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Only 24 hours following staggering through one of the most exhausting losses in Fall Classic annals, the Toronto Blue Jays played with total command.

Vladimir Guerrero Jr crushed a two-run homer and Bieber delivered a steady start as Toronto beat the Los Angeles Dodgers 6-2 in Game 4 on Tuesday night at Dodger Stadium, squaring the Fall Classic at two wins apiece and guaranteeing the series will head back to Toronto.

The Blue Jays had spent the early hours of the next day dealing with their 18-inning third game defeat – tied for the lengthiest World Series game ever – a defeat that cost them the opportunity to take the lead in the matchup and depleted both bullpens. Skipper John Schneider insisted afterwards that “they won a contest, not the championship”. A day later, his squad offered emphatic proof.

Early Innings

The Dodgers again scored first. Muncy walked in the second, moved up on a single and crossed the plate on Hernández's fly out. But the early score did not rattle a Toronto team that led MLB with 49 comeback wins this season.

They answered immediately in the third. Nathan Lukes hit a one-out single to center field and Vladimir Guerrero Jr came to the plate looking for a breaking ball. Ohtani threw a slider up and Guerrero drove it soaring over the left-center wall. It was his first extra-base hit of the series and his 7th homer this playoffs – a fresh club mark – restoring the Toronto's lead after 13 shutout innings and changing the momentum of the night.

Ohtani's Performance

That hit also ended Shohei Ohtani's history-making run of 11 consecutive at-bats reaching base. The two-way phenomenon had hit two home runs and got on base a record nine times in the Los Angeles' Game 3 walk-off. But on that night, he took the mound on short rest – his shortest ever – after requiring an IV to recover from the previous marathon.

His fastball velocity was below his seasonal average and he struggled more as the contest progressed. Nonetheless, he displayed flashes of his typical control, setting down 11 of 12 after Guerrero's homer and fanning six. He even drew a walk in the first inning to continue his Fall Classic record. But the Blue Jays forced him to labor: six base hits and four earned runs were credited to him in over six innings.

Seventh Inning Surge

The larger issue for Los Angeles was what followed when Ohtani finally lost steam.

Daulton Varsho opened the seventh inning with a clean hit to right field, and Ernie Clement drilled a two-base hit off the wall to put two on with none out. Roberts had no option but to remove the starter, who exited to a standing ovation from the local fans. The Dodgers' relief corps could not complete the escape.

Banda came into the jam and immediately fell behind. Giménez fought to a full count before driving in the runner with a single to left. France followed with a fielder's choice to make it 4-1, and that was enough to knock the pitcher out of the game. Blake Treinen entered next but also was unable to stem the rally: Bo Bichette and Barger hit RBI singles through the diamond, completing a four-run outburst that pushed the lead to 6-1.

Toronto's Toughness

The Blue Jays's capacity to withstand early setbacks and answer has defined their entire run. They once again did it without George Springer, the hurt top-of-the-order man who exited Game 3 after straining his right side.

Bieber, in contrast, was everything Toronto required. Traded for mid-season while completing recovery from elbow surgery, the former Cy Young winner left multiple runners and silenced the Los Angeles' dangerous batting order. He allowed one run on four base hits and three walks before the manager summoned first-year pitcher Fluharty to face the core of the order in the sixth inning. He required just four throws to get out Max Muncy and Edman, protecting a narrow advantage that soon grew comfortable.

Former starter Bassitt then pitched a scoreless seventh and eighth innings as the Dodgers' offense kept to struggle. The Dodgers have produced only 3 runs over their last 20 innings, an sudden slowdown for a team that was among baseball's top lineups all season.

Final Innings

The Los Angeles scraped a run in the ninth inning when Edman grounded out to score Hernández after a walk and Muncy's double put runners on base. But Varland closed it down without permitting a rally to develop.

After a game when Toronto left a World Series-record 19 runners and fell apart after repeated of wasted opportunities, Game 4 was ruthlessly effective. Six different Blue Jays recorded hits, 5 brought home runs and the team converted almost every run-scoring chance available in the late innings.

Next Up

The win ensures the championship trophy will be awarded at their home stadium, where the Toronto have not celebrated a championship since Joe Carter's iconic game-winning home run in 1993. They now are aware they are guaranteed a packed crowd in Toronto on Friday night – and perhaps the next day – no matter what happens next in Los Angeles.

Game 5 looms with the matchup even and momentum swinging to Toronto. Dodgers pitcher Blake Snell (3-1, 2.42 ERA) will try to arrest the Toronto's surge. Toronto counter with rookie Yesavage (2-1, 4.26 ERA) in a repeat of the opener, when the Toronto knocked out Snell early in an 11-4 victory.