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

Guerrero crushed a two-run homer and Shane Bieber delivered a steady outing as the Blue Jays beat the Dodgers 6-2 in the fourth game on Tuesday night at their home ballpark, squaring the Fall Classic at two wins apiece and ensuring the series will head back to Canada.

The Blue Jays had spent the early hours of Tuesday dealing with their marathon Game 3 loss – equal to the longest Fall Classic contest ever – a loss that cost them the chance to take the lead in the series and burned through both relief corps. Manager John Schneider stated later that “they took a game, not the World Series”. A day later, his team offered convincing proof.

Initial Innings

The Los Angeles again scored first. Max Muncy walked in the second inning, advanced on a base hit and crossed the plate on Hernández's sacrifice fly. But the early score did not rattle a Blue Jays club that topped Major League Baseball with 49 come-from-behind wins this year.

They responded immediately in the third inning. Nathan Lukes lined a one-out base hit to centre and Vladimir Guerrero Jr came to the plate looking for a curveball. Ohtani threw a sweeper up and he sent it soaring over the left-center wall. It was his initial long hit of the World Series and his 7th homer this postseason – a new club record – restoring the Toronto's advantage after 13 shutout frames and shifting the tone of the game.

Ohtani's Night

That swing also ended Shohei Ohtani's history-making streak of 11 consecutive plate appearances reaching base. The two-way phenomenon had smashed two homers and got on base a historic nine times in the Dodgers' Game 3 comeback win. But on that night, he took the mound on short rest – his shortest ever – after requiring an IV to recover from the prior extra-inning game.

Ohtani fastball velocity sat below his regular-season average and he struggled more as the game wore on. Nonetheless, he showed glimpses of his typical control, setting down 11 of 12 after Guerrero's blast and striking out six. He even walked in the first to extend his World Series streak. But the Blue Jays made him work: six base hits and four runs were charged to him in six-plus frames.

Seventh Inning Surge

The larger problem for Los Angeles was what followed when he eventually lost energy.

Varsho opened the seventh inning with a clean hit to right, and Ernie Clement smashed a two-base hit off the fence to put runners on with none out. Roberts had little choice but to remove the starter, who exited to a standing ovation from the local fans. The Dodgers' relief corps could not finish the escape.

Anthony Banda inherited the jam and right away trailed in the count. Giménez fought to a 3-2 count before driving in Varsho with a base hit to left. France followed with a groundout to make it 4-1, and that was enough to remove the pitcher out of the game. Blake Treinen entered next but also was unable to stem the momentum: Bichette and Barger hit RBI base hits through the diamond, completing a four-score outburst that extended the margin to 6-1.

Blue Jays's Toughness

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

Shane Bieber, meanwhile, was exactly what Toronto required. Traded for during the summer while finishing recovery from Tommy John surgery, the ex- Cy Young winner stranded several runners and quieted the Los Angeles' dangerous lineup. He gave up one run on four base hits and three walks before the manager summoned first-year left-hander Fluharty to confront the heart of the lineup in the sixth. Fluharty needed just 4 pitches to get out Muncy and Tommy Edman, protecting a fragile advantage that soon grew comfortable.

Converted starter Bassitt then pitched a scoreless seventh and eighth as the Dodgers' offense kept to struggle. Los Angeles have produced only three runs over their last 20 frames, an abrupt slowdown for a club that was among MLB's top offenses all season.

Final Innings

The Dodgers managed a run in the ninth inning when Edman grounded out to bring home Teoscar Hernández after a walk and Muncy's two-base hit put two on base. But Varland finished the game without permitting a rally to build.

After a night when the Blue Jays left a Fall Classic-record 19 baserunners and fell apart after wave upon wave of missed opportunities, Game 4 was brutally efficient. 6 separate Blue Jays collected hits, five brought home scores and the squad converted nearly every scoring chance presented in the final innings.

Next Up

The win ensures the World Series trophy will be awarded at Rogers Centre, where the Blue Jays have not celebrated a championship since Carter's famous walk-off home run in '93. They now are aware they are assured a packed crowd in Toronto on Friday night – and perhaps Saturday – no matter what occurs next in LA.

The fifth game looms with the matchup reset and energy shifting to Toronto. Los Angeles pitcher Blake Snell (3-1, 2.42 ERA) will attempt to arrest the Toronto's momentum. Toronto respond with rookie Trey Yesavage (2-1, 4.26 ERA) in a repeat of the opener, when the Toronto knocked out Snell early in an decisive victory.