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Only 24 hours following enduring one of the most draining defeats in World Series history, the Blue Jays displayed total command.

Guerrero smashed a two-run homer and Shane Bieber delivered a steady outing as the Blue Jays beat the Dodgers 6-2 in Game 4 on Tuesday evening at their home ballpark, squaring the World Series at two games each and guaranteeing the matchup will head back to Toronto.

The Blue Jays had spent the morning of the next day dealing with their 18-inning third game defeat – tied for the longest Fall Classic contest ever – a defeat that cost them the opportunity to lead the matchup and depleted both bullpens. Skipper John Schneider insisted later that “they won a game, not the World Series”. A day later, his squad provided convincing evidence.

Initial Action

The Dodgers again scored first. Muncy drew a walk in the second, advanced on a single and scored on Hernández's fly out. But the early breakthrough did not shake a Blue Jays club that topped MLB with 49 comeback wins this year.

They responded immediately in the third. Nathan Lukes lined a one-out single to center field and Vladimir Guerrero Jr came to the plate hunting a breaking ball. Ohtani threw a slider up and he sent it screaming over the left-center wall. It was his initial extra-base hit of the World Series and his 7th homer this playoffs – a new team mark – restoring the Blue Jays's advantage after 13 shutout innings and shifting the momentum of the night.

Ohtani's Night

That hit also ended Ohtani's history-making streak of 11 consecutive at-bats reaching base. The two-way star had smashed two home runs and got on base a historic nine times in the Los Angeles' third game walk-off. But on Tuesday, he took the mound on limited rest – his shortest ever – after needing an IV to recover from the previous extra-inning game.

Ohtani fastball velocity was below his seasonal norm and he struggled more as the game wore on. Nonetheless, he displayed glimpses of his typical control, setting down 11 of 12 after Guerrero's blast and fanning six. He even walked in the first inning to extend his Fall Classic streak. But the Blue Jays forced him to labor: six base hits and four earned runs were credited to him in over six frames.

Late Game Rally

The bigger issue for the Dodgers was what came next when Ohtani eventually lost steam.

Varsho started the seventh with a sharp single to right, and Ernie Clement drilled a double off the fence to put two on with no outs. Dave Roberts had little choice but to remove Ohtani, who departed to a standing ovation from the home crowd. The Dodgers' bullpen could not complete the inning.

Anthony Banda came into the jam and immediately trailed in the count. Andrés Giménez battled to a full count before driving in the runner with a base hit to left field. France followed with a groundout to make it 4-1, and that was enough to knock the pitcher out of the game. Treinen entered next but also was unable to stop the momentum: Bichette and Barger hit run-scoring singles through the diamond, capping a four-score barrage that extended the lead to 6-1.

Toronto's Toughness

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

Shane Bieber, in contrast, was exactly what the Blue Jays required. Acquired mid-season while finishing rehab from elbow surgery, the ex- award-winning winner left several runners and silenced the Dodgers' dangerous batting order. He allowed one earned run on four base hits and three walks before Schneider called on rookie left-hander Fluharty to face the core of the lineup in the sixth. He needed just four throws to get out Muncy and Tommy Edman, preserving a narrow lead that quickly grew safe.

Former starting pitcher Bassitt then pitched a scoreless seventh and eighth innings as the Los Angeles' offense kept to sputter. Los Angeles have produced only three runs over their last 20 frames, an abrupt downturn for a club that was among baseball's top lineups all season.

Closing Innings

The Los Angeles managed a score in the ninth inning when Edman hit into an out to bring home Teoscar Hernández after a base on balls and Max Muncy's two-base hit put two on base. But Varland closed it down without permitting a comeback to develop.

Following a night when Toronto stranded a World Series-record 19 runners and collapsed after repeated of wasted chances, Game 4 was brutally efficient. Six separate Toronto players collected hits, 5 drove in scores and the squad cashed nearly every run-scoring chance presented in the final innings.

Looking Ahead

The victory guarantees the championship title will be presented at Rogers Centre, where the Blue Jays have not celebrated a championship since Carter's famous walk-off homer in 1993. They now are aware they are guaranteed a packed crowd in Toronto on Friday evening – and perhaps Saturday – no matter what occurs next in LA.

Game 5 looms with the series reset and momentum swinging to Toronto. Los Angeles left-hander Blake Snell (3-1, 2.42 ERA) will try to arrest the Toronto's surge. Toronto respond with rookie Yesavage (2-1, 4.26 ERA) in a repeat of Game 1, when the Blue Jays knocked out Snell quickly in an 11-4 win.