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Less than a day following enduring one of the most draining defeats in Fall Classic history, the Toronto Blue Jays displayed total command.

Vladimir Guerrero Jr smashed a two-run home run and Shane Bieber delivered a steady outing as Toronto beat the Los Angeles Dodgers 6-2 in the fourth game on Tuesday evening at Dodger Stadium, tying the World Series at two wins apiece and ensuring the matchup will return to Toronto.

Toronto had passed the early hours of the next day dealing with their marathon third game defeat – equal to the longest Fall Classic contest ever – a defeat that denied them the opportunity to take the lead in the series and burned through both relief corps. Manager John Schneider insisted later that “they took a contest, not the championship”. Twenty-three hours later, his squad offered emphatic evidence.

Initial Innings

The Los Angeles again struck first. Muncy walked in the second, advanced on a base hit and crossed the plate on Kiké Hernández's fly out. But the early breakthrough did not shake a Toronto club that topped MLB with 49 come-from-behind wins this year.

They answered right away in the third inning. Nathan Lukes lined a one away single to centre and Guerrero stepped in looking for a breaking ball. Ohtani threw a slider up and he drove it screaming over the outfield fence. It was his first extra-base hit of the series and his seventh homer this postseason – a new club record – regaining the Toronto's lead after 13 scoreless innings and shifting the momentum of the game.

Ohtani's Night

That swing also ended Shohei Ohtani's history-making run of 11 consecutive at-bats getting on base. The dual-threat phenomenon had hit two home runs and got on base a record nine times in the Los Angeles' third game walk-off. But on Tuesday, he started on limited rest – his shortest ever – after requiring an IV to recover from the prior marathon.

His pitch speed sat under his seasonal average and he labored more as the game wore on. Even so, he displayed glimpses of his typical command, retiring 11 of 12 after Guerrero's homer and fanning six. He even drew a walk in the first to continue his World Series streak. But the Toronto forced him to labor: six base hits and four earned runs were credited to him in over six innings.

Late Game Rally

The bigger problem for Los Angeles was what came next when he finally ran out of steam.

Daulton Varsho started the seventh with a sharp single to right field, and Ernie Clement drilled a double off the wall to put runners on with no outs. Dave Roberts had little choice but to remove the starter, who exited to a roaring applause from the local fans. The Los Angeles' bullpen could not complete the inning.

Banda came into the mess and immediately fell behind. Andrés Giménez battled to a full count before driving in Varsho with a single to left field. Ty France came up next with a fielder's choice to make it 4-1, and that was sufficient to remove the pitcher out of the contest. Blake Treinen came in next but also failed to stem the rally: Bo Bichette and Addison Barger punched RBI base hits through the infield, capping a four-score outburst that pushed the margin to 6-1.

Blue Jays's Resilience

The Blue Jays's ability to absorb early setbacks and answer has characterized their whole run. They once again did it without George Springer, the hurt leadoff man who exited the third game after straining his right side.

Shane Bieber, in contrast, was everything the Blue Jays required. Traded for mid-season while finishing recovery from Tommy John surgery, the ex- award-winning winner stranded multiple runners and silenced the Los Angeles' dangerous batting order. He gave up one earned run on four base hits and three walks before the manager summoned rookie pitcher Fluharty to confront the heart of the lineup in the sixth inning. He needed just four throws to get out Muncy and Tommy Edman, preserving a narrow lead that soon grew comfortable.

Former starting pitcher Bassitt then worked a clean seventh and eighth innings as the Dodgers' offense kept to sputter. Los Angeles have scored only 3 runs over their previous 20 innings, an sudden slowdown for a club that was among baseball's top lineups all year.

Closing Innings

The Dodgers scraped a score in the ninth when Edman grounded out to score Teoscar Hernández after a walk and Max Muncy's two-base hit put two on base. But Varland closed it down without permitting a comeback to develop.

After a game when Toronto left a World Series-record 19 runners and fell apart after wave upon wave of missed chances, the fourth contest was brutally effective. Six different Toronto players recorded base hits, 5 drove in runs and the team cashed almost every run-scoring opportunity presented in the late stanzas.

Next Up

The victory ensures the World Series title will be presented at their home stadium, where the Toronto have not celebrated a championship since Joe Carter's famous walk-off homer in 1993. They now are aware they are assured a packed house in Toronto on Friday evening – and possibly the next day – no matter what happens next in Los Angeles.

The fifth game looms with the matchup even and momentum swinging to Toronto. Los Angeles pitcher Snell (3-1, 2.42 ERA) will try to arrest the Toronto's momentum. Toronto counter with first-year player Yesavage (2-1, 4.26 ERA) in a repeat of Game 1, when the Blue Jays chased the starter quickly in an decisive victory.