Vladimir Guerrero Jr Blasts off Ohtani as Blue Jays See Off Dodgers to Level World Series at 2-2

Only 24 hours following enduring one of the most exhausting losses in World Series history, the Toronto Blue Jays displayed total command.

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 Game 4 on Tuesday night at Dodger Stadium, tying the World Series at two wins apiece and guaranteeing the series will return to Toronto.

Toronto had passed the morning of the next day dealing with their 18-inning Game 3 loss – equal to the longest Fall Classic game ever – a defeat that cost them the chance to take the lead in the series and burned through both relief corps. Manager John Schneider insisted afterwards that “they won a contest, not the championship”. Twenty-three hours later, his team provided convincing evidence.

Early Action

The Los Angeles again struck first. Max Muncy drew a walk in the second, advanced on a base hit and crossed the plate on Hernández's fly out. But the initial score did not shake a Toronto club that topped MLB with 49 comeback wins this season.

They responded right away in the third inning. Lukes hit a one away base hit to centre and Vladimir Guerrero Jr came to the plate looking for a breaking ball. Ohtani threw a sweeper up and Guerrero sent it screaming over the left-center wall. It was his first extra-base hit of the series and his seventh home run this playoffs – a fresh club mark – restoring the Blue Jays's advantage after 13 shutout frames and changing the tone of the game.

Shohei's Night

That hit also ended Shohei Ohtani's history-making run of 11 straight plate appearances getting on base. The dual-threat star had hit two homers and got on base a historic nine times in the Dodgers' third game walk-off. But on Tuesday, he took the mound on limited rest – his shortest ever – after needing an IV to recover from the prior extra-inning game.

His pitch speed was below his regular-season norm and he struggled more as the contest progressed. Even so, he displayed flashes of his typical control, setting down 11 of 12 after Guerrero Jr's homer and striking out six. He even walked in the first inning to extend his World Series record. But the Blue Jays made him work: six hits and four earned runs were charged to him in over six frames.

Late Game Surge

The larger problem for Los Angeles was what followed when he eventually lost steam.

Daulton Varsho opened the seventh with a sharp hit to right field, and Clement drilled a two-base hit off the fence to put two on with no outs. Roberts had little choice but to pull the starter, who exited to a roaring applause from the local fans. The Los Angeles' relief corps could not finish the inning.

Banda inherited the jam and immediately fell behind. Andrés Giménez battled to a 3-2 count before scoring Varsho with a single to left. France came up next with a fielder's choice to make it 4-1, and that was sufficient to knock Banda out of the game. Blake Treinen came in next but also failed to stop the rally: Bichette and Addison Barger hit run-scoring base hits through the infield, completing a four-run outburst that extended the margin to 6-1.

Blue Jays's Toughness

The Blue Jays's capacity to absorb early blows and respond has defined their whole postseason. They once again did it without George Springer, the hurt leadoff man who left the third game after tweaking his oblique.

Bieber, meanwhile, was exactly what Toronto required. Traded for mid-season while finishing rehab from Tommy John surgery, the ex- Cy Young winner stranded several baserunners and quieted the Los Angeles' potent batting order. He allowed one earned run on four 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. He needed just 4 throws to retire Muncy and Tommy Edman, preserving a narrow lead that soon became safe.

Converted starting pitcher Bassitt then pitched a scoreless seventh and eighth innings as the Dodgers' offense continued to struggle. The Dodgers have scored only three runs over their last 20 frames, an abrupt slowdown for a club that was among MLB's elite lineups all year.

Final Moments

The Dodgers scraped a score in the ninth when Tommy Edman hit into an out to bring home Teoscar Hernández after a base on balls and Muncy's two-base hit put two on base. But Louis Varland closed it down without permitting a comeback to build.

After a game when Toronto left a Fall Classic-record 19 runners and fell apart after wave upon wave of wasted chances, the fourth contest was brutally efficient. Six separate Blue Jays recorded hits, five brought home scores and the team cashed nearly every scoring chance presented in the final stanzas.

Next Up

The win guarantees the World Series title will be awarded at their home stadium, where the Blue Jays have not won a title since Joe Carter's iconic walk-off home run in '93. They now know they are assured a packed crowd in Canada on Friday evening – and perhaps the next day – no matter what happens next in LA.

Game 5 looms with the matchup reset and momentum shifting to Toronto. Los Angeles left-hander Blake Snell (3-1, 2.42 ERA) will try to halt the Blue Jays's momentum. Toronto counter 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.