stated later that “the Dodgers won a contest, not the World Series”. Twenty-three hours later, his team provided emphatic proof.

Initial Action

The Los Angeles again scored first. Muncy drew a walk in the second inning, advanced on a base hit and scored on Hernández's sacrifice fly. But the early score did not rattle a Blue Jays team that led Major League Baseball with 49 comeback victories this year.

They responded right away in the third inning. Lukes hit a one-out single to centre and Vladimir Guerrero Jr stepped in looking for a curveball. Shohei Ohtani threw a slider up and Guerrero sent it screaming over the left-center wall. It was his first long hit of the World Series and his 7th homer this playoffs – a fresh team record – regaining the Blue Jays's lead after 13 shutout frames and changing the tone of the night.

Ohtani's Performance

That hit also halted Shohei Ohtani's history-making run of 11 straight at-bats reaching base. The dual-threat phenomenon had hit two home runs and got on base a historic nine times in the Los Angeles' third game comeback win. But on Tuesday, he took the mound on limited rest – his shortest ever – after needing an IV to recuperate from the previous extra-inning game.

Ohtani pitch speed sat below his regular-season average and he struggled more as the game progressed. Even so, he displayed glimpses of his usual command, setting down 11 of 12 after Guerrero Jr's homer and striking out six. He even walked in the first inning to extend his Fall Classic streak. But the Blue Jays made him work: six base hits and four runs were charged to him in over six innings.

Late Game Rally

The bigger issue for Los Angeles was what came next when he eventually lost steam.

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

Anthony Banda came into the mess and right away fell behind. Andrés Giménez battled to a 3-2 count before driving in Varsho with a base hit to left. France followed with a groundout to make it 4-1, and that was enough to knock the pitcher out of the contest. Blake Treinen came in next but also failed to stem the rally: Bo Bichette and Barger punched run-scoring base hits through the diamond, completing a four-run barrage that pushed the margin to 6-1.

Toronto's Resilience

The Blue Jays's capacity to absorb early setbacks and answer has characterized their whole postseason. They once again succeeded without Springer, the hurt leadoff hitter who left Game 3 after tweaking his oblique.

Shane Bieber, meanwhile, was exactly what the Blue Jays needed. Acquired during the summer while completing rehab from elbow surgery, the ex- Cy Young winner left multiple runners and quieted the Dodgers' potent batting order. He allowed one earned run on four hits and three walks before Schneider called on rookie left-hander Fluharty to face the heart of the lineup in the sixth inning. He required just four throws to retire Muncy and Tommy Edman, preserving a narrow advantage that quickly grew comfortable.

Converted starting pitcher Bassitt then worked a clean seventh and eighth innings as the Los Angeles' offense kept to struggle. Los Angeles have scored only 3 scores over their previous 20 innings, an abrupt slowdown for a club that ranked among MLB's top lineups all season.

Final Moments

The Dodgers managed a score in the ninth inning when Edman grounded out to bring home Hernández after a walk and Muncy's double put runners on base. But Louis Varland closed it down without allowing a comeback to develop.

Following a night when Toronto left a World Series-record 19 runners and fell apart after wave upon wave of wasted chances, the fourth contest was brutally effective. Six different Toronto players recorded hits, 5 drove in scores and the team converted nearly every scoring chance available in the final innings.

Next Up

The win guarantees the World Series title will be presented at Rogers Centre, where the Toronto have not celebrated a championship since Joe Carter's famous walk-off home run in '93. They now are aware they are guaranteed a full crowd in Toronto on Friday evening – and perhaps Saturday – no matter what occurs next in Los Angeles.

Game 5 looms with the series even and momentum shifting north. Los Angeles pitcher Snell (3-1, 2.42 ERA) will try to arrest the Toronto's momentum. The Blue Jays respond with rookie Yesavage (2-1, 4.26 ERA) in a rematch of Game 1, when the Toronto chased Snell early in an 11-4 victory.