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Less than a day following enduring one of the most exhausting defeats in Fall Classic history, the Toronto Blue Jays played with total control.

Guerrero crushed 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 night at Dodger Stadium, squaring the Fall Classic at two games each and guaranteeing the matchup will return to Canada.

The Blue Jays had passed the morning of the next day dealing with their 18-inning Game 3 loss – equal to the lengthiest World Series game ever – a loss that denied them the chance to lead the series and burned through both bullpens. Manager Schneider insisted afterwards that “the Dodgers took a contest, not the championship”. Twenty-three hours later, his team offered convincing proof.

Initial Action

The Los Angeles again scored first. Muncy drew a walk in the second inning, moved up on a base hit and crossed the plate on Hernández's fly out. But the initial breakthrough did not rattle a Toronto team that topped MLB with 49 come-from-behind victories this season.

They responded right away in the third inning. Nathan Lukes lined a one away single to centre and Guerrero came to the plate hunting a breaking ball. Shohei Ohtani left a sweeper up and Guerrero sent it soaring over the left-center wall. It was his initial long hit of the World Series and his 7th homer this playoffs – a new club record – regaining the Blue Jays's advantage after 13 scoreless innings and shifting the tone of the night.

Shohei's Night

That hit also halted Ohtani's record-setting streak of 11 consecutive plate appearances getting on base. The dual-threat star had hit two home runs and reached safely a record nine times in the Los Angeles' third game walk-off. But on that night, he took the mound on short rest – his shortest ever – after needing an IV to recover from the previous extra-inning game.

Ohtani fastball velocity was under his regular-season average and he struggled more as the game wore on. Nonetheless, he showed glimpses of his usual command, setting down 11 of 12 after Guerrero Jr's blast and striking out six. He even drew a walk in the first to extend his Fall Classic streak. But the Toronto forced him to labor: six base hits and four runs were charged to him in over six innings.

Seventh Inning Rally

The larger issue for the Dodgers was what came next when Ohtani eventually ran out of energy.

Varsho opened the seventh inning with a clean single to right, and Clement drilled a double off the fence to put runners on with no outs. Roberts had no option but to remove Ohtani, who exited to a roaring applause from the home crowd. The Dodgers' bullpen could not complete the inning.

Banda inherited the jam and right away fell behind. Andrés Giménez fought to a full count before scoring Varsho with a base hit to left field. France followed with a groundout to make it 4-1, and that was enough to knock Banda out of the game. Treinen entered next but also failed to stem the momentum: Bo Bichette and Barger hit RBI singles through the infield, completing a four-run barrage that extended the margin to 6-1.

Blue Jays's Toughness

The Toronto's capacity to withstand initial setbacks and respond has defined their entire postseason. They once again did it without Springer, the hurt top-of-the-order man who left the third game after straining his oblique.

Bieber, meanwhile, was everything Toronto needed. Traded for during the summer while completing rehab from Tommy John surgery, the former Cy Young winner stranded several baserunners and silenced the Dodgers' potent lineup. He gave up one earned run on four base hits and three free passes before Schneider called on first-year pitcher Fluharty to face the heart of the lineup in the sixth. He required just four throws to get out Muncy and Tommy Edman, preserving a fragile lead that soon grew comfortable.

Former starting pitcher Chris Bassitt then worked a clean seventh and eighth as the Dodgers' offense continued to struggle. The Dodgers have produced only 3 runs over their last 20 frames, an abrupt slowdown for a club that was among baseball's top lineups all year.

Final Innings

The Dodgers managed a run in the ninth when Edman hit into an out to score Teoscar Hernández after a base on balls and Max Muncy's two-base hit put runners on base. But Louis Varland finished the game without allowing a comeback to develop.

After a game when the Blue Jays stranded a World Series-record 19 baserunners and fell apart after repeated of wasted opportunities, Game 4 was ruthlessly effective. 6 different Blue Jays collected base hits, five drove in scores and the squad converted nearly every run-scoring opportunity available in the late stanzas.

Next Up

The win guarantees the championship trophy will be awarded at Rogers Centre, where the Toronto have not celebrated a championship since Carter's famous walk-off homer in '93. They now know they are assured a packed crowd in Canada on Friday night – and possibly Saturday – no matter what happens next in LA.

The fifth game looms with the matchup reset and momentum shifting to Toronto. Los Angeles left-hander Blake Snell (3-1, 2.42 ERA) will attempt to arrest the Toronto's momentum. Toronto respond with first-year player Yesavage (2-1, 4.26 ERA) in a repeat of Game 1, when the Toronto knocked out the starter early in an 11-4 win.