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Less than a day following staggering through one of the most draining losses in World Series annals, the Blue Jays played with total command.

Vladimir Guerrero Jr smashed a two-run home run and Bieber delivered a steady start as Toronto beat the Dodgers 6-2 in Game 4 on Tuesday evening at Dodger Stadium, squaring the Fall Classic at two wins apiece and guaranteeing the matchup will return to Toronto.

Toronto had spent the morning of Tuesday processing their 18-inning third game defeat – tied for the lengthiest World Series contest ever – a loss that denied them the chance to take the lead in the matchup and depleted both bullpens. Manager Schneider insisted later that “they took a contest, not the championship”. Twenty-three hours later, his squad provided convincing proof.

Initial Action

The Los Angeles again scored first. Max Muncy walked in the second, moved up on a single and crossed the plate on Hernández's sacrifice fly. But the early breakthrough did not rattle a Toronto team that topped MLB with 49 comeback wins this season.

They answered right away in the third. Lukes hit a one-out single to centre and Vladimir Guerrero Jr came to the plate hunting a breaking ball. Ohtani threw a sweeper up and he drove it screaming over the left-center wall. It was his initial extra-base hit of the series and his 7th home run this playoffs – a new club record – regaining the Toronto's lead after 13 scoreless innings and shifting the tone of the game.

Shohei's Performance

That swing also ended Ohtani's history-making run of 11 consecutive plate appearances reaching base. The dual-threat star had smashed two home runs and reached safely a record nine times in the Dodgers' Game 3 walk-off. But on that night, he took the mound on limited rest – his briefest ever – after requiring an IV to recuperate from the previous marathon.

Ohtani pitch speed sat below his seasonal average and he struggled more as the game progressed. Even so, he displayed flashes of his typical control, retiring 11 of 12 after Guerrero's blast and fanning six. He even drew a walk in the first inning to extend his World Series record. But the Toronto forced him to labor: six base hits and four runs were credited to him in six-plus innings.

Late Game Surge

The bigger issue for the Dodgers was what followed when Ohtani finally lost energy.

Varsho opened the seventh with a sharp hit to right field, and Clement smashed a two-base hit off the fence to put runners on with no outs. Roberts had little choice but to remove Ohtani, who exited to a standing ovation from the home crowd. The Los Angeles' bullpen could not finish the inning.

Banda came into the mess and right away trailed in the count. Andrés Giménez fought to a full count before scoring the runner with a base hit 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 came in next but also was unable to stop the rally: Bo Bichette and Barger hit run-scoring base hits through the diamond, completing a four-score outburst that extended the margin to 6-1.

Blue Jays's Resilience

The Toronto's capacity to withstand early setbacks and answer has characterized their entire postseason. They once again did it without George Springer, the hurt top-of-the-order man who left the third game after straining his oblique.

Bieber, meanwhile, was exactly what the Blue Jays needed. Acquired during the summer while completing rehab from Tommy John surgery, the former Cy Young winner left multiple runners and silenced the Los Angeles' potent lineup. He gave up one earned run on four base hits and three free passes before Schneider called on rookie left-hander Fluharty to confront the core of the order in the sixth inning. Fluharty needed just four pitches to get out Max Muncy and Tommy Edman, preserving a fragile lead that soon became safe.

Converted starting pitcher Bassitt then pitched a scoreless seventh and eighth as the Dodgers' bats kept to struggle. Los Angeles have produced only 3 runs over their previous 20 innings, an sudden slowdown for a team that was among baseball's top lineups all year.

Closing Innings

The Los Angeles managed a run in the ninth when Edman grounded out to score Hernández after a base on balls and Max Muncy's double put runners aboard. But Louis Varland closed it down without allowing a comeback to build.

Following a night when the Blue Jays stranded a World Series-record 19 runners and collapsed after wave upon wave of wasted chances, the fourth contest was brutally effective. Six different Blue Jays recorded hits, five brought home runs and the team converted almost every run-scoring opportunity available in the final stanzas.

Looking Ahead

The victory guarantees the World Series title will be presented at their home stadium, where the Toronto have not celebrated a title since Carter's famous walk-off home run in 1993. They now know they are guaranteed a packed house in Toronto on Friday night – and perhaps the next day – no matter what occurs next in Los Angeles.

The fifth game approaches with the matchup even and energy shifting north. Los Angeles pitcher Blake Snell (3-1, 2.42 ERA) will try to arrest the Toronto's momentum. The Blue Jays counter with rookie Yesavage (2-1, 4.26 ERA) in a rematch of the opener, when the Blue Jays knocked out the starter quickly in an decisive win.