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Only 24 hours after staggering through one of the most draining losses in Fall Classic annals, the Blue Jays played with total control.

Guerrero smashed a two-run home run and Bieber delivered a steady outing as Toronto defeated the Dodgers 6-2 in the fourth game on Tuesday night at Dodger Stadium, squaring the World Series at two wins apiece and ensuring the series will head back to Toronto.

The Blue Jays had spent the early hours of Tuesday dealing with their 18-inning third game defeat – tied for the lengthiest World Series game ever – a defeat that cost them the chance to lead the matchup and depleted both bullpens. Manager Schneider stated afterwards that “the Dodgers took a game, not the World Series”. Twenty-three hours later, his team provided convincing proof.

Early Action

The Los Angeles again scored first. Muncy drew a walk in the second inning, advanced on a base hit and crossed the plate on Kiké Hernández's fly out. But the early score did not rattle a Toronto team that topped Major League Baseball with 49 come-from-behind victories this year.

They answered right away in the third inning. Lukes lined a one-out base hit to center field and Guerrero stepped in hunting a curveball. Shohei Ohtani threw a sweeper up and he drove it screaming over the outfield fence. It was his first extra-base hit of the series and his 7th homer this playoffs – a fresh club record – regaining the Toronto's advantage after 13 scoreless innings and shifting the tone of the night.

Shohei's Night

That swing also halted Ohtani's history-making streak of 11 straight at-bats getting on base. The dual-threat phenomenon had smashed two home runs and got on base a historic nine times in the Dodgers' Game 3 comeback win. But on Tuesday, he started on limited rest – his shortest ever – after needing an IV to recuperate from the previous marathon.

His fastball velocity was below his seasonal average and he labored more as the contest wore on. Even so, he displayed flashes of his usual command, setting down 11 of 12 after Guerrero's homer and fanning six. He even walked in the first to continue his Fall Classic record. But the Toronto forced him to labor: six hits and four earned runs were charged to him in six-plus frames.

Late Game Surge

The bigger problem for Los Angeles was what came next when Ohtani eventually lost energy.

Varsho opened the seventh with a sharp single to right, and Ernie Clement drilled a double off the fence to put two on with no outs. Roberts had no option but to pull the starter, who exited to a roaring applause from the home crowd. The Dodgers' relief corps could not complete the inning.

Banda inherited the mess and right away fell behind. Giménez fought to a full count before driving in the runner with a single to left field. France followed with a groundout to make it 4-1, and that was sufficient to remove Banda out of the contest. Blake Treinen came in next but also failed to stem the rally: Bichette and Barger hit RBI base hits through the infield, capping a four-score outburst that extended the lead to 6-1.

Blue Jays's Toughness

The Blue Jays's ability to withstand early blows and answer has defined their whole postseason. They once again succeeded without George Springer, the injured top-of-the-order hitter who exited the third game after tweaking his oblique.

Bieber, meanwhile, was exactly what the Blue Jays needed. Traded for mid-season while completing rehab from elbow surgery, the former Cy Young winner left multiple runners and silenced the Los Angeles' dangerous lineup. He gave up one run on four hits and three walks before Schneider summoned rookie left-hander Fluharty to face the heart of the lineup in the sixth. He needed just 4 pitches to get out Max Muncy and Edman, preserving a fragile advantage that soon grew safe.

Converted starting pitcher Bassitt then pitched a scoreless seventh and eighth as the Los Angeles' offense kept to struggle. Los Angeles have produced only 3 scores over their previous 20 frames, an abrupt slowdown for a team that was among baseball's elite lineups all season.

Closing Innings

The Dodgers scraped a run in the ninth inning when Tommy Edman grounded out to score Teoscar Hernández after a walk and Muncy's two-base hit put two aboard. But Varland finished the game without allowing a rally to build.

After a game when Toronto stranded a Fall Classic-record 19 runners and collapsed after repeated of wasted opportunities, the fourth contest was brutally efficient. Six different Toronto players collected base hits, five brought home runs and the squad converted almost every run-scoring chance available in the final innings.

Looking Ahead

The victory ensures the World Series title will be awarded at Rogers Centre, where the Blue Jays have not celebrated a championship since Joe Carter's iconic walk-off home run in 1993. They now are aware they are guaranteed a full crowd in Toronto on Friday night – and possibly the next day – no matter what occurs next in LA.

Game 5 approaches with the series reset and energy swinging to Toronto. Dodgers left-hander Blake Snell (3-1, 2.42 ERA) will try to halt the Blue Jays's momentum. The Blue Jays counter with rookie Trey Yesavage (2-1, 4.26 ERA) in a rematch of Game 1, when the Toronto knocked out Snell early in an decisive victory.