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Only 24 hours after staggering through one of the most exhausting losses in Fall Classic history, the Toronto Blue Jays displayed complete control.

Guerrero smashed a two-run homer and Shane Bieber delivered a steady start as the Blue Jays defeated the Dodgers 6-2 in Game 4 on Tuesday night at their home ballpark, squaring the World Series at two wins apiece and guaranteeing the series will return to Canada.

The Blue Jays had spent the morning of Tuesday dealing with their 18-inning third game defeat – equal to the longest Fall Classic contest ever – a loss that cost them the chance to lead the series and depleted both bullpens. Skipper John Schneider insisted afterwards that “the Dodgers won a game, not the championship”. A day later, his team offered emphatic proof.

Early Action

The Los Angeles again struck first. Max Muncy drew a walk in the second, moved up on a base hit and crossed the plate on Kiké Hernández's fly out. But the initial breakthrough did not shake a Blue Jays club that topped MLB with 49 come-from-behind victories this season.

They responded immediately in the third inning. Nathan Lukes hit a one-out single to centre and Guerrero stepped in looking for a curveball. Shohei Ohtani left a sweeper up and Guerrero drove it soaring over the outfield fence. It was his first extra-base hit of the World Series and his seventh home run this playoffs – a fresh club mark – regaining the Toronto's lead after 13 scoreless frames and shifting the tone of the game.

Shohei's Night

That hit also halted Shohei Ohtani's history-making run of 11 straight plate appearances reaching base. The two-way phenomenon had smashed two homers and got on base a historic nine times in the Dodgers' third game walk-off. But on that night, he took the mound on limited rest – his shortest ever – after needing an IV to recuperate from the previous extra-inning game.

His fastball velocity sat under his seasonal average and he struggled more as the contest progressed. Nonetheless, he displayed glimpses of his usual command, retiring 11 of 12 after Guerrero Jr's blast and striking out six. He even drew a walk in the first to extend his Fall Classic record. But the Blue Jays forced him to labor: six hits and four runs were credited to him in over six innings.

Seventh Inning Rally

The larger problem for the Dodgers was what followed when he eventually lost energy.

Daulton Varsho started the seventh with a sharp hit to right field, and Ernie Clement drilled a double off the wall to put runners on with none out. Dave Roberts had little choice but to remove Ohtani, who departed to a roaring applause from the local fans. The Los Angeles' bullpen could not finish the escape.

Banda came into the mess and right away fell behind. Andrés Giménez fought to a 3-2 count before driving in Varsho with a base hit to left. Ty France came up next with a groundout to make it 4-1, and that was enough to knock the pitcher out of the game. Blake Treinen came in next but also failed to stem 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.

Toronto's Resilience

The Toronto's ability to absorb early blows and respond has characterized their entire run. They once again succeeded without George Springer, the injured leadoff man who left the third game after straining his oblique.

Shane Bieber, in contrast, was exactly what the Blue Jays required. Traded for during the summer while completing rehab from elbow surgery, the ex- Cy Young winner stranded multiple runners and quieted the Dodgers' dangerous lineup. He gave up one run on four hits and three free passes before the manager summoned rookie left-hander Mason Fluharty to confront the core of the order in the sixth. He required just four throws to retire Max Muncy and Tommy Edman, protecting a narrow advantage that quickly became safe.

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

Final Innings

The Dodgers scraped a run in the ninth inning when Edman grounded out to score Teoscar Hernández after a base on balls and Max Muncy's double put runners aboard. But Louis Varland finished the game without allowing a comeback to build.

After a game when Toronto stranded a World Series-record 19 baserunners and collapsed after repeated of missed chances, Game 4 was brutally effective. 6 separate Toronto players collected hits, five brought home scores and the squad cashed almost every run-scoring chance available in the final stanzas.

Next Up

The victory guarantees the World Series title will be presented 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 guaranteed a full crowd in Toronto on Friday night – and perhaps Saturday – no matter what happens next in LA.

The fifth game looms with the series reset and momentum swinging to Toronto. Dodgers pitcher Snell (3-1, 2.42 ERA) will attempt to halt the Blue Jays's momentum. The Blue Jays respond with first-year player Yesavage (2-1, 4.26 ERA) in a repeat of the opener, when the Toronto knocked out the starter early in an 11-4 victory.