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Less than a day following staggering through one of the most exhausting losses in World Series history, the Blue Jays played with total control.

Guerrero smashed a two-run home run and Shane Bieber provided a composed start as Toronto defeated the Dodgers 6-2 in Game 4 on Tuesday evening at Dodger Stadium, squaring the World Series at two wins apiece and guaranteeing the series will return to Toronto.

Toronto had spent the early hours of the next day processing their marathon Game 3 loss – tied for the lengthiest World Series contest ever – a defeat that denied them the opportunity to lead the matchup and depleted both bullpens. Skipper Schneider insisted later that “they took a contest, not the championship”. A day later, his squad provided convincing proof.

Initial Innings

The Dodgers again struck first. Max Muncy walked in the second, advanced on a single and crossed the plate on Kiké Hernández's sacrifice fly. But the initial breakthrough did not shake a Blue Jays club that topped Major League Baseball with 49 come-from-behind victories this year.

They answered right away in the third inning. Lukes hit a one-out single to center field and Vladimir Guerrero Jr stepped in hunting a breaking ball. Ohtani threw a sweeper up and he sent it screaming over the left-center wall. It was his first long hit of the World Series and his seventh homer this playoffs – a new club mark – restoring the Blue Jays's advantage after 13 shutout frames and shifting the tone of the night.

Ohtani's Night

That swing also halted Shohei Ohtani's record-setting run of 11 consecutive at-bats getting on base. The two-way phenomenon had hit two home runs and reached safely a record nine times in the Dodgers' third game walk-off. But on Tuesday, he started on limited rest – his briefest ever – after requiring an IV to recover from the prior marathon.

Ohtani fastball velocity was below his regular-season norm and he struggled more as the contest wore on. Even so, he showed glimpses of his typical control, retiring 11 of 12 after Guerrero's blast and striking out six. He even walked in the first to continue his Fall Classic streak. But the Blue Jays made him work: six hits and four runs were charged to him in six-plus innings.

Late Game Rally

The bigger issue for Los Angeles was what followed when Ohtani eventually ran out of energy.

Daulton Varsho opened the seventh inning with a sharp hit to right, and Clement smashed a double off the wall to put runners on with no outs. Roberts had little choice but to remove Ohtani, who departed to a roaring applause from the home crowd. The Los Angeles' relief corps could not finish the inning.

Banda came into the jam and right away fell behind. Giménez fought to a 3-2 count before driving in Varsho with a single to left. France came up next with a groundout to make it 4-1, and that was sufficient to knock the pitcher out of the contest. Blake Treinen came in next but also was unable to stop the rally: Bichette and Barger punched run-scoring singles through the diamond, completing a four-score barrage that extended the lead to 6-1.

Blue Jays's Toughness

The Toronto's ability to withstand early setbacks and answer has characterized their whole run. They once again did it without George Springer, the injured top-of-the-order man who exited Game 3 after straining his right side.

Bieber, in contrast, was everything the Blue Jays required. Acquired mid-season while finishing recovery from Tommy John surgery, the ex- award-winning winner left multiple baserunners and silenced the Los Angeles' potent batting order. He gave up one earned run on four base hits and three walks before Schneider summoned first-year pitcher Fluharty to face the heart of the order in the sixth. He needed just 4 throws to get out Max Muncy and Edman, protecting a fragile lead that soon became comfortable.

Converted starter Chris Bassitt then worked a scoreless seventh and eighth as the Dodgers' bats continued to struggle. Los Angeles have scored only 3 scores over their last 20 innings, an sudden slowdown for a club that ranked among MLB's elite lineups all season.

Final Moments

The Los Angeles scraped a score in the ninth inning when Tommy Edman hit into an out to score Hernández after a walk and Max Muncy's double put runners aboard. But Louis Varland closed it down without permitting a rally to build.

After a game when Toronto stranded a Fall Classic-record 19 runners and collapsed after wave upon wave of missed opportunities, the fourth contest was ruthlessly efficient. Six different Toronto players recorded hits, 5 drove in scores and the squad converted almost every run-scoring chance available in the late stanzas.

Looking Ahead

The victory ensures the championship trophy will be awarded at Rogers Centre, where the Blue Jays have not celebrated a championship since Joe Carter's famous walk-off homer in 1993. They now know they are assured a packed crowd in Toronto on Friday night – and perhaps Saturday – no matter what happens next in LA.

Game 5 approaches with the matchup reset and energy swinging to Toronto. Dodgers pitcher Snell (3-1, 2.42 ERA) will try to arrest the Blue Jays's momentum. Toronto respond with rookie Yesavage (2-1, 4.26 ERA) in a rematch of Game 1, when the Toronto knocked out Snell early in an 11-4 win.