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

Vladimir Guerrero Jr crushed a two-run homer and Bieber provided a steady outing as the Blue Jays defeated the Los Angeles Dodgers 6-2 in Game 4 on Tuesday evening at Dodger Stadium, tying the Fall Classic at two games each and guaranteeing the series will head back to Toronto.

The Blue Jays had passed the early hours of Tuesday dealing with their marathon Game 3 loss – equal to the lengthiest World Series contest ever – a loss that cost them the chance to take the lead in the series and depleted both bullpens. Manager Schneider stated later that “the Dodgers won a contest, not the World Series”. A day later, his squad offered emphatic proof.

Early Innings

The Los Angeles again struck first. Muncy drew a walk in the second inning, advanced on a base hit and crossed the plate on Hernández's sacrifice fly. But the initial breakthrough did not shake a Toronto team that topped MLB with 49 come-from-behind wins this season.

They responded right away in the third inning. Lukes lined a one away base hit to centre and Guerrero stepped in hunting a curveball. Shohei Ohtani left a slider up and he sent it screaming over the outfield fence. It was his initial long hit of the World Series and his seventh homer this playoffs – a new team mark – restoring the Blue Jays's lead after 13 scoreless innings and changing the tone of the game.

Shohei's Performance

That swing also halted Ohtani's history-making run of 11 consecutive plate appearances reaching base. The dual-threat star had smashed two homers and reached safely a historic nine times in the Los Angeles' Game 3 walk-off. But on Tuesday, he started on limited rest – his shortest ever – after requiring an IV to recuperate from the previous extra-inning game.

Ohtani fastball velocity sat under his seasonal norm and he labored more as the contest wore on. Nonetheless, he displayed glimpses of his typical command, setting down 11 of 12 after Guerrero's blast and fanning six. He even walked in the first inning to continue his Fall Classic record. But the Toronto made him work: six base hits and four runs were credited to him in six-plus frames.

Late Game Rally

The bigger issue for the Dodgers was what came next when Ohtani finally lost energy.

Daulton Varsho started the seventh inning with a clean hit to right, and Clement drilled a two-base hit off the wall to put two on with none out. Roberts had no option but to remove Ohtani, who exited to a roaring applause from the home crowd. The Los Angeles' relief corps could not finish the inning.

Banda inherited the jam and immediately trailed in the count. Andrés Giménez battled to a 3-2 count before scoring the runner with a base hit to left. Ty France came up next with a fielder's choice to make it 4-1, and that was enough to knock Banda out of the game. Treinen came in next but also failed to stem the momentum: Bichette and Addison Barger hit RBI singles through the infield, capping a four-score outburst that pushed the lead to 6-1.

Toronto's Resilience

The Toronto's ability to absorb initial blows and answer has characterized their entire run. They once again did it without Springer, the injured top-of-the-order man who exited the third game after tweaking his oblique.

Bieber, meanwhile, was exactly what the Blue Jays needed. Acquired during the summer while finishing recovery from elbow surgery, the ex- award-winning winner left multiple runners and silenced the Los Angeles' potent batting order. He allowed one run on four base hits and three walks before Schneider summoned first-year left-hander Fluharty to confront the core of the lineup in the sixth inning. Fluharty required just 4 throws to retire Max Muncy and Edman, preserving a narrow advantage that soon became safe.

Former starter Bassitt then worked a scoreless seventh and eighth as the Los Angeles' bats continued to struggle. The Dodgers have scored only 3 runs over their last 20 frames, an abrupt downturn for a team that ranked among MLB's elite offenses all year.

Final Innings

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

After a night when the Blue Jays left a Fall Classic-record 19 baserunners and fell apart after wave upon wave of wasted chances, Game 4 was ruthlessly effective. 6 different Blue Jays recorded hits, five brought home scores and the squad converted almost every run-scoring opportunity available in the final stanzas.

Looking Ahead

The win guarantees the championship trophy will be presented at Rogers Centre, where the Toronto have not celebrated a championship since Carter's iconic walk-off homer in '93. They now know they are guaranteed a packed house in Toronto on Friday evening – and perhaps Saturday – no matter what happens next in Los Angeles.

Game 5 looms with the matchup even and energy shifting to Toronto. Los Angeles pitcher Blake Snell (3-1, 2.42 ERA) will attempt to arrest the Blue Jays's surge. The Blue Jays respond with rookie Yesavage (2-1, 4.26 ERA) in a rematch of the opener, when the Blue Jays chased Snell quickly in an decisive victory.