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Only 24 hours following staggering through one of the most exhausting defeats in World Series annals, the Toronto Blue Jays played with total control.

Guerrero smashed a two-run home run and Shane Bieber delivered a steady outing as Toronto beat the Dodgers 6-2 in Game 4 on Tuesday evening at Dodger Stadium, tying the World Series at two games each and ensuring the series will head back to Toronto.

Toronto had spent the early hours of the next day dealing with their 18-inning third game defeat – tied for the longest Fall Classic game ever – a defeat that cost them the opportunity to take the lead in the series and depleted both bullpens. Skipper John Schneider insisted afterwards that “they won a contest, not the World Series”. Twenty-three hours later, his squad provided emphatic evidence.

Early Action

The Los Angeles again scored first. Muncy drew a walk in the second, moved up on a base hit and scored on Hernández's sacrifice fly. But the early score did not rattle a Blue Jays club that led Major League Baseball with 49 come-from-behind victories this season.

They answered immediately in the third inning. Nathan Lukes hit a one away base hit to center field and Guerrero came to the plate hunting a curveball. Ohtani left a slider up and Guerrero drove it screaming over the outfield fence. It was his first extra-base hit of the series and his seventh homer this playoffs – a new club mark – regaining the Blue Jays's lead after 13 scoreless innings and shifting the momentum of the night.

Ohtani's Night

That swing also ended Shohei Ohtani's record-setting run of 11 straight plate appearances getting on base. The dual-threat phenomenon had smashed two homers and got on base a record nine times in the Dodgers' Game 3 comeback win. But on Tuesday, he took the mound on short rest – his briefest ever – after needing an IV to recuperate from the previous extra-inning game.

Ohtani fastball velocity was under his regular-season average and he struggled more as the game progressed. Nonetheless, he showed glimpses of his usual control, retiring 11 of 12 after Guerrero Jr's homer and fanning six. He even walked in the first inning to continue his World Series streak. But the Blue Jays forced him to labor: six hits and four runs were charged to him in over six innings.

Seventh Inning Rally

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

Daulton Varsho started the seventh with a clean single to right, and Clement drilled a two-base hit off the wall to put two on with no outs. Dave Roberts had no option but to pull the starter, who exited to a standing ovation from the home crowd. The Los Angeles' bullpen could not finish the inning.

Anthony Banda inherited the mess and right away fell behind. Andrés Giménez fought to a 3-2 count before driving in the runner with a base hit to left field. Ty France came up next with a groundout to make it 4-1, and that was sufficient to knock the pitcher out of the contest. Blake Treinen came in next but also was unable to stop the momentum: Bo Bichette and Barger hit RBI base hits through the diamond, completing a four-run barrage that pushed the lead to 6-1.

Blue Jays's Toughness

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

Shane Bieber, in contrast, was exactly what Toronto needed. Acquired during the summer while finishing rehab from elbow surgery, the ex- award-winning winner left several runners and silenced the Dodgers' dangerous batting order. He gave up one earned run on four base hits and three free passes before the manager called on first-year pitcher Fluharty to confront the core of the order in the sixth inning. Fluharty required just four pitches to retire Muncy and Edman, preserving a narrow advantage that soon became safe.

Converted starting pitcher Chris Bassitt then worked a clean seventh and eighth innings as the Los Angeles' offense kept to sputter. The Dodgers have scored only 3 scores over their previous 20 frames, an abrupt slowdown for a team that ranked among MLB's top lineups all year.

Closing Moments

The Dodgers managed a score in the ninth when Tommy Edman grounded out to bring home Teoscar Hernández after a walk and Muncy's two-base hit put two aboard. But Louis Varland closed it down without allowing a comeback to build.

Following a night when Toronto stranded a Fall Classic-record 19 baserunners and collapsed after repeated of missed opportunities, the fourth contest was brutally effective. 6 separate Toronto players recorded base hits, five drove in scores and the squad cashed almost every run-scoring chance available in the late innings.

Next Up

The win guarantees the championship title will be awarded at their home stadium, where the Toronto have not won a championship since Joe Carter's famous walk-off home run in '93. They now know they are assured a packed house in Canada on Friday evening – and perhaps the next day – no matter what occurs next in Los Angeles.

The fifth game approaches with the series even and momentum swinging to Toronto. Dodgers pitcher Blake Snell (3-1, 2.42 ERA) will attempt to arrest the Blue Jays's surge. The Blue Jays respond with rookie Trey Yesavage (2-1, 4.26 ERA) in a rematch of the opener, when the Blue Jays knocked out Snell quickly in an decisive victory.