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Only 24 hours following staggering through one of the most draining losses in Fall Classic history, the Blue Jays displayed total control.

Vladimir Guerrero Jr crushed a two-run homer and Shane Bieber provided a steady start as Toronto defeated the Dodgers 6-2 in Game 4 on Tuesday night at their home ballpark, tying the World Series at two games each and ensuring the matchup will return to Toronto.

Toronto had passed the early hours of Tuesday processing their marathon Game 3 loss – equal to the longest World Series game ever – a defeat that cost them the chance to lead the series and depleted both relief corps. Skipper Schneider insisted later that “they took a contest, not the championship”. A day later, his team provided convincing proof.

Early Innings

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

They responded immediately in the third inning. Nathan Lukes hit a one away base hit to centre and Vladimir Guerrero Jr came to the plate looking for a breaking ball. Ohtani left a sweeper up and Guerrero sent it screaming over the left-center wall. It was his first long hit of the series and his 7th home run this playoffs – a fresh team record – regaining the Blue Jays's lead after 13 shutout innings and changing the tone of the night.

Shohei's Night

That swing also halted Shohei Ohtani's history-making streak of 11 consecutive plate appearances getting on base. The two-way star had smashed two home runs and got on base a record nine times in the Dodgers' third game comeback win. But on that night, he took the mound on short rest – his briefest ever – after requiring an IV to recuperate from the previous extra-inning game.

Ohtani fastball velocity was below his regular-season norm and he struggled more as the game progressed. Nonetheless, he showed glimpses of his usual control, retiring 11 of 12 after Guerrero Jr's blast and fanning six. He even drew a walk in the first inning to extend his World Series streak. But the Toronto made him work: six hits and four runs were charged to him in over six frames.

Late Game Surge

The larger issue for Los Angeles was what followed when Ohtani finally ran out of energy.

Daulton Varsho started the seventh with a clean hit to right field, and Clement smashed a two-base hit off the fence to put two on with none out. Roberts had no option but to pull the starter, who departed to a roaring applause from the home crowd. The Los Angeles' relief corps could not complete the escape.

Banda came into the mess and immediately trailed in the count. Andrés Giménez fought to a 3-2 count before driving in Varsho with a base hit to left field. Ty France followed with a groundout to make it 4-1, and that was sufficient to remove Banda out of the game. Blake Treinen entered next but also failed to stop the rally: Bichette and Addison Barger punched run-scoring singles through the infield, completing a four-run barrage that pushed the lead to 6-1.

Toronto's Resilience

The Toronto's ability to absorb early setbacks and answer has characterized their entire run. They once again succeeded without Springer, the injured leadoff man who left the third game after tweaking his right side.

Shane Bieber, meanwhile, was exactly what the Blue Jays needed. Traded for mid-season while completing rehab from Tommy John surgery, the former Cy Young winner stranded multiple baserunners and silenced the Dodgers' potent lineup. He gave up one run on four hits and three walks before Schneider summoned first-year left-hander Fluharty to face the core of the lineup in the sixth inning. He needed just four throws to retire Muncy and Edman, preserving a narrow advantage that soon grew comfortable.

Former starter Chris Bassitt then pitched a clean seventh and eighth as the Los Angeles' offense continued to sputter. The Dodgers have scored only 3 scores over their last 20 innings, an abrupt downturn for a team that ranked among baseball's top lineups all season.

Closing Moments

The Los Angeles scraped a run in the ninth when Edman hit into an out to bring home Teoscar Hernández after a base on balls and Muncy's double put two aboard. But Louis Varland finished the game without allowing a comeback to develop.

Following a game when the Blue Jays stranded a World Series-record 19 baserunners and fell apart after repeated of missed chances, the fourth contest was ruthlessly efficient. 6 different Toronto players recorded hits, 5 drove in runs and the squad converted almost every run-scoring chance available in the final innings.

Looking Ahead

The win guarantees the championship title will be awarded at Rogers Centre, where the Blue Jays have not celebrated a championship since Joe Carter's famous walk-off homer in '93. They now know they are assured a full house in Canada on Friday night – and perhaps the next day – no matter what happens next in LA.

The fifth game looms with the matchup even and momentum swinging north. Los Angeles pitcher Snell (3-1, 2.42 ERA) will try to halt the Blue Jays's momentum. Toronto counter with first-year player Yesavage (2-1, 4.26 ERA) in a rematch of Game 1, when the Blue Jays knocked out the starter early in an decisive victory.