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

Vladimir Guerrero Jr crushed a two-run home run and Bieber provided a composed start as Toronto beat the Los Angeles Dodgers 6-2 in Game 4 on Tuesday night at Dodger Stadium, squaring the Fall Classic at two games each and guaranteeing the series will head back to Canada.

The Blue Jays had spent the early hours of Tuesday processing their 18-inning Game 3 loss – equal to the lengthiest World Series contest ever – a loss that denied them the opportunity to lead the series and burned through both bullpens. Skipper John Schneider stated afterwards that “the Dodgers took a contest, not the World Series”. A day later, his squad offered convincing proof.

Initial Action

The Los Angeles again struck first. Max Muncy drew a walk in the second, moved up on a single and scored on Hernández's sacrifice fly. But the initial breakthrough did not rattle a Blue Jays club that topped MLB with 49 come-from-behind wins this year.

They answered right away in the third. 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 slider up and he drove it screaming over the left-center wall. It was his initial extra-base hit of the World Series and his 7th home run this postseason – a new club record – restoring the Toronto's advantage after 13 shutout innings and changing the momentum of the night.

Shohei's Performance

That swing also halted Ohtani's record-setting run of 11 straight plate appearances reaching base. The two-way phenomenon had smashed two home runs and reached safely a historic nine times in the Dodgers' third game walk-off. But on Tuesday, he started on short rest – his shortest ever – after requiring an IV to recover from the previous extra-inning game.

Ohtani pitch speed sat under his regular-season average and he struggled more as the game progressed. Nonetheless, he displayed flashes of his typical control, retiring 11 of 12 after Guerrero's homer and fanning six. He even drew a walk in the first inning to extend his World Series record. But the Toronto forced him to labor: six base hits and four runs were charged to him in six-plus innings.

Late Game Rally

The bigger issue for Los Angeles was what followed when he eventually ran out of steam.

Daulton Varsho opened the seventh inning with a sharp single 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 roaring applause from the local fans. The Los Angeles' bullpen could not complete the escape.

Banda came into the jam and right away fell behind. Andrés Giménez battled to a 3-2 count before driving in the runner with a single to left field. Ty France followed with a fielder's choice to make it 4-1, and that was sufficient to remove Banda out of the contest. Blake Treinen entered next but also was unable to stem the momentum: Bo Bichette and Addison Barger hit RBI base hits through the diamond, completing a four-run outburst that extended the margin to 6-1.

Toronto's Toughness

The Blue Jays's ability to absorb early setbacks and respond has defined their entire postseason. They once again did it without Springer, the hurt top-of-the-order man who exited the third game after tweaking his oblique.

Bieber, meanwhile, was everything the Blue Jays needed. Traded for mid-season while finishing recovery from elbow surgery, the ex- award-winning winner stranded multiple runners and silenced the Los Angeles' dangerous lineup. He allowed one earned run on four hits and three free passes before Schneider summoned rookie pitcher Fluharty to confront the core of the order in the sixth inning. Fluharty required just four throws to get out Muncy and Edman, preserving a fragile lead that quickly became comfortable.

Former starter Bassitt then pitched a clean seventh and eighth as the Dodgers' offense kept to sputter. The Dodgers have produced only 3 scores over their last 20 innings, an sudden downturn for a club that ranked among MLB's elite offenses all year.

Final Innings

The Los Angeles managed a run in the ninth inning when Edman hit into an out to bring home Hernández after a base on balls and Muncy's double put runners aboard. But Louis Varland closed it down without permitting a comeback to develop.

Following a night when Toronto left a World Series-record 19 runners and fell apart after wave upon wave of wasted opportunities, Game 4 was brutally efficient. 6 different Toronto players recorded base hits, five drove in runs and the team cashed nearly every scoring chance presented in the final stanzas.

Next Up

The victory guarantees the championship title will be presented at Rogers Centre, where the Toronto have not won a championship since Carter's iconic game-winning homer in 1993. They now are aware they are assured a packed house in Toronto on Friday evening – and possibly Saturday – no matter what happens next in Los Angeles.

Game 5 approaches with the matchup reset and energy swinging north. Los Angeles left-hander Blake Snell (3-1, 2.42 ERA) will try to halt the Blue Jays's momentum. Toronto respond with rookie Trey Yesavage (2-1, 4.26 ERA) in a rematch of the opener, when the Toronto chased Snell quickly in an decisive victory.