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Less than a day following staggering through one of the most draining losses in World Series history, the Blue Jays played with complete control.

Guerrero crushed a two-run home run and Shane Bieber delivered a composed outing as Toronto defeated the Dodgers 6-2 in Game 4 on Tuesday night at their home ballpark, squaring the Fall Classic at two wins apiece and ensuring the series will head back to Toronto.

Toronto had passed the early hours of the next day dealing with their marathon third game defeat – equal to the longest Fall Classic game ever – a defeat that denied them the chance to lead the series and burned through both relief corps. Skipper John Schneider stated afterwards that “they won a game, not the World Series”. A day later, his team provided emphatic evidence.

Initial Action

The Dodgers again struck first. Muncy walked in the second inning, advanced on a single and scored on Kiké Hernández's fly out. But the initial breakthrough did not shake a Blue Jays club that topped MLB with 49 come-from-behind victories this year.

They answered right away in the third inning. Nathan Lukes hit a one-out single to center field and Vladimir Guerrero Jr stepped in looking for a curveball. Ohtani threw a sweeper up and Guerrero drove it soaring over the left-center wall. It was his initial long hit of the World Series and his 7th home run this playoffs – a fresh club mark – regaining the Toronto's advantage after 13 scoreless innings and shifting the momentum of the night.

Ohtani's Night

That swing also ended Shohei Ohtani's record-setting streak of 11 consecutive at-bats getting on base. The dual-threat star had hit two home runs and got on base a historic nine times in the Los Angeles' third game walk-off. But on that night, he started on short rest – his shortest ever – after needing an IV to recover from the prior extra-inning game.

Ohtani fastball velocity sat under his regular-season average and he struggled more as the game wore on. Nonetheless, he displayed flashes of his usual command, retiring 11 of 12 after Guerrero's blast and fanning six. He even walked in the first to continue his Fall Classic streak. But the Blue Jays made him work: six hits and four runs were charged to him in six-plus frames.

Seventh Inning Surge

The bigger issue for Los Angeles was what came next when he eventually ran out of steam.

Daulton Varsho opened the seventh inning with a clean hit to right, and Clement drilled a double off the fence to put two on with none out. Dave Roberts had no option but to pull Ohtani, who departed to a standing ovation from the home crowd. The Los Angeles' bullpen could not finish the escape.

Banda inherited the jam and immediately fell behind. Giménez battled to a 3-2 count before driving in Varsho with a single to left field. Ty France came up next with a fielder's choice to make it 4-1, and that was sufficient to remove the pitcher out of the game. Blake Treinen came in next but also was unable to stop the rally: Bo Bichette and Addison Barger hit RBI singles through the diamond, capping a four-run outburst that extended the lead to 6-1.

Toronto's Resilience

The Toronto's ability to absorb initial setbacks and respond has defined their entire postseason. They once again did it without Springer, the injured leadoff hitter who exited the third game after straining his right side.

Shane Bieber, in contrast, was exactly what the Blue Jays required. Traded for during the summer while completing recovery from elbow surgery, the ex- award-winning winner left multiple runners and quieted the Los Angeles' dangerous lineup. He allowed one earned run on four hits and three walks before the manager summoned rookie pitcher Mason Fluharty to face the core of the order in the sixth. Fluharty needed just four pitches to retire Muncy and Tommy Edman, preserving a fragile advantage that quickly became safe.

Former starting pitcher Bassitt then worked a clean seventh and eighth innings as the Dodgers' bats continued to struggle. The Dodgers have produced only three runs over their previous 20 frames, an sudden slowdown for a club that ranked among MLB's top lineups all year.

Closing Moments

The Los Angeles scraped a run in the ninth when Edman hit into an out to bring home Teoscar Hernández after a walk and Muncy's two-base hit put runners on base. But Varland closed it down without allowing a comeback to build.

Following a game when Toronto stranded a World Series-record 19 runners and fell apart after repeated of wasted opportunities, the fourth contest was brutally efficient. Six separate Blue Jays collected base hits, 5 drove in scores and the team converted almost every scoring opportunity presented in the late stanzas.

Next Up

The win ensures the World Series trophy will be presented at Rogers Centre, where the Blue Jays have not won a title since Joe Carter's famous game-winning homer in '93. They now know they are assured a packed house in Toronto on Friday evening – and possibly the next day – no matter what occurs next in Los Angeles.

Game 5 looms with the matchup even and momentum shifting north. Los Angeles pitcher Snell (3-1, 2.42 ERA) will try to arrest the Toronto's surge. The Blue Jays counter with first-year player Trey Yesavage (2-1, 4.26 ERA) in a rematch of the opener, when the Toronto knocked out Snell early in an decisive victory.