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Less than a day after staggering through one of the most draining defeats in World Series annals, the Toronto Blue Jays displayed total command.

Vladimir Guerrero Jr crushed a two-run home run and Bieber provided a composed start as the Blue Jays defeated the Los Angeles Dodgers 6-2 in Game 4 on Tuesday night at their home ballpark, squaring the Fall Classic at two wins apiece and ensuring the matchup will return to Toronto.

The Blue Jays had spent the early hours of the next day processing their marathon Game 3 loss – equal to the longest World Series game ever – a loss that denied them the opportunity to lead the matchup and depleted both relief corps. Skipper John Schneider stated later that “the Dodgers won a game, not the championship”. A day later, his team offered convincing proof.

Early Innings

The Los Angeles again struck first. Muncy drew a walk in the second, moved up on a base hit and crossed the plate on Hernández's fly out. But the early score did not rattle a Toronto team that led Major League Baseball with 49 comeback victories this year.

They responded immediately in the third inning. Nathan Lukes hit a one-out single to center field and Guerrero came to the plate hunting a breaking ball. Shohei Ohtani left a slider up and he sent it screaming over the left-center wall. It was his initial extra-base hit of the series and his 7th home run this postseason – a fresh team record – restoring the Toronto's lead after 13 shutout innings and changing the tone of the game.

Ohtani's Night

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

Ohtani fastball velocity sat under his regular-season average and he labored more as the game progressed. Nonetheless, he showed flashes of his typical command, retiring 11 of 12 after Guerrero's blast and fanning six. He even walked in the first to continue his World Series record. But the Toronto forced him to labor: six hits and four earned runs were credited to him in six-plus frames.

Seventh Inning Surge

The bigger problem for the Dodgers was what followed when he finally ran out of steam.

Varsho started the seventh with a clean single to right, and Ernie Clement drilled a double off the fence to put two on with no outs. Roberts had little choice but to remove the starter, who exited to a roaring applause from the home crowd. The Los Angeles' bullpen could not finish the inning.

Banda inherited the mess and right away fell behind. Andrés Giménez battled to a full count before scoring Varsho with a single to left field. 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 failed to stem the momentum: Bichette and Barger hit run-scoring base hits through the diamond, capping a four-run outburst that extended the margin to 6-1.

Blue Jays's Resilience

The Toronto's ability to withstand early blows and answer has defined their entire postseason. They once again did it without George Springer, the hurt top-of-the-order hitter who exited Game 3 after straining his oblique.

Bieber, meanwhile, was everything the Blue Jays required. Traded for during the summer while completing rehab from Tommy John surgery, the ex- award-winning winner stranded several runners and silenced the Los Angeles' dangerous lineup. He gave up one run on four hits and three free passes before the manager called on rookie pitcher Mason Fluharty to confront the heart of the lineup in the sixth. He needed just four pitches to get out Muncy and Edman, protecting a narrow lead that soon grew comfortable.

Former starting pitcher Bassitt then worked a clean seventh and eighth as the Dodgers' bats kept to struggle. Los Angeles have scored only three runs over their last 20 frames, an abrupt slowdown for a team that was among MLB's elite lineups all season.

Closing Innings

The Los Angeles managed a score in the ninth when Tommy Edman hit into an out to bring home Hernández after a walk and Max Muncy's two-base hit put runners on base. But Louis Varland closed it down without permitting a comeback to develop.

After a night when Toronto stranded a Fall Classic-record 19 baserunners and collapsed after repeated of wasted chances, the fourth contest was ruthlessly effective. Six separate Blue Jays recorded hits, 5 brought home runs and the squad cashed nearly every scoring opportunity available in the late innings.

Looking Ahead

The victory guarantees the World Series trophy will be presented at their home stadium, where the Blue Jays have not celebrated a title since Carter's iconic game-winning home run in '93. They now know they are guaranteed a full house in Toronto on Friday evening – and perhaps the next day – no matter what happens next in Los Angeles.

The fifth game approaches with the series reset and energy shifting to Toronto. Dodgers left-hander Snell (3-1, 2.42 ERA) will try to arrest the Toronto's momentum. The Blue Jays respond with rookie Yesavage (2-1, 4.26 ERA) in a rematch of the opener, when the Blue Jays chased the starter quickly in an decisive win.