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Less than a day following staggering through one of the most exhausting defeats in World Series annals, the Blue Jays played with complete command.

Vladimir Guerrero Jr smashed a two-run home run and Bieber delivered a steady start as Toronto beat the Los Angeles Dodgers 6-2 in the fourth game on Tuesday night at Dodger Stadium, tying the Fall Classic at two wins apiece and guaranteeing the matchup will head back to Toronto.

The Blue Jays had spent the morning of Tuesday dealing with their marathon Game 3 loss – tied for the lengthiest Fall Classic contest ever – a loss that cost them the opportunity to take the lead in the series and burned through both bullpens. Manager John Schneider stated later that “the Dodgers won a contest, not the championship”. A day later, his squad offered emphatic proof.

Initial Innings

The Dodgers again scored first. Muncy walked in the second inning, advanced on a base hit and crossed the plate on Hernández's fly out. But the initial breakthrough did not rattle a Blue Jays team that topped MLB with 49 comeback victories this season.

They answered right away in the third inning. Lukes hit a one away base hit to centre and Vladimir Guerrero Jr came to the plate looking for a breaking ball. Shohei Ohtani left a slider up and he drove it screaming over the outfield fence. It was his first long hit of the World Series and his seventh home run this playoffs – a new club mark – restoring the Blue Jays's lead after 13 shutout innings and shifting the momentum of the game.

Shohei's Performance

That hit also ended Shohei Ohtani's history-making run of 11 consecutive plate appearances getting on base. The two-way star had hit two home runs and reached safely a historic nine times in the Los Angeles' third game comeback win. But on that night, he started on limited rest – his shortest ever – after needing an IV to recover from the previous extra-inning game.

His fastball velocity was below his regular-season norm and he struggled more as the contest wore on. Nonetheless, he displayed flashes of his usual command, setting down 11 of 12 after Guerrero Jr's homer and fanning six. He even walked in the first to continue his World Series record. But the Blue Jays made him work: six hits and four runs were charged to him in six-plus frames.

Late Game Rally

The bigger issue for the Dodgers was what came next when he finally ran out of steam.

Daulton Varsho started the seventh inning with a sharp single to right field, and Clement drilled a two-base hit off the wall to put runners on with no outs. Dave Roberts had no option but to remove the starter, who departed to a roaring applause from the home crowd. The Dodgers' relief corps could not complete the escape.

Banda came into the jam and immediately trailed in the count. Andrés Giménez battled to a full count before scoring the runner with a single to left. France followed with a fielder's choice to make it 4-1, and that was sufficient to remove Banda out of the contest. Blake Treinen entered next but also was unable to stop the rally: Bichette and Addison Barger punched RBI base hits through the diamond, capping a four-run barrage that pushed the margin to 6-1.

Blue Jays's Resilience

The Blue Jays's capacity to withstand early blows and respond has defined their entire postseason. They once again did it without Springer, the hurt leadoff hitter who left the third game after straining his oblique.

Bieber, in contrast, was exactly what the Blue Jays needed. Acquired mid-season while finishing rehab from elbow surgery, the former Cy Young winner left several runners and quieted the Dodgers' potent batting order. He gave up one run on four base hits and three free passes before Schneider summoned rookie left-hander Fluharty to face the heart of the order in the sixth. He required just 4 pitches to retire Muncy and Tommy Edman, protecting a fragile lead that soon grew safe.

Former starter Chris Bassitt then pitched a scoreless seventh and eighth innings as the Los Angeles' bats kept to sputter. Los Angeles have scored only three scores over their last 20 frames, an sudden slowdown for a club that ranked among MLB's top lineups all season.

Closing Moments

The Los Angeles managed a run in the ninth inning when Tommy Edman hit into an out to bring home Teoscar Hernández after a base on balls and Max Muncy's two-base hit put two aboard. But Louis Varland finished the game without allowing a comeback to develop.

Following a night when Toronto left a Fall Classic-record 19 baserunners and collapsed after wave upon wave of wasted opportunities, Game 4 was ruthlessly efficient. Six different Toronto players collected hits, five drove in scores and the team cashed almost every scoring chance available in the final innings.

Next Up

The victory guarantees the championship title will be awarded at Rogers Centre, where the Toronto have not celebrated a title since Carter's iconic walk-off home run in 1993. They now are aware they are guaranteed a full house in Toronto on Friday evening – and possibly Saturday – no matter what occurs next in Los Angeles.

Game 5 approaches with the series reset and energy swinging north. Dodgers pitcher Snell (3-1, 2.42 ERA) will try to halt the Toronto's momentum. The Blue Jays respond with first-year player Trey Yesavage (2-1, 4.26 ERA) in a rematch of Game 1, when the Toronto knocked out Snell quickly in an decisive victory.