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Only 24 hours after enduring one of the most exhausting defeats in World Series annals, the Blue Jays played with total control.

Guerrero crushed a two-run home run and Bieber delivered a composed start as Toronto beat the Los Angeles Dodgers 6-2 in the fourth game on Tuesday evening at Dodger Stadium, squaring the Fall Classic at two wins apiece and ensuring the matchup will head back to Canada.

The Blue Jays had spent the early hours of Tuesday dealing with their marathon third game defeat – tied for the longest World Series contest ever – a defeat that cost them the chance to lead the matchup and burned through both relief corps. Manager Schneider insisted later that “the Dodgers won a game, not the championship”. Twenty-three hours later, his squad provided emphatic evidence.

Initial Action

The Dodgers again struck first. Max Muncy drew a walk in the second, advanced on a base hit and scored on Hernández's fly out. But the initial breakthrough did not rattle a Blue Jays club that led MLB with 49 come-from-behind wins this year.

They responded immediately in the third. Nathan Lukes lined a one away single to centre and Guerrero came to the plate looking for a breaking ball. Ohtani threw a slider up and he sent it screaming over the outfield fence. It was his initial extra-base hit of the series and his 7th homer this playoffs – a new club mark – regaining the Toronto's advantage after 13 scoreless frames and shifting the tone of the night.

Ohtani's Performance

That swing also ended Ohtani's history-making run of 11 straight at-bats getting on base. The two-way phenomenon had hit two home runs and reached safely a record nine times in the Los Angeles' Game 3 comeback win. But on Tuesday, he started on limited rest – his shortest ever – after needing an IV to recuperate from the prior extra-inning game.

His fastball velocity sat under his regular-season norm and he struggled more as the game progressed. Even so, he showed flashes of his usual command, setting down 11 of 12 after Guerrero's homer and striking out six. He even drew a walk in the first to continue his Fall Classic record. But the Toronto forced him to labor: six base hits and four earned runs were charged to him in over six innings.

Seventh Inning Rally

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

Daulton Varsho opened the seventh with a sharp hit to right, and Ernie Clement smashed a two-base hit off the wall to put runners on with no outs. Roberts had little choice but to pull the starter, who departed to a standing ovation from the home crowd. The Los Angeles' relief corps could not complete the escape.

Banda inherited the mess and right away trailed in the count. Giménez battled to a full count before scoring Varsho with a base hit to left field. France came up next with a groundout to make it 4-1, and that was enough to remove the pitcher out of the game. Treinen came in next but also was unable to stem the momentum: Bichette and Barger hit RBI singles through the diamond, capping a four-score barrage that pushed the margin to 6-1.

Toronto's Toughness

The Toronto's capacity to absorb early blows and respond has defined their entire run. They once again did it without Springer, the hurt leadoff hitter who exited the third game after straining his right side.

Bieber, meanwhile, was everything Toronto needed. Traded for during the summer while completing recovery from Tommy John surgery, the ex- Cy Young winner stranded several baserunners and silenced the Los Angeles' dangerous lineup. He gave up one earned run on four base hits and three free passes before the manager summoned first-year pitcher Mason Fluharty to face the heart of the order in the sixth inning. Fluharty needed just four throws to retire Max Muncy and Edman, protecting a narrow advantage that quickly became safe.

Former starter Bassitt then pitched a clean seventh and eighth innings as the Los Angeles' bats continued to sputter. Los Angeles have produced only 3 runs over their last 20 innings, an sudden slowdown for a club that ranked among baseball's top lineups all season.

Closing Moments

The Los Angeles managed a score in the ninth inning when Edman hit into an out to score Teoscar Hernández after a walk and Max Muncy's two-base hit put two aboard. But Varland finished the game without permitting a rally to develop.

Following a night when the Blue Jays stranded a World Series-record 19 baserunners and collapsed after repeated of wasted chances, the fourth contest was brutally effective. 6 different Toronto players recorded hits, 5 brought home scores and the team cashed almost every run-scoring opportunity presented in the late stanzas.

Next Up

The victory guarantees the World Series title will be awarded at Rogers Centre, where the Blue Jays have not won a title since Carter's famous game-winning home run in 1993. They now are aware they are assured a packed house in Canada on Friday evening – and possibly the next day – no matter what happens next in LA.

The fifth game looms with the matchup reset and momentum shifting north. Dodgers pitcher Snell (3-1, 2.42 ERA) will try to halt the Toronto's momentum. 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 early in an 11-4 victory.