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Less than a day following enduring one of the most exhausting losses in World Series annals, the Toronto Blue Jays displayed total control.

Vladimir Guerrero Jr smashed a two-run homer and Shane Bieber delivered a composed outing as Toronto defeated the Los Angeles Dodgers 6-2 in the fourth game on Tuesday evening at Dodger Stadium, tying the World Series at two games each and ensuring the matchup will head back to Toronto.

The Blue Jays had spent the early hours of the next day processing their 18-inning Game 3 loss – tied for the longest World Series contest ever – a defeat that denied them the chance to take the lead in the series and burned through both bullpens. Skipper Schneider insisted later that “the Dodgers took a contest, not the championship”. A day later, his team offered emphatic evidence.

Initial Innings

The Dodgers again scored first. Max Muncy walked in the second, moved up on a single and scored on Kiké Hernández's fly out. But the early score did not shake a Toronto club that led Major League Baseball with 49 come-from-behind victories this year.

They responded immediately in the third inning. Nathan Lukes hit a one away base hit to centre and Guerrero stepped in looking for a breaking ball. Shohei Ohtani threw a slider up and he drove it soaring over the outfield fence. It was his initial extra-base hit of the series and his 7th home run this playoffs – a fresh club record – regaining the Toronto's lead after 13 scoreless innings and changing the momentum of the game.

Ohtani's Night

That hit also halted Ohtani's history-making run of 11 consecutive plate appearances getting on base. The dual-threat phenomenon had hit two homers and reached safely a historic nine times in the Dodgers' Game 3 walk-off. But on that night, he took the mound on limited rest – his shortest ever – after requiring an IV to recover from the prior marathon.

Ohtani fastball velocity was below his regular-season average and he struggled more as the contest wore on. Nonetheless, he displayed flashes of his typical control, setting down 11 of 12 after Guerrero Jr's blast and fanning six. He even walked in the first to continue his World Series streak. But the Toronto forced him to labor: six base hits and four earned runs were charged to him in six-plus frames.

Late Game Rally

The bigger problem for the Dodgers was what followed when he eventually lost energy.

Daulton Varsho opened the seventh with a clean single to right, and Clement smashed a double off the fence to put runners on with no outs. Roberts had no option but to remove the starter, who departed to a roaring applause from the home crowd. The Los Angeles' bullpen could not finish the inning.

Anthony Banda came into the jam and right away trailed in the count. Giménez fought to a 3-2 count before driving in Varsho with a single to left. France followed with a fielder's choice to make it 4-1, and that was enough to remove Banda out of the game. Treinen came in next but also failed to stop the momentum: Bo Bichette and Barger hit run-scoring base hits through the infield, completing a four-score outburst that extended the margin to 6-1.

Toronto's Resilience

The Blue Jays's ability to absorb early blows and respond has defined their whole run. They once again did it without George Springer, the hurt top-of-the-order man who left Game 3 after straining his right side.

Bieber, meanwhile, was everything Toronto needed. Acquired during the summer while completing recovery from elbow surgery, the ex- award-winning winner stranded multiple baserunners and silenced the Dodgers' potent lineup. He allowed one run on four base hits and three free passes before the manager called on rookie pitcher Fluharty to confront the core of the lineup in the sixth. He required just four pitches to retire Max Muncy and Edman, protecting a fragile advantage that quickly grew comfortable.

Converted starter Bassitt then worked a clean seventh and eighth as the Dodgers' offense kept to struggle. Los Angeles have scored only 3 runs over their previous 20 innings, an sudden downturn for a team that ranked among MLB's top offenses all season.

Final Moments

The Los Angeles managed a run in the ninth when Tommy Edman hit into an out to score Hernández after a walk and Max Muncy's double put runners aboard. But Varland closed it down without permitting a comeback to build.

After a night when the Blue Jays stranded a Fall Classic-record 19 baserunners and fell apart after wave upon wave of missed chances, Game 4 was brutally effective. Six different Blue Jays collected hits, five drove in scores and the team converted nearly every scoring chance available in the late innings.

Next Up

The win ensures the championship trophy will be awarded at Rogers Centre, where the Blue Jays have not celebrated a title since Carter's famous game-winning home run in '93. They now know they are assured a full house in Canada on Friday night – and possibly Saturday – no matter what happens next in Los Angeles.

The fifth game approaches with the matchup reset and momentum swinging to Toronto. Los Angeles pitcher Snell (3-1, 2.42 ERA) will try to arrest the Blue Jays's surge. Toronto respond with rookie Yesavage (2-1, 4.26 ERA) in a repeat of the opener, when the Toronto knocked out Snell quickly in an 11-4 victory.