🔗 Share this article

Less than a day after staggering through one of the most exhausting defeats in Fall Classic annals, the Blue Jays displayed total command.

Guerrero smashed a two-run homer and Shane Bieber delivered a composed outing as the Blue Jays beat the Los Angeles Dodgers 6-2 in Game 4 on Tuesday night at their home ballpark, squaring the World Series at two games each and guaranteeing the series will return to Canada.

The Blue Jays had passed the early hours of the next day dealing with their marathon Game 3 loss – tied for the lengthiest World Series contest ever – a loss that cost them the chance to take the lead in the matchup and depleted both relief corps. Skipper John Schneider insisted later that “the Dodgers took a contest, not the championship”. A day later, his team provided emphatic evidence.

Early Action

The Los Angeles again struck first. Muncy walked in the second inning, advanced on a single and crossed the plate on Kiké Hernández's sacrifice fly. But the initial score did not rattle a Blue Jays club that topped Major League Baseball with 49 comeback wins this year.

They responded immediately in the third inning. Nathan Lukes hit a one away base hit to center field and Vladimir Guerrero Jr stepped in hunting a breaking ball. Ohtani left a slider up and Guerrero drove it soaring over the left-center wall. It was his first extra-base hit of the series and his 7th homer this playoffs – a fresh team mark – regaining the Toronto's advantage after 13 scoreless innings and changing the momentum of the night.

Shohei's Performance

That hit also ended Shohei Ohtani's record-setting streak of 11 straight at-bats reaching base. The dual-threat 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 short rest – his shortest ever – after requiring an IV to recuperate from the previous extra-inning game.

Ohtani pitch speed was below his regular-season average and he labored more as the game wore on. Even so, he displayed flashes of his usual control, retiring 11 of 12 after Guerrero Jr's homer and fanning six. He even walked in the first inning to continue his Fall Classic streak. But the Toronto made him work: six base hits and four runs were credited to him in six-plus frames.

Late Game Rally

The bigger issue for Los Angeles was what followed when Ohtani eventually lost steam.

Daulton Varsho opened the seventh inning with a sharp hit to right, and Clement smashed a two-base hit off the fence to put two on with none out. Roberts had no option but to pull the starter, who exited to a roaring applause from the home crowd. The Los Angeles' bullpen could not complete the inning.

Anthony Banda inherited the mess and right away trailed in the count. Andrés Giménez fought to a full count before driving in the runner with a single to left field. France came up next 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: Bo Bichette and Addison Barger hit run-scoring singles through the diamond, capping a four-score barrage that pushed the margin to 6-1.

Toronto's Toughness

The Blue Jays's ability to absorb initial setbacks and answer has characterized their whole postseason. They once again succeeded without George Springer, the injured top-of-the-order man who exited Game 3 after tweaking his oblique.

Shane Bieber, meanwhile, was everything the Blue Jays needed. Traded for mid-season while completing recovery from elbow surgery, the former award-winning winner stranded several runners and quieted the Dodgers' dangerous batting order. He gave up one earned run on four hits and three free passes before the manager called on rookie pitcher Mason Fluharty to face the core of the order in the sixth inning. He needed just 4 pitches to get out Max Muncy and Edman, preserving a fragile lead that quickly became comfortable.

Former starter Bassitt then pitched a clean seventh and eighth innings as the Dodgers' bats kept to sputter. The Dodgers have scored only 3 runs over their previous 20 frames, an sudden downturn for a club that ranked among MLB's top offenses all year.

Final Moments

The Dodgers managed a score in the ninth inning when Tommy Edman grounded out to bring home Hernández after a base on balls and Max Muncy's double put runners on base. But Louis Varland closed it down without permitting a comeback to develop.

Following a night when Toronto stranded a Fall Classic-record 19 runners and fell apart after wave upon wave of wasted chances, Game 4 was ruthlessly efficient. Six different Toronto players recorded base hits, five brought home runs and the team converted nearly every scoring chance available in the late innings.

Next Up

The victory ensures the World Series trophy will be awarded at their home stadium, where the Toronto have not celebrated a title since Joe Carter's iconic game-winning home run in 1993. They now are aware they are guaranteed a packed house in Canada on Friday night – and perhaps Saturday – no matter what happens next in LA.

The fifth game looms with the matchup reset and energy shifting to Toronto. Dodgers pitcher Snell (3-1, 2.42 ERA) will attempt to arrest the Blue Jays's momentum. Toronto respond with first-year player Yesavage (2-1, 4.26 ERA) in a rematch of Game 1, when the Toronto knocked out the starter quickly in an decisive victory.