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

Guerrero smashed a two-run homer and Shane Bieber provided a steady outing as Toronto defeated the Dodgers 6-2 in the fourth game on Tuesday evening at their home ballpark, squaring the Fall Classic at two wins apiece and guaranteeing the matchup will return to Toronto.

Toronto had spent the morning of Tuesday processing their 18-inning third game defeat – tied for the lengthiest Fall Classic game ever – a loss that denied them the opportunity to lead the matchup and burned through both bullpens. Skipper John Schneider insisted afterwards that “they took a contest, not the championship”. Twenty-three hours later, his squad offered emphatic evidence.

Early Action

The Dodgers again struck first. Muncy drew a walk in the second inning, moved up on a single and crossed the plate on Hernández's sacrifice fly. But the early score did not rattle a Toronto team that topped MLB with 49 come-from-behind victories this year.

They answered right away in the third inning. Lukes lined a one-out base hit 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 series and his 7th home run this postseason – a fresh club mark – regaining the Toronto's advantage after 13 scoreless innings and changing the tone of the game.

Ohtani's Performance

That hit also halted Ohtani's history-making run of 11 consecutive plate appearances reaching base. The two-way phenomenon had smashed two home runs and got on base a historic nine times in the Los Angeles' third game comeback win. But on Tuesday, he took the mound on limited rest – his shortest ever – after requiring an IV to recuperate from the previous marathon.

Ohtani pitch speed was under his regular-season average and he labored more as the contest progressed. Even so, he showed flashes of his typical control, setting down 11 of 12 after Guerrero's blast and striking out six. He even drew a walk in the first inning to continue his World Series record. But the Blue Jays forced him to labor: six hits and four earned runs were charged to him in six-plus frames.

Seventh Inning Rally

The bigger problem for the Dodgers was what followed when he finally lost energy.

Varsho opened the seventh inning with a sharp single to right field, and Ernie Clement drilled a double off the wall to put runners on with no outs. Dave Roberts had no option but to pull the starter, who exited to a roaring applause from the home crowd. The Dodgers' relief corps could not complete the escape.

Banda inherited the jam and immediately fell behind. Andrés Giménez fought to a 3-2 count before scoring the runner with a single to left. France came up next with a groundout to make it 4-1, and that was enough to remove Banda out of the contest. Treinen came in next but also was unable to stop the rally: Bichette and Addison Barger punched run-scoring singles through the diamond, completing a four-run outburst that extended the lead to 6-1.

Blue Jays's Toughness

The Blue Jays's ability to withstand initial setbacks and answer has defined their whole run. They once again did it without George Springer, the injured leadoff hitter who exited the third game after tweaking his oblique.

Bieber, in contrast, was everything Toronto required. Acquired during the summer while completing rehab from elbow surgery, the former award-winning winner stranded several runners and silenced the Dodgers' dangerous batting order. He allowed one earned run on four base hits and three free passes before the manager summoned rookie pitcher Fluharty to confront the core of the lineup in the sixth inning. Fluharty required just 4 throws to get out Muncy and Tommy Edman, preserving a fragile lead that soon grew comfortable.

Converted starter Bassitt then pitched a clean seventh and eighth as the Los Angeles' bats kept to struggle. The Dodgers have produced only three runs over their last 20 innings, an sudden slowdown for a club that ranked among MLB's elite offenses all season.

Final Innings

The Los Angeles managed a score in the ninth inning when Tommy Edman hit into an out to bring home Teoscar Hernández after a walk and Max Muncy's double put two aboard. But Varland finished the game without allowing a rally to build.

After a night when Toronto stranded a Fall Classic-record 19 runners and fell apart after repeated of missed chances, the fourth contest was ruthlessly efficient. Six separate Toronto players collected base hits, 5 brought home scores and the squad cashed almost every scoring opportunity available in the late stanzas.

Next Up

The win guarantees the World Series title will be presented at Rogers Centre, where the Toronto have not celebrated a title since Carter's famous walk-off homer in 1993. They now are aware they are guaranteed a packed house in Toronto on Friday night – and possibly Saturday – no matter what occurs next in Los Angeles.

The fifth game approaches with the series even and momentum swinging north. Dodgers left-hander Snell (3-1, 2.42 ERA) will try to arrest the Toronto's surge. Toronto respond with first-year player Trey Yesavage (2-1, 4.26 ERA) in a rematch of the opener, when the Blue Jays chased the starter early in an 11-4 win.