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Less than a day following enduring one of the most draining losses in World Series annals, the Toronto Blue Jays played with complete control.

Guerrero crushed a two-run home run and Shane Bieber delivered a steady start as Toronto defeated the Los Angeles Dodgers 6-2 in the fourth game on Tuesday night at Dodger Stadium, squaring the Fall Classic at two games each and ensuring the series will head back to Canada.

Toronto had passed the morning of Tuesday dealing with their 18-inning Game 3 loss – equal to the lengthiest World Series contest ever – a defeat that denied them the opportunity to take the lead in the matchup and burned through both relief corps. Manager John Schneider insisted later that “the Dodgers took a contest, not the World Series”. A day later, his squad provided emphatic evidence.

Initial Action

The Los Angeles again struck first. Muncy drew a walk in the second, advanced on a base hit and scored on Kiké Hernández's fly out. But the early score did not rattle a Toronto team that topped Major League Baseball with 49 comeback wins this season.

They responded right away in the third inning. Lukes hit a one away single to center field and Guerrero came to the plate hunting a curveball. Ohtani threw a sweeper up and he drove it soaring over the outfield fence. It was his first extra-base hit of the World Series and his 7th homer this postseason – a new team record – regaining the Blue Jays's advantage after 13 scoreless innings and changing the tone of the game.

Ohtani's Performance

That swing also halted Ohtani's record-setting streak of 11 consecutive at-bats getting on base. The dual-threat star had smashed two home runs and reached safely a record nine times in the Dodgers' Game 3 walk-off. But on Tuesday, he took the mound on limited rest – his shortest ever – after requiring an IV to recover from the previous extra-inning game.

His pitch speed was under his seasonal norm and he struggled more as the game progressed. Nonetheless, he showed glimpses of his typical control, retiring 11 of 12 after Guerrero Jr's homer and striking out six. He even drew a walk in the first to extend his World Series record. But the Blue Jays forced him to labor: six hits and four earned runs were charged to him in over six frames.

Seventh Inning Surge

The bigger problem for the Dodgers was what came next when he finally ran out of steam.

Daulton Varsho opened the seventh with a clean single to right field, and Clement smashed a two-base hit off the fence to put two on with no outs. Dave Roberts had little choice but to pull the starter, who departed to a standing ovation from the local fans. The Dodgers' bullpen could not complete the inning.

Banda came into the jam and immediately trailed in the count. Andrés Giménez battled to a full count before driving in Varsho with a single to left. France came up next with a fielder's choice to make it 4-1, and that was sufficient to knock the pitcher out of the game. Treinen came in next but also failed to stem the rally: Bichette and Barger punched RBI singles through the diamond, completing a four-score outburst that pushed the margin to 6-1.

Blue Jays's Resilience

The Blue Jays's capacity to absorb initial blows and answer has characterized their entire run. They once again succeeded without George Springer, the hurt top-of-the-order hitter who left the third game after straining his right side.

Shane Bieber, in contrast, was exactly what the Blue Jays needed. Traded for during the summer while completing rehab from elbow surgery, the former award-winning winner left several baserunners and quieted the Dodgers' dangerous batting order. He allowed one earned run on four base hits and three free passes before Schneider summoned rookie left-hander Fluharty to face the core of the order in the sixth inning. Fluharty required just 4 throws to retire Max Muncy and Edman, protecting a narrow lead that quickly grew safe.

Former starter Bassitt then pitched a scoreless seventh and eighth as the Dodgers' bats kept to struggle. The Dodgers have produced only three runs over their last 20 frames, an abrupt downturn for a club that ranked among baseball's top lineups all year.

Closing Moments

The Los Angeles managed a run in the ninth when Edman hit into an out to bring home Hernández after a base on balls and Muncy's double put runners on base. But Varland finished the game without permitting a comeback to build.

Following a game when the Blue Jays stranded a World Series-record 19 runners and fell apart after wave upon wave of wasted chances, Game 4 was brutally efficient. Six different Blue Jays collected hits, 5 brought home runs and the team cashed nearly every run-scoring chance available in the late innings.

Next Up

The win guarantees the championship title will be presented at their home stadium, where the Blue Jays have not celebrated a title since Carter's famous game-winning homer in '93. They now are aware they are assured a packed crowd in Canada on Friday night – and possibly the next day – no matter what occurs next in Los Angeles.

Game 5 approaches with the series even and energy shifting north. Los Angeles left-hander Snell (3-1, 2.42 ERA) will try to halt the Toronto's surge. Toronto respond with first-year player Trey Yesavage (2-1, 4.26 ERA) in a rematch of Game 1, when the Toronto knocked out the starter early in an decisive win.