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Less than a day after enduring one of the most draining losses in World Series history, the Toronto Blue Jays played with total control.

Guerrero smashed a two-run homer and Shane Bieber delivered a composed start as the Blue Jays beat the Dodgers 6-2 in Game 4 on Tuesday evening at Dodger Stadium, squaring the Fall Classic at two wins apiece and ensuring the matchup will head back to Toronto.

Toronto had passed the early hours of the next day processing their marathon Game 3 loss – equal to the longest Fall Classic game ever – a defeat that denied them the opportunity to lead the matchup and depleted both bullpens. Skipper John Schneider insisted later that “they took a contest, not the World Series”. A day later, his team provided emphatic proof.

Initial Action

The Los Angeles again struck first. Muncy walked in the second, moved up on a base hit and crossed the plate on Hernández's sacrifice fly. But the initial score did not rattle a Toronto team that topped Major League Baseball with 49 come-from-behind wins this season.

They responded right away in the third inning. Lukes hit a one-out base hit to centre and Vladimir Guerrero Jr came to the plate looking for a breaking ball. Shohei Ohtani threw a sweeper up and Guerrero sent it screaming over the outfield fence. It was his first long hit of the World Series and his 7th homer this postseason – a new team record – regaining the Blue Jays's lead after 13 shutout frames and changing the tone of the game.

Shohei's Night

That hit also ended Ohtani's history-making streak of 11 straight plate appearances reaching base. The dual-threat star had smashed two home runs and got on base a record nine times in the Los Angeles' third game comeback win. But on Tuesday, he started on short rest – his briefest ever – after needing an IV to recuperate from the prior extra-inning game.

His fastball velocity sat under his regular-season norm and he struggled more as the game progressed. Even so, he displayed flashes of his typical command, retiring 11 of 12 after Guerrero Jr's blast and fanning six. He even drew a walk in the first to continue his Fall Classic record. But the Blue Jays made him work: six base hits and four earned runs were charged to him in over six frames.

Late Game Surge

The bigger issue for the Dodgers was what came next when he finally lost steam.

Daulton Varsho opened the seventh inning with a sharp hit to right, and Ernie Clement drilled a two-base hit off the fence to put two on with no outs. Dave Roberts had no option but to remove the starter, who exited to a standing ovation from the local fans. The Dodgers' bullpen could not complete the inning.

Banda inherited the mess and immediately trailed in the count. Giménez fought to a 3-2 count before scoring Varsho with a single to left. France came up next with a groundout to make it 4-1, and that was sufficient to remove the pitcher out of the game. Treinen entered next but also failed to stem the rally: Bo Bichette and Barger punched RBI singles through the infield, capping a four-score outburst that extended the lead to 6-1.

Blue Jays's Resilience

The Blue Jays's ability to absorb initial blows and answer has defined their whole postseason. They once again succeeded without George Springer, the injured top-of-the-order hitter who exited the third game after straining his right side.

Shane Bieber, meanwhile, was exactly what Toronto required. Traded for mid-season while completing recovery from elbow surgery, the ex- Cy Young winner stranded several runners and quieted the Dodgers' potent lineup. He gave up one run on four hits and three walks before the manager summoned rookie pitcher Fluharty to confront the core of the lineup in the sixth. He needed just 4 pitches to retire Max Muncy and Tommy Edman, preserving a fragile lead that soon became safe.

Converted starter Bassitt then worked a scoreless seventh and eighth innings as the Dodgers' bats kept to struggle. Los Angeles have scored only three scores over their previous 20 frames, an sudden slowdown for a club that was among baseball's elite lineups all season.

Final Innings

The Dodgers managed a run in the ninth when Tommy Edman grounded out to score Hernández after a base on balls and Muncy's double put two aboard. But Louis Varland closed it down without allowing a rally to build.

After a night when the Blue Jays left a World Series-record 19 baserunners and fell apart after wave upon wave of missed opportunities, the fourth contest was ruthlessly effective. 6 different Toronto players recorded base hits, five brought home scores and the squad cashed almost every run-scoring opportunity available in the late innings.

Next Up

The victory guarantees the championship trophy will be presented at their home stadium, where the Toronto have not celebrated a title since Carter's famous walk-off home run in 1993. They now know they are assured a packed house in Canada on Friday evening – and possibly Saturday – no matter what happens next in LA.

The fifth game approaches with the series even and energy shifting north. Dodgers pitcher Snell (3-1, 2.42 ERA) will try to arrest the Toronto's momentum. The Blue Jays counter with first-year player Yesavage (2-1, 4.26 ERA) in a rematch of the opener, when the Toronto knocked out the starter quickly in an 11-4 victory.