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Only 24 hours following enduring one of the most exhausting losses in Fall Classic annals, the Toronto Blue Jays displayed complete control.

Guerrero smashed a two-run home run and Shane Bieber delivered a composed start as the Blue Jays defeated the Dodgers 6-2 in the fourth game on Tuesday night at their home ballpark, squaring the World Series at two games each and guaranteeing the matchup will return to Toronto.

Toronto had spent the early hours of the next day dealing with their 18-inning Game 3 loss – equal to the lengthiest Fall Classic game ever – a defeat that cost them the chance to take the lead in the series and depleted both relief corps. Manager John Schneider stated afterwards that “they took a contest, not the championship”. A day later, his team provided convincing proof.

Early Action

The Los Angeles again struck first. Max Muncy drew a walk in the second, advanced on a base hit and scored on Kiké Hernández's sacrifice fly. But the early score did not shake a Toronto club that led Major League Baseball with 49 come-from-behind wins this year.

They responded right away in the third. Nathan Lukes lined a one away base hit to centre and Guerrero stepped in looking for a breaking ball. Ohtani left a sweeper up and Guerrero sent it soaring over the outfield fence. It was his initial extra-base hit of the series and his seventh homer this playoffs – a new club mark – restoring the Blue Jays's advantage after 13 shutout innings and shifting the tone of the game.

Shohei's Night

That hit also halted Ohtani's history-making streak of 11 consecutive at-bats reaching base. The two-way phenomenon had hit two homers and reached safely a record nine times in the Dodgers' Game 3 comeback win. But on Tuesday, he started on limited rest – his shortest ever – after requiring an IV to recover from the prior marathon.

His fastball velocity was below his seasonal norm and he struggled more as the game progressed. Nonetheless, he displayed glimpses of his usual control, setting down 11 of 12 after Guerrero Jr's blast and striking out six. He even drew a walk in the first inning to extend 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.

Seventh Inning Surge

The larger problem for Los Angeles was what came next when he eventually lost energy.

Daulton Varsho started the seventh with a clean single to right field, and Ernie Clement smashed a two-base hit off the fence to put runners on with no outs. Roberts had little choice but to remove Ohtani, who exited to a standing ovation from the home crowd. The Los Angeles' bullpen could not finish the inning.

Banda came into the mess and immediately fell behind. Andrés Giménez battled to a 3-2 count before driving in Varsho with a base hit to left. France came up next with a fielder's choice to make it 4-1, and that was enough to remove Banda out of the contest. Treinen entered next but also was unable to stem the rally: Bichette and Barger hit RBI base hits through the diamond, capping a four-score outburst that pushed the lead to 6-1.

Toronto's Resilience

The Toronto's capacity to absorb early blows and respond has characterized their entire run. They once again succeeded without Springer, the hurt top-of-the-order hitter who left Game 3 after tweaking his right side.

Shane Bieber, in contrast, was exactly what the Blue Jays required. Acquired mid-season while finishing recovery from Tommy John surgery, the ex- Cy Young winner left several runners and silenced the Dodgers' potent batting order. He allowed one run on four base hits and three free passes before the manager called on rookie left-hander Mason Fluharty to face the core of the lineup in the sixth. He required just four throws to retire Muncy and Edman, protecting a fragile advantage that soon grew safe.

Converted starter Bassitt then pitched a scoreless seventh and eighth innings as the Los Angeles' bats kept to sputter. Los Angeles have produced only 3 runs over their last 20 innings, an abrupt slowdown for a club that was among MLB's top lineups all season.

Closing Innings

The Dodgers managed a score in the ninth inning when Edman hit into an out to score Hernández after a base on balls and Max Muncy's double put runners aboard. But Louis Varland finished the game without permitting a comeback to build.

After a game when Toronto left a Fall Classic-record 19 runners and collapsed after repeated of missed opportunities, the fourth contest was brutally effective. Six different Toronto players collected base hits, five drove in runs and the team cashed almost every run-scoring chance presented in the final innings.

Looking Ahead

The victory guarantees the World Series trophy will be awarded at Rogers Centre, where the Blue Jays have not won a championship since Carter's famous game-winning home run in '93. They now are aware they are assured a packed house in Canada on Friday night – and possibly the next day – no matter what happens next in LA.

The fifth game looms with the matchup even and energy shifting to Toronto. Dodgers left-hander Snell (3-1, 2.42 ERA) will try to halt the Toronto's momentum. Toronto respond with rookie Trey Yesavage (2-1, 4.26 ERA) in a repeat of Game 1, when the Toronto knocked out Snell quickly in an 11-4 victory.