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Only 24 hours after staggering through one of the most draining defeats in Fall Classic history, the Blue Jays played with total command.

Vladimir Guerrero Jr smashed a two-run home run and Bieber provided a composed start as the Blue Jays beat the Los Angeles Dodgers 6-2 in the fourth game on Tuesday evening at their home ballpark, tying the Fall Classic at two games each and ensuring the matchup will return to Canada.

The Blue Jays had spent the morning of Tuesday dealing with their 18-inning Game 3 loss – tied for the longest World Series contest ever – a defeat that denied them the opportunity to lead the series and depleted both bullpens. Manager John Schneider stated afterwards that “they won a game, not the championship”. Twenty-three hours later, his team offered emphatic proof.

Initial Innings

The Los Angeles again scored first. Muncy walked in the second, advanced on a single and scored on Kiké Hernández's sacrifice fly. But the early score did not shake a Blue Jays team that topped MLB with 49 come-from-behind victories this year.

They responded right away in the third. Nathan Lukes lined a one away single to center field and Vladimir Guerrero Jr stepped in looking for a curveball. Ohtani left a slider up and he drove it screaming over the left-center wall. It was his initial extra-base hit of the series and his 7th homer this playoffs – a new team record – regaining the Toronto's advantage after 13 shutout innings and shifting the tone of the night.

Shohei's Night

That hit also halted Shohei Ohtani's record-setting streak of 11 straight at-bats getting on base. The two-way star had hit two homers and reached safely a historic nine times in the Los Angeles' third game walk-off. But on that night, he took the mound on short rest – his shortest ever – after needing an IV to recuperate from the previous marathon.

Ohtani pitch speed sat under his regular-season norm and he labored more as the game progressed. Even so, he showed glimpses of his typical command, retiring 11 of 12 after Guerrero Jr's homer and fanning six. He even walked in the first inning to continue his Fall Classic streak. But the Blue Jays forced him to labor: six base hits and four earned runs were charged to him in over six frames.

Seventh Inning Surge

The bigger issue for the Dodgers was what followed when Ohtani eventually ran out of energy.

Varsho started the seventh inning with a clean hit to right field, and Clement smashed a double off the fence to put runners on with no outs. Dave Roberts had no option but to pull Ohtani, who exited to a standing ovation from the home crowd. The Los Angeles' bullpen could not complete the escape.

Banda came into the jam and immediately fell behind. Andrés Giménez battled to a 3-2 count before driving in the runner with a single to left field. France followed with a fielder's choice to make it 4-1, and that was sufficient to remove the pitcher out of the game. Treinen came in next but also failed to stop the rally: Bichette and Addison Barger punched run-scoring base hits through the infield, capping a four-score outburst that pushed the margin to 6-1.

Blue Jays's Resilience

The Toronto's capacity to absorb early setbacks and respond has characterized their whole postseason. They once again did it without Springer, the injured leadoff man who exited the third game after tweaking his oblique.

Bieber, meanwhile, was exactly what Toronto needed. Traded for during the summer while finishing rehab from elbow surgery, the ex- award-winning winner left several baserunners and silenced the Dodgers' potent batting order. He allowed one earned run on four base hits and three walks before Schneider summoned rookie pitcher Mason Fluharty to confront the heart of the lineup in the sixth. He needed just 4 pitches to get out Muncy and Tommy Edman, preserving a narrow lead that soon became comfortable.

Former starter Chris Bassitt then worked a clean seventh and eighth innings as the Dodgers' offense continued to sputter. Los Angeles have produced only three scores over their last 20 frames, an abrupt downturn for a team that ranked among baseball's elite lineups all year.

Final Innings

The Los Angeles scraped a run in the ninth inning when Tommy Edman hit into an out to score Hernández after a walk and Max Muncy's double put two aboard. But Louis Varland finished the game without permitting a comeback to build.

After a night when the Blue Jays stranded a World Series-record 19 baserunners and collapsed after wave upon wave of missed opportunities, Game 4 was brutally effective. Six different Blue Jays collected base hits, 5 brought home scores and the squad cashed almost every run-scoring chance presented in the final stanzas.

Looking Ahead

The win guarantees the championship title will be presented at their home stadium, where the Blue Jays have not won a title since Carter's iconic walk-off homer in '93. They now are aware they are guaranteed a full crowd in Toronto on Friday night – and possibly Saturday – no matter what occurs next in Los Angeles.

The fifth game looms with the series even and energy swinging north. Dodgers pitcher Snell (3-1, 2.42 ERA) will try to halt the Toronto's surge. Toronto respond with rookie Trey Yesavage (2-1, 4.26 ERA) in a repeat of Game 1, when the Blue Jays chased Snell quickly in an 11-4 victory.