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Only 24 hours after staggering through one of the most exhausting losses in World Series history, the Blue Jays played with complete command.

Guerrero crushed a two-run homer and Bieber delivered a steady outing as the Blue Jays beat the Dodgers 6-2 in Game 4 on Tuesday night at Dodger Stadium, tying the World Series at two wins apiece and ensuring the matchup will head back to Canada.

The Blue Jays had spent the early hours of the next day processing their 18-inning third game defeat – tied for the lengthiest Fall Classic contest ever – a loss that denied them the chance to lead the series and depleted both relief corps. Skipper John Schneider stated afterwards that “the Dodgers took a game, not the championship”. Twenty-three hours later, his team offered emphatic evidence.

Initial Innings

The Los Angeles again scored first. Max Muncy walked in the second inning, moved up on a single and scored on Kiké Hernández's sacrifice fly. But the initial score did not shake a Blue Jays team that led Major League Baseball with 49 come-from-behind victories this year.

They answered immediately in the third inning. Lukes hit a one-out single to center field and Guerrero stepped in hunting a breaking ball. Shohei Ohtani threw a sweeper up and Guerrero drove it screaming over the outfield fence. It was his first long hit of the series and his 7th home run this postseason – a fresh club mark – restoring the Blue Jays's lead after 13 scoreless frames and changing the tone of the game.

Ohtani's Night

That hit also halted Ohtani's record-setting streak of 11 consecutive at-bats getting on base. The two-way phenomenon had smashed two home runs and reached safely a historic nine times in the Los Angeles' Game 3 walk-off. But on Tuesday, he started on short rest – his briefest ever – after needing an IV to recover from the prior marathon.

His pitch speed was below his regular-season norm and he struggled more as the game progressed. Even so, he showed flashes of his typical command, retiring 11 of 12 after Guerrero's homer and fanning six. He even walked in the first to continue his World Series record. But the Blue Jays forced him to labor: six base hits and four earned runs were charged to him in over six innings.

Late Game Surge

The bigger issue for the Dodgers was what followed when Ohtani eventually ran out of energy.

Varsho opened the seventh inning with a sharp single to right field, and Clement drilled a two-base hit off the wall to put runners on with none out. Dave Roberts had little choice but to remove Ohtani, who exited to a standing ovation from the home crowd. The Dodgers' bullpen could not finish the escape.

Anthony Banda inherited the jam and right away trailed in the count. Giménez fought to a full count before scoring the runner with a single to left field. Ty France followed with a fielder's choice to make it 4-1, and that was sufficient to remove Banda out of the game. Blake Treinen entered next but also failed to stem the momentum: Bo Bichette and Addison Barger hit RBI singles through the infield, completing a four-run outburst that extended the lead to 6-1.

Toronto's Resilience

The Toronto's ability to absorb initial setbacks and answer has characterized their entire postseason. They once again did it without Springer, the injured top-of-the-order man who exited Game 3 after straining his oblique.

Shane Bieber, meanwhile, was exactly what the Blue Jays needed. Acquired mid-season while finishing rehab from Tommy John surgery, the former award-winning winner left several baserunners and silenced the Los Angeles' potent lineup. He allowed one run on four hits and three walks before the manager called on first-year left-hander Fluharty to face the heart of the order in the sixth. Fluharty required just 4 throws to retire Muncy and Edman, preserving a fragile advantage that soon became comfortable.

Converted starter Bassitt then worked a clean seventh and eighth as the Los Angeles' bats kept to struggle. The Dodgers have scored only 3 scores over their previous 20 innings, an abrupt slowdown for a team that was among baseball's top lineups all season.

Final Innings

The Dodgers scraped a run in the ninth when Tommy Edman hit into an out to bring home 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 rally to build.

After a night when the Blue Jays left a Fall Classic-record 19 baserunners and fell apart after repeated of missed chances, Game 4 was brutally efficient. 6 separate Toronto players recorded hits, five drove in runs and the team converted nearly every scoring chance presented in the late stanzas.

Next Up

The victory guarantees the World Series trophy will be presented at their home stadium, where the Toronto have not won a championship since Carter's famous game-winning home run in 1993. They now are aware they are guaranteed a packed house in Canada on Friday night – and possibly the next day – no matter what happens next in LA.

The fifth game looms with the matchup even and energy swinging to Toronto. Dodgers pitcher Snell (3-1, 2.42 ERA) will try to arrest the Blue Jays's surge. The Blue Jays counter with first-year player Trey Yesavage (2-1, 4.26 ERA) in a repeat of Game 1, when the Blue Jays chased the starter quickly in an 11-4 victory.