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Only 24 hours following staggering through one of the most draining defeats in World Series annals, the Toronto Blue Jays played with complete control.

Guerrero crushed a two-run homer and Bieber provided a steady outing as the Blue Jays defeated the Los Angeles Dodgers 6-2 in Game 4 on Tuesday night at Dodger Stadium, tying the World Series at two games each and ensuring the matchup will head back to Canada.

Toronto had spent the early hours of the next day dealing with their marathon Game 3 loss – equal to the lengthiest World Series game ever – a loss that denied them the chance to lead the series and depleted both relief corps. Skipper Schneider insisted later that “they won a game, not the championship”. A day later, his squad provided convincing proof.

Initial Action

The Los Angeles again scored first. Muncy walked in the second, moved up on a base hit and scored on Kiké Hernández's sacrifice fly. But the initial score did not shake a Blue Jays club that led Major League Baseball with 49 comeback victories this year.

They answered right away in the third. Nathan Lukes lined a one-out base hit to center field and Vladimir Guerrero Jr stepped in hunting a curveball. Ohtani threw a slider up and he sent it screaming over the outfield fence. It was his initial extra-base hit of the World Series and his seventh homer this playoffs – a fresh club record – regaining the Blue Jays's advantage after 13 scoreless innings and shifting the tone of the night.

Ohtani's Night

That swing also halted Ohtani's record-setting streak of 11 consecutive plate appearances getting on base. The dual-threat 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 short rest – his briefest ever – after requiring an IV to recover from the previous extra-inning game.

Ohtani fastball velocity was below his seasonal average and he struggled more as the contest wore on. Even so, he showed flashes of his typical command, retiring 11 of 12 after Guerrero Jr's homer and striking out six. He even walked in the first inning to continue his World Series streak. But the Blue Jays made him work: six base hits and four earned runs were credited to him in six-plus frames.

Seventh Inning Rally

The bigger problem for the Dodgers was what came next when Ohtani eventually ran out of steam.

Varsho started the seventh inning with a sharp single to right field, and Clement drilled a double off the wall to put runners on with no outs. Dave Roberts had little choice but to remove the starter, who departed to a roaring applause from the local fans. The Dodgers' relief corps could not complete the escape.

Banda inherited the jam and immediately fell behind. Andrés Giménez battled to a 3-2 count before scoring the runner with a single to left field. Ty France followed with a fielder's choice to make it 4-1, and that was enough to remove the pitcher out of the game. Treinen came in next but also failed to stem the rally: Bo Bichette and Barger hit RBI singles through the diamond, completing a four-run barrage that extended the lead to 6-1.

Blue Jays's Toughness

The Blue Jays's capacity to absorb initial setbacks and respond has characterized their whole postseason. They once again did it without Springer, the injured top-of-the-order man who exited Game 3 after tweaking his right side.

Shane Bieber, in contrast, was everything the Blue Jays needed. Acquired during the summer while completing recovery from elbow surgery, the ex- award-winning winner stranded multiple runners and quieted the Los Angeles' dangerous lineup. He gave up one run on four hits and three free passes before Schneider called on rookie left-hander Mason Fluharty to confront the heart of the order in the sixth. Fluharty needed just four throws to get out Max Muncy and Tommy Edman, preserving a fragile advantage that quickly became comfortable.

Former starter Bassitt then pitched a scoreless seventh and eighth innings as the Los Angeles' bats kept to struggle. The Dodgers have produced only 3 scores over their last 20 innings, an sudden slowdown for a team that ranked among baseball's elite offenses all season.

Closing Innings

The Dodgers managed a run in the ninth when Edman hit into an out to score Hernández after a base on balls and Muncy's double put two on base. But Varland finished the game without permitting a comeback to develop.

Following a night when the Blue Jays left a Fall Classic-record 19 runners and collapsed after wave upon wave of missed chances, the fourth contest was brutally efficient. Six separate Toronto players collected hits, 5 brought home runs and the team converted nearly every run-scoring chance presented in the late innings.

Looking Ahead

The win ensures the World Series trophy will be presented at their home stadium, where the Toronto have not celebrated a title since Joe Carter's iconic walk-off home run in 1993. They now know they are guaranteed a full crowd in Canada on Friday evening – and perhaps the next day – no matter what occurs next in Los Angeles.

The fifth game looms with the matchup even and energy swinging north. Dodgers pitcher Snell (3-1, 2.42 ERA) will try to arrest the Toronto's surge. The Blue Jays counter with first-year player Yesavage (2-1, 4.26 ERA) in a repeat of the opener, when the Toronto chased Snell quickly in an 11-4 win.