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Only 24 hours after enduring one of the most draining losses in World Series annals, the Toronto Blue Jays displayed total control.

Guerrero crushed a two-run homer and Shane Bieber delivered a steady start as Toronto beat 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 ensuring the matchup will return to Canada.

The Blue Jays had spent the early hours of Tuesday dealing with their marathon Game 3 loss – equal to the lengthiest World Series contest ever – a defeat that denied them the chance to take the lead in the series and burned through both bullpens. Manager Schneider insisted later that “the Dodgers took a contest, not the championship”. Twenty-three hours later, his team provided emphatic proof.

Initial Innings

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

They answered immediately in the third. Lukes hit a one away single to centre and Vladimir Guerrero Jr stepped in hunting a curveball. Ohtani left a sweeper up and he drove it soaring over the left-center wall. It was his initial extra-base hit of the World Series and his seventh home run this playoffs – a fresh team record – regaining the Toronto's advantage after 13 scoreless frames and shifting the tone of the game.

Ohtani's Performance

That swing also halted Shohei Ohtani's history-making run of 11 consecutive plate appearances reaching base. The two-way phenomenon had hit two home runs and reached safely a historic nine times in the Los Angeles' Game 3 comeback win. 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 pitch speed was below his regular-season norm and he struggled more as the game progressed. Nonetheless, he showed glimpses of his typical command, setting down 11 of 12 after Guerrero's homer and striking out six. He even walked in the first to extend his Fall Classic streak. But the Blue Jays forced him to labor: six base hits and four earned runs were charged to him in over six frames.

Seventh Inning Rally

The bigger issue for Los Angeles was what came next when Ohtani eventually ran out of steam.

Daulton Varsho opened the seventh with a clean single to right, and Ernie Clement drilled a two-base hit off the fence to put runners on with no outs. Dave Roberts had little choice but to remove Ohtani, who exited to a roaring applause from the home crowd. The Los Angeles' bullpen could not complete the escape.

Anthony Banda came into the mess and immediately fell behind. Andrés Giménez battled to a full count before scoring Varsho with a base hit to left. France came up next with a fielder's choice to make it 4-1, and that was enough to knock Banda out of the game. Treinen entered next but also was unable to stem the rally: Bo Bichette and Addison Barger hit RBI singles through the infield, capping a four-score outburst that pushed the margin to 6-1.

Toronto's Toughness

The Blue Jays's ability to absorb early setbacks and respond has defined their entire run. They once again succeeded without George Springer, the hurt leadoff man who exited Game 3 after tweaking his oblique.

Bieber, in contrast, was exactly what Toronto required. Acquired mid-season while completing recovery from Tommy John surgery, the ex- Cy Young winner left several baserunners and silenced the Los Angeles' potent batting order. He allowed one run on four hits and three free passes before the manager called on first-year pitcher Mason Fluharty to confront the core of the lineup in the sixth. He needed just four pitches to get out Max Muncy and Edman, protecting a fragile lead that soon became safe.

Converted starter Chris Bassitt then worked a scoreless seventh and eighth innings as the Dodgers' bats kept to struggle. The Dodgers have scored only three runs over their last 20 frames, an abrupt downturn for a club that ranked among MLB's top lineups all season.

Final Innings

The Los Angeles scraped a score in the ninth inning when Tommy Edman grounded out to bring home Teoscar Hernández after a walk and Max Muncy's double put two on base. But Louis Varland closed it down without permitting a rally to develop.

Following a night when the Blue Jays stranded a World Series-record 19 baserunners and fell apart after wave upon wave of wasted opportunities, Game 4 was brutally effective. 6 different Toronto players collected hits, five brought home runs and the team cashed nearly every run-scoring chance available in the late stanzas.

Looking Ahead

The win ensures the World Series trophy will be awarded at their home stadium, where the Toronto have not celebrated a championship since Carter's iconic game-winning home run in 1993. They now are aware they are assured a full house in Canada on Friday evening – and perhaps Saturday – no matter what happens next in Los Angeles.

The fifth game looms with the series reset and energy swinging north. Los Angeles left-hander Blake Snell (3-1, 2.42 ERA) will attempt to halt the Blue Jays's surge. Toronto respond with rookie Yesavage (2-1, 4.26 ERA) in a rematch of Game 1, when the Toronto knocked out the starter quickly in an 11-4 win.