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Less than a day after enduring one of the most draining defeats in World Series annals, the Toronto Blue Jays displayed complete command.

Vladimir Guerrero Jr crushed a two-run homer and Bieber delivered a composed start as the Blue Jays defeated the Dodgers 6-2 in Game 4 on Tuesday evening at Dodger Stadium, tying the World Series at two games each and guaranteeing the series will return to Canada.

Toronto had spent the morning of the next day processing their marathon third game defeat – tied for the longest World Series contest ever – a loss that denied them the opportunity to lead the matchup and burned through both relief corps. Manager Schneider insisted afterwards that “they won a contest, not the championship”. A day later, his squad provided convincing proof.

Early Action

The Los Angeles again scored first. Max Muncy drew a walk in the second, advanced on a single and scored on Hernández's sacrifice fly. But the early breakthrough did not rattle a Blue Jays team that led Major League Baseball with 49 comeback wins this season.

They answered immediately in the third. Lukes hit a one away single to centre and Guerrero came to the plate hunting a curveball. Ohtani threw a slider up and Guerrero drove it soaring over the outfield fence. It was his initial long hit of the series and his seventh homer this playoffs – a new club record – regaining the Blue Jays's advantage after 13 scoreless frames and shifting the tone of the night.

Ohtani's Night

That hit also ended Shohei Ohtani's history-making streak of 11 straight at-bats getting on base. The dual-threat phenomenon had hit two homers and reached safely a record nine times in the Dodgers' Game 3 walk-off. But on that night, he took the mound on short rest – his shortest ever – after needing an IV to recuperate from the prior extra-inning game.

His fastball velocity was under his regular-season average and he labored more as the contest wore on. Even so, he displayed glimpses of his usual command, setting down 11 of 12 after Guerrero's homer and striking out six. He even drew a walk in the first inning to extend his Fall Classic record. But the Toronto made him work: six base hits and four runs were charged to him in six-plus frames.

Late Game Rally

The bigger issue for Los Angeles was what came next when he finally lost steam.

Varsho started the seventh with a sharp single to right field, and Clement smashed a double off the wall to put two on with no outs. Roberts had no option but to remove Ohtani, who exited to a standing ovation from the home crowd. The Dodgers' relief corps could not complete the escape.

Banda inherited the mess and right away fell behind. Andrés Giménez fought to a full count before driving in Varsho with a base hit to left field. France came up next with a groundout to make it 4-1, and that was enough to remove Banda out of the contest. Blake Treinen came in next but also failed to stop the momentum: Bo Bichette and Addison Barger punched RBI base hits through the infield, completing a four-score outburst that extended the lead to 6-1.

Blue Jays's Resilience

The Toronto's capacity to absorb early setbacks and respond has characterized their entire postseason. They once again did it without Springer, the hurt leadoff hitter who exited Game 3 after tweaking his oblique.

Shane Bieber, in contrast, was exactly what Toronto needed. Traded for mid-season while completing rehab from Tommy John surgery, the former award-winning winner left multiple runners and quieted the Los Angeles' potent lineup. He gave up one run on four hits and three walks before the manager summoned first-year left-hander Mason Fluharty to confront the core of the order in the sixth. He needed just 4 pitches to get out Muncy and Tommy Edman, preserving a narrow lead that quickly grew safe.

Converted starting pitcher Bassitt then pitched a clean seventh and eighth as the Dodgers' offense kept to sputter. The Dodgers have scored only 3 runs over their previous 20 innings, an abrupt downturn for a team that was among baseball's elite lineups all season.

Final Moments

The Dodgers managed a run in the ninth inning when Tommy Edman hit into an out to score Teoscar Hernández after a walk and Muncy's double put runners on base. But Louis Varland closed it down without permitting a rally to build.

Following a night when Toronto left a World Series-record 19 baserunners and fell apart after repeated of wasted chances, Game 4 was ruthlessly efficient. 6 different Toronto players recorded hits, five brought home runs and the squad cashed almost every run-scoring chance available in the final stanzas.

Next Up

The win guarantees the World Series trophy will be presented at Rogers Centre, where the Blue Jays have not celebrated a title since Joe Carter's famous game-winning home run in 1993. They now are aware they are guaranteed a full crowd in Canada on Friday night – and perhaps the next day – no matter what happens next in LA.

The fifth game approaches with the matchup reset and momentum shifting to Toronto. Dodgers left-hander Blake Snell (3-1, 2.42 ERA) will attempt to halt the Toronto's surge. The Blue Jays counter with first-year player Yesavage (2-1, 4.26 ERA) in a rematch of Game 1, when the Toronto chased the starter early in an decisive victory.