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Only 24 hours after staggering through one of the most draining losses in World Series history, the Blue Jays displayed complete command.

Guerrero crushed a two-run home run and Shane Bieber provided a steady outing as Toronto beat the Dodgers 6-2 in the fourth game on Tuesday night at Dodger Stadium, squaring the World Series at two games each and ensuring the matchup will return to Canada.

The Blue Jays had passed the morning of Tuesday dealing with their marathon third game defeat – tied for the longest Fall Classic game ever – a loss that denied them the opportunity to take the lead in the matchup and burned through both relief corps. Manager Schneider stated later that “they won a game, not the World Series”. A day later, his team offered emphatic proof.

Initial Innings

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

They responded right away in the third inning. Lukes hit a one-out base hit to centre and Vladimir Guerrero Jr stepped in looking for a curveball. Shohei Ohtani left a sweeper up and Guerrero drove it soaring over the left-center wall. It was his initial extra-base hit of the series and his seventh homer this postseason – a new club mark – restoring the Toronto's advantage after 13 scoreless frames and shifting the momentum of the game.

Ohtani's Night

That hit also halted Shohei Ohtani's record-setting streak of 11 consecutive at-bats getting on base. The two-way star had hit two home runs and got on base 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 recuperate from the previous extra-inning game.

Ohtani pitch speed sat under his seasonal average and he struggled more as the game progressed. Even so, he displayed flashes of his usual control, retiring 11 of 12 after Guerrero's homer and striking out six. He even drew a walk in the first inning 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 issue for Los Angeles was what followed when Ohtani eventually ran out of steam.

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 no option but to remove Ohtani, who departed to a roaring applause from the home crowd. The Dodgers' bullpen could not complete the inning.

Anthony Banda inherited the mess and immediately trailed in the count. Andrés Giménez fought to a full count before scoring Varsho with a base hit to left. France followed with a fielder's choice to make it 4-1, and that was sufficient to remove the pitcher out of the contest. Treinen entered next but also was unable to stop the momentum: Bichette and Barger punched run-scoring base hits through the diamond, capping a four-run outburst that extended the margin to 6-1.

Toronto's Toughness

The Toronto's capacity to absorb initial blows and answer has defined their whole postseason. They once again did it without Springer, the hurt top-of-the-order man who exited Game 3 after tweaking his right side.

Shane Bieber, in contrast, was exactly what Toronto required. Acquired mid-season while completing rehab from Tommy John surgery, the former award-winning winner left several baserunners and silenced the Los Angeles' potent lineup. He gave up one run on four base hits and three free passes before the manager called on rookie pitcher Fluharty to confront the core of the lineup in the sixth. Fluharty required just 4 pitches to retire Muncy and Tommy Edman, protecting a narrow lead that soon grew comfortable.

Converted starting pitcher Bassitt then pitched a clean seventh and eighth innings as the Dodgers' offense continued to struggle. Los Angeles have produced only three scores over their last 20 frames, an abrupt downturn for a team that was among baseball's elite offenses all season.

Closing Innings

The Los Angeles scraped a score in the ninth when Tommy Edman grounded out to bring home Teoscar Hernández after a base on balls and Muncy's double put runners aboard. But Louis Varland closed it down without permitting a comeback to develop.

After a game when Toronto stranded a World Series-record 19 baserunners and collapsed after wave upon wave of wasted opportunities, the fourth contest was ruthlessly efficient. Six separate Blue Jays collected base hits, five brought home scores and the team cashed almost every run-scoring chance presented in the final stanzas.

Looking Ahead

The win guarantees the World Series title will be awarded at Rogers Centre, where the Toronto have not celebrated a title since Joe Carter's iconic game-winning homer in '93. They now know they are guaranteed a full crowd in Toronto on Friday night – and perhaps the next day – no matter what occurs next in LA.

The fifth game looms with the matchup reset and momentum shifting north. Los Angeles left-hander Blake Snell (3-1, 2.42 ERA) will try to arrest the Blue Jays's momentum. The Blue Jays counter with rookie Trey Yesavage (2-1, 4.26 ERA) in a rematch of the opener, when the Toronto chased Snell early in an 11-4 win.