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Only 24 hours following staggering through one of the most draining losses in World Series history, the Toronto Blue Jays played with complete control.

Vladimir Guerrero Jr crushed a two-run home run and Shane Bieber provided a steady start as Toronto defeated the Dodgers 6-2 in the fourth game on Tuesday evening at their home ballpark, tying the World Series at two wins apiece and guaranteeing the series will return to Canada.

Toronto had spent the morning of Tuesday processing their 18-inning third game defeat – tied for the longest Fall Classic game ever – a defeat that denied them the opportunity to take the lead in the matchup and burned through both bullpens. Manager John Schneider stated later that “they won a game, not the World Series”. Twenty-three hours later, his team offered emphatic evidence.

Initial Innings

The Dodgers again struck first. Muncy walked in the second, advanced on a single and scored on Kiké Hernández's fly out. But the initial breakthrough did not shake a Blue Jays team that led MLB with 49 comeback victories this year.

They responded right away in the third inning. Lukes hit a one-out single to centre and Guerrero came to the plate looking for a breaking ball. Shohei Ohtani threw a slider up and he sent it screaming over the outfield fence. It was his first extra-base hit of the World Series and his 7th homer this playoffs – a fresh team mark – restoring the Toronto's lead after 13 scoreless innings and shifting the momentum of the night.

Shohei's Performance

That hit also ended Shohei Ohtani's history-making streak of 11 consecutive plate appearances reaching base. The dual-threat star 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 needing an IV to recover from the previous extra-inning game.

His pitch speed sat under his regular-season average and he labored more as the contest progressed. Nonetheless, he showed flashes of his usual command, retiring 11 of 12 after Guerrero Jr's blast and fanning six. He even drew a walk in the first to extend his World Series record. But the Toronto forced him to labor: six base hits and four earned runs were charged to him in over six frames.

Late Game Rally

The bigger problem for Los Angeles was what came next when he finally lost steam.

Varsho started the seventh with a clean single to right field, and Clement smashed a two-base hit off the wall to put two on with none out. Roberts had little choice but to remove Ohtani, who departed to a standing ovation from the local fans. The Dodgers' relief corps could not complete the inning.

Anthony Banda came into the jam and right away trailed in the count. Giménez battled to a full count before driving in Varsho with a single to left field. France came up next with a fielder's choice to make it 4-1, and that was enough to remove the pitcher out of the contest. Treinen entered next but also failed to stem the rally: Bichette and Addison Barger punched RBI singles through the infield, capping a four-run barrage that pushed the margin to 6-1.

Toronto's Resilience

The Toronto's ability to absorb initial setbacks and respond has characterized their whole run. They once again succeeded without George Springer, the injured top-of-the-order hitter who left the third game after tweaking his oblique.

Shane Bieber, in contrast, was everything Toronto required. Acquired mid-season while completing recovery from elbow surgery, the former Cy Young winner left several runners and quieted the Dodgers' potent batting order. He allowed one earned run on four hits and three walks before the manager called on first-year pitcher Fluharty to face the heart of the order in the sixth. Fluharty needed just four throws to get out Muncy and Edman, protecting a narrow advantage that soon became comfortable.

Converted starting pitcher Bassitt then worked a clean seventh and eighth as the Dodgers' bats continued to sputter. The Dodgers have produced only three runs over their last 20 frames, an sudden slowdown for a team that was among MLB's top offenses all year.

Closing Moments

The Los Angeles scraped a run in the ninth inning when Tommy Edman grounded out to score Teoscar Hernández after a walk and Muncy's double put runners aboard. But Varland closed it down without permitting a rally to develop.

Following a night when Toronto stranded a World Series-record 19 baserunners and collapsed after repeated of wasted chances, the fourth contest was ruthlessly efficient. Six separate Blue Jays collected base hits, five drove in runs and the team cashed almost every run-scoring chance available in the final innings.

Looking Ahead

The victory guarantees the championship trophy will be awarded at their home stadium, where the Blue Jays have not celebrated a title since Joe Carter's famous game-winning home run in 1993. They now know they are assured a packed house in Toronto on Friday night – and perhaps Saturday – no matter what occurs next in LA.

Game 5 approaches with the matchup reset and energy swinging north. Dodgers pitcher Blake Snell (3-1, 2.42 ERA) will attempt to arrest the Toronto's surge. The Blue Jays respond with first-year player Yesavage (2-1, 4.26 ERA) in a repeat of Game 1, when the Blue Jays chased Snell quickly in an decisive victory.