🔗 Share this article

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

Vladimir Guerrero Jr crushed a two-run homer and Bieber delivered a steady start as the Blue Jays defeated the Dodgers 6-2 in Game 4 on Tuesday evening at their home ballpark, tying the Fall Classic at two wins apiece and ensuring the series will head back to Canada.

Toronto had spent the early hours of the next day processing their 18-inning third game defeat – tied for the lengthiest World Series game ever – a defeat that denied them the chance to take the lead in the matchup and burned through both bullpens. Skipper John Schneider insisted afterwards that “the Dodgers won a contest, not the World Series”. Twenty-three hours later, his team offered emphatic proof.

Early Innings

The Dodgers again struck first. Max Muncy walked in the second inning, moved up on a single and crossed the plate on Hernández's fly out. But the initial breakthrough did not rattle a Blue Jays club that led MLB with 49 come-from-behind wins this year.

They responded immediately in the third inning. Lukes lined a one-out single to center field and Vladimir Guerrero Jr came to the plate hunting a breaking ball. Ohtani threw a sweeper up and he drove it soaring over the left-center wall. It was his initial extra-base hit of the series and his 7th homer this postseason – a fresh team record – regaining the Toronto's lead after 13 scoreless frames and changing the momentum of the game.

Shohei's Performance

That hit also halted Ohtani's history-making streak of 11 straight plate appearances getting on base. The dual-threat phenomenon had smashed two home runs and reached safely a record nine times in the Los Angeles' third game comeback win. But on that night, he took the mound on limited rest – his briefest ever – after needing an IV to recover from the prior marathon.

His pitch speed was under his regular-season norm and he labored more as the contest progressed. Nonetheless, he displayed flashes of his typical control, setting down 11 of 12 after Guerrero Jr's homer and striking out six. He even walked in the first inning to extend his World Series record. But the Toronto forced him to labor: six base hits and four runs were charged to him in over six innings.

Late Game Rally

The larger problem for Los Angeles was what followed when he finally lost energy.

Daulton Varsho opened the seventh with a clean hit to right, and Clement smashed a double off the wall to put two on with no outs. Dave Roberts had little choice but to remove the starter, who departed to a roaring applause from the home crowd. The Dodgers' relief corps could not complete the inning.

Anthony Banda came into the jam and immediately fell behind. Andrés Giménez fought to a 3-2 count before scoring Varsho with a single to left. Ty France followed with a fielder's choice 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 stop the momentum: Bichette and Barger punched run-scoring base hits through the diamond, completing a four-run outburst that pushed the margin to 6-1.

Blue Jays's Toughness

The Blue Jays's ability to withstand initial blows and respond has defined their whole run. They once again succeeded without George Springer, the hurt top-of-the-order man who left the third game after tweaking his oblique.

Bieber, in contrast, was everything Toronto needed. Traded for mid-season while completing rehab from elbow surgery, the ex- Cy Young winner stranded several runners and quieted the Los Angeles' dangerous lineup. He allowed one run on four hits and three walks before Schneider called on rookie left-hander Mason Fluharty to face the heart of the order in the sixth. He needed just 4 throws to retire Max Muncy and Edman, preserving a narrow lead that quickly became safe.

Former starter Chris Bassitt then pitched a clean seventh and eighth as the Dodgers' offense continued to sputter. Los Angeles have scored only three runs over their previous 20 frames, an abrupt slowdown for a club that ranked among baseball's elite lineups all season.

Closing Moments

The Los Angeles scraped a score in the ninth inning when Tommy Edman grounded out to score Teoscar Hernández after a walk and Muncy's two-base hit put runners on base. But Louis Varland finished the game without permitting a rally to build.

Following a night when the Blue Jays left a World Series-record 19 baserunners and fell apart after wave upon wave of missed opportunities, the fourth contest was ruthlessly efficient. Six separate Blue Jays recorded hits, five drove in runs and the squad cashed nearly every run-scoring opportunity presented in the late stanzas.

Looking Ahead

The win guarantees the World Series trophy will be awarded at Rogers Centre, where the Blue Jays have not celebrated a title since Carter's iconic walk-off homer in '93. They now know they are guaranteed a packed crowd in Toronto on Friday night – and possibly Saturday – no matter what occurs next in LA.

Game 5 approaches with the matchup reset and momentum shifting to Toronto. Dodgers pitcher Snell (3-1, 2.42 ERA) will try to arrest the Blue Jays's momentum. The Blue Jays counter with first-year player Yesavage (2-1, 4.26 ERA) in a repeat of Game 1, when the Blue Jays chased Snell early in an 11-4 victory.