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Only 24 hours after enduring one of the most exhausting defeats in World Series annals, the Toronto Blue Jays displayed complete control.

Guerrero smashed a two-run home run and Bieber provided a composed outing as Toronto defeated the Los Angeles Dodgers 6-2 in Game 4 on Tuesday evening at their home ballpark, squaring the World Series at two games each and guaranteeing the series will return to Toronto.

Toronto had spent the morning of the next day dealing with their marathon third game defeat – equal to the longest World Series game ever – a loss that denied them the chance to take the lead in the matchup and burned through both relief corps. Manager John Schneider insisted later that “they took a game, not the championship”. Twenty-three hours later, his team offered emphatic evidence.

Initial Action

The Los Angeles again struck first. Max Muncy drew a walk in the second, moved up on a single and crossed the plate on Hernández's fly out. But the early score did not rattle a Toronto team that topped MLB with 49 come-from-behind victories this year.

They responded right away in the third inning. Lukes lined a one away single to centre and Vladimir Guerrero Jr came to the plate hunting a breaking ball. Ohtani threw a sweeper up and he sent it soaring over the left-center wall. It was his first long hit of the series and his 7th home run this postseason – a fresh club record – restoring the Blue Jays's advantage after 13 scoreless frames and changing the tone of the game.

Ohtani's Performance

That swing also ended Shohei Ohtani's record-setting run of 11 consecutive at-bats getting on base. The two-way phenomenon had hit two home runs and got on base a record nine times in the Dodgers' Game 3 walk-off. But on Tuesday, he took the mound on limited rest – his briefest ever – after needing an IV to recover from the previous extra-inning game.

His fastball velocity sat below his seasonal average and he labored more as the contest wore on. Nonetheless, he showed glimpses of his usual control, retiring 11 of 12 after Guerrero Jr's homer and fanning six. He even walked in the first to extend his World Series streak. But the Blue Jays forced him to labor: six hits and four runs were credited to him in six-plus innings.

Seventh Inning Surge

The bigger issue for Los Angeles was what followed when he finally lost steam.

Varsho opened the seventh inning with a sharp single to right field, and Clement smashed a double off the fence to put two on with no outs. Roberts had little choice but to remove Ohtani, who departed to a roaring applause from the home crowd. The Dodgers' bullpen could not finish the inning.

Anthony Banda came into the mess and immediately fell behind. Andrés Giménez fought to a 3-2 count before driving in Varsho with a base hit to left. Ty France followed with a groundout to make it 4-1, and that was enough to knock Banda out of the game. Blake Treinen entered next but also was unable to stem the rally: Bichette and Addison Barger punched run-scoring base hits through the infield, capping a four-score outburst that extended the lead to 6-1.

Toronto's Toughness

The Blue Jays's ability to withstand initial blows and answer has defined their entire run. They once again succeeded without George Springer, the hurt leadoff man who left Game 3 after tweaking his right side.

Bieber, meanwhile, was everything Toronto required. Traded for during the summer while finishing rehab from Tommy John surgery, the former award-winning winner stranded multiple baserunners and quieted the Dodgers' potent batting order. He gave up one run on four base hits and three free passes before Schneider called on rookie left-hander Mason Fluharty to face the core of the lineup in the sixth. Fluharty required just 4 throws to get out Muncy and Edman, preserving a narrow advantage that soon became safe.

Converted starter Chris Bassitt then pitched a clean seventh and eighth as the Los Angeles' offense continued to sputter. The Dodgers have produced only three scores over their last 20 frames, an sudden downturn for a team that was among MLB's top offenses all year.

Final Moments

The Dodgers scraped a run in the ninth inning when Tommy Edman grounded out to score Hernández after a walk and Max Muncy's double put runners aboard. But Louis Varland finished the game without permitting a rally to build.

Following a game when the Blue Jays left a World Series-record 19 baserunners and fell apart after repeated of missed chances, the fourth contest was brutally effective. 6 separate Blue Jays recorded base hits, five brought home scores and the team cashed almost every scoring opportunity presented in the late stanzas.

Next Up

The win ensures the World Series title will be awarded at Rogers Centre, where the Blue Jays have not celebrated a title since Carter's famous walk-off homer in 1993. They now are aware they are guaranteed a packed house in Toronto on Friday night – and possibly the next day – no matter what occurs next in Los Angeles.

The fifth game approaches with the series reset and momentum swinging north. Los Angeles pitcher Snell (3-1, 2.42 ERA) will attempt to arrest the Blue Jays's surge. The Blue Jays counter with first-year player Trey Yesavage (2-1, 4.26 ERA) in a rematch of Game 1, when the Toronto chased the starter quickly in an decisive win.