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Less than a day following enduring one of the most exhausting defeats in World Series history, the Toronto Blue Jays displayed complete command.

Vladimir Guerrero Jr crushed a two-run homer and Bieber provided a steady outing as Toronto beat the Dodgers 6-2 in the fourth game on Tuesday night at Dodger Stadium, tying the Fall Classic at two wins apiece and guaranteeing the series will head back to Canada.

Toronto had passed the morning of the next day processing their 18-inning third game defeat – tied for the longest World Series contest ever – a loss that denied them the chance to lead the series and depleted both bullpens. Skipper Schneider insisted afterwards that “they took a game, not the championship”. Twenty-three hours later, his team offered convincing evidence.

Early Innings

The Dodgers again struck first. Muncy walked in the second inning, advanced on a single and scored on Hernández's fly out. But the initial breakthrough did not rattle a Blue Jays club that topped Major League Baseball with 49 comeback wins this year.

They responded immediately in the third inning. Nathan Lukes lined a one away base hit to centre and Vladimir Guerrero Jr stepped in looking for a curveball. Shohei Ohtani left a sweeper up and Guerrero sent it soaring over the left-center wall. It was his initial extra-base hit of the World Series and his 7th homer this postseason – a fresh club mark – regaining the Toronto's lead after 13 scoreless innings and changing the tone of the night.

Ohtani's Night

That hit also ended Ohtani's record-setting run of 11 consecutive at-bats reaching base. The two-way phenomenon had hit two homers and reached safely a historic nine times in the Dodgers' third game walk-off. But on Tuesday, he started on limited rest – his shortest ever – after needing an IV to recover from the prior marathon.

Ohtani fastball velocity was under his seasonal average and he struggled more as the contest progressed. Nonetheless, he displayed flashes of his usual command, retiring 11 of 12 after Guerrero's homer and striking out six. He even walked in the first to continue his World Series record. But the Blue Jays made him work: six base hits and four runs were credited to him in over six frames.

Late Game Rally

The larger issue for the Dodgers was what followed when Ohtani eventually lost energy.

Daulton Varsho opened the seventh with a clean hit to right, and Clement smashed a double off the wall to put two on with none out. Dave Roberts had little choice but to pull the starter, who exited to a roaring applause from the local fans. The Los Angeles' relief corps could not finish the inning.

Anthony Banda came into the mess and immediately trailed in the count. Giménez fought to a full count before scoring Varsho with a base hit to left field. France followed with a groundout to make it 4-1, and that was enough to knock Banda out of the game. Treinen came in next but also failed to stem the momentum: Bo Bichette and Barger hit run-scoring singles through the infield, capping a four-score barrage that pushed the margin to 6-1.

Toronto's Resilience

The Blue Jays's capacity to withstand initial blows and answer has defined their whole run. They once again succeeded without George Springer, the injured top-of-the-order man who left the third game after straining his oblique.

Shane Bieber, meanwhile, was exactly what Toronto needed. Traded for during the summer while finishing recovery from elbow surgery, the ex- Cy Young winner stranded multiple runners and quieted the Dodgers' potent lineup. He gave up one earned run on four base hits and three free passes before Schneider called on first-year pitcher Fluharty to confront the core of the order in the sixth inning. He needed just four throws to get out Muncy and Edman, protecting a narrow lead that soon grew safe.

Converted starter Bassitt then worked a clean seventh and eighth as the Los Angeles' offense continued to sputter. Los Angeles have scored only 3 runs over their previous 20 innings, an abrupt downturn for a club that ranked among MLB's elite offenses all season.

Final Innings

The Dodgers scraped a score in the ninth when Edman hit into an out to bring home Teoscar Hernández after a base on balls and Muncy's double put two aboard. But Louis Varland finished the game without allowing a rally to build.

Following a game when Toronto stranded a Fall Classic-record 19 runners and collapsed after wave upon wave of wasted opportunities, the fourth contest was brutally effective. 6 separate Toronto players recorded base hits, 5 brought home runs and the squad cashed almost every run-scoring opportunity presented in the late innings.

Next Up

The win ensures the championship title will be awarded at Rogers Centre, where the Toronto have not celebrated a championship since Joe Carter's iconic game-winning home run in '93. They now are aware they are guaranteed a packed house in Canada on Friday evening – and possibly the next day – no matter what occurs next in LA.

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