🔗 Share this article Vladimir Guerrero Jr Homers against Ohtani as Toronto Defeat Los Angeles to Tie Series at 2-2 Less than a day following enduring one of the most exhausting losses in World Series history, the Blue Jays played with total control. Vladimir Guerrero Jr crushed a two-run home run and Shane Bieber delivered a steady start as the Blue Jays defeated the Los Angeles Dodgers 6-2 in Game 4 on Tuesday evening at Dodger Stadium, tying the Fall Classic at two wins apiece and ensuring the matchup will head back to Toronto. The Blue Jays had passed the early hours of the next day processing their 18-inning Game 3 loss – equal to the longest World Series contest ever – a loss that denied them the chance to take the lead in the series and depleted both relief corps. Manager John Schneider insisted later that “they won a contest, not the championship”. Twenty-three hours later, his team offered emphatic evidence. Initial Action The Dodgers again scored first. Max Muncy walked in the second inning, advanced on a base hit and crossed the plate on Hernández's sacrifice fly. But the initial score did not rattle a Toronto team that topped MLB with 49 come-from-behind victories this year. They answered right away in the third. Nathan Lukes hit a one-out single to centre and Guerrero stepped in hunting a breaking ball. Shohei Ohtani left a sweeper up and he sent it soaring over the outfield fence. It was his first long hit of the World Series and his 7th homer this postseason – a fresh club mark – restoring the Blue Jays's lead after 13 shutout innings and changing the momentum of the game. Ohtani's Performance That hit also halted Ohtani's record-setting streak of 11 consecutive at-bats getting on base. The two-way star had hit two home runs and reached safely a historic nine times in the Los Angeles' Game 3 comeback win. But on Tuesday, he started on limited rest – his shortest ever – after requiring an IV to recover from the previous extra-inning game. His fastball velocity was below his seasonal average and he labored more as the game wore on. Nonetheless, he displayed flashes of his typical control, setting down 11 of 12 after Guerrero's homer and striking out six. He even walked in the first inning to extend his Fall Classic record. But the Blue Jays made him work: six base hits and four earned runs were charged to him in six-plus innings. Late Game Surge The bigger problem for Los Angeles was what came next when he eventually ran out of energy. Daulton Varsho opened the seventh with a clean single to right, and Clement smashed a two-base hit off the fence to put two on with no outs. Dave Roberts had little choice but to remove the starter, who exited to a standing ovation from the local fans. The Dodgers' relief corps could not finish the escape. Banda inherited the jam and right away fell behind. Andrés Giménez fought to a full count before driving in Varsho with a single to left. France came up next with a groundout to make it 4-1, and that was sufficient to knock Banda out of the game. Blake Treinen came in next but also was unable to stop the rally: Bichette and Barger punched RBI base hits through the infield, capping a four-run outburst that pushed the margin to 6-1. Blue Jays's Resilience The Blue Jays's capacity to withstand early blows and respond has defined their entire postseason. They once again succeeded without Springer, the injured top-of-the-order hitter who left Game 3 after tweaking his oblique. Bieber, meanwhile, was everything Toronto needed. Acquired during the summer while finishing rehab from Tommy John surgery, the ex- award-winning winner stranded multiple runners and silenced the Los Angeles' potent batting order. He allowed one run on four base hits and three free passes before Schneider called on rookie left-hander Fluharty to face the heart of the lineup in the sixth inning. Fluharty required just 4 throws to retire Muncy and Tommy Edman, preserving a fragile advantage that quickly grew safe. Former starting pitcher Chris Bassitt then worked a scoreless seventh and eighth innings as the Dodgers' bats kept to struggle. The Dodgers have scored only 3 runs over their last 20 frames, an abrupt slowdown for a club that ranked among baseball's elite offenses all year. Closing Moments The Dodgers managed a run in the ninth inning when Edman grounded out to score Hernández after a base on balls and Muncy's double put runners on base. But Varland finished the game without permitting a rally to build. After a game when Toronto left a World Series-record 19 runners and fell apart after wave upon wave of wasted chances, the fourth contest was brutally effective. 6 different Blue Jays collected base hits, five brought home runs and the team cashed almost every run-scoring opportunity available in the final stanzas. Next Up The victory ensures the championship title will be presented at Rogers Centre, where the Blue Jays have not celebrated a title since Carter's iconic walk-off homer in 1993. They now are aware they are guaranteed a full house in Canada on Friday night – and perhaps Saturday – no matter what happens next in Los Angeles. Game 5 approaches with the series even and energy shifting north. Dodgers pitcher Blake Snell (3-1, 2.42 ERA) will try to arrest the Toronto's momentum. Toronto counter with rookie Trey Yesavage (2-1, 4.26 ERA) in a rematch of the opener, when the Toronto chased the starter early in an 11-4 win.