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Less than a day after enduring one of the most draining losses in Fall Classic history, the Toronto Blue Jays played with complete command.

Vladimir Guerrero Jr crushed a two-run homer and Bieber provided a steady start as the Blue Jays beat the Los Angeles Dodgers 6-2 in the fourth game on Tuesday evening at their home ballpark, squaring the World Series at two wins apiece and ensuring the series will return to Toronto.

Toronto had spent the early hours of the next day processing their 18-inning Game 3 loss – tied for the longest World Series contest ever – a defeat that cost them the opportunity to take the lead in the series and depleted both relief corps. Manager John Schneider insisted afterwards that “the Dodgers took a game, not the World Series”. Twenty-three hours later, his squad provided emphatic evidence.

Early Innings

The Dodgers again scored first. Muncy drew a walk in the second, moved up on a base hit and crossed the plate on Hernández's sacrifice fly. But the early score did not shake a Toronto team that topped MLB with 49 come-from-behind wins this year.

They answered right away in the third inning. Lukes lined a one-out base hit to centre and Vladimir Guerrero Jr came to the plate looking for a breaking ball. Ohtani left a sweeper up and he sent it screaming over the outfield fence. It was his initial extra-base hit of the series and his seventh home run this playoffs – a fresh club mark – restoring the Blue Jays's lead after 13 shutout innings and changing the tone of the game.

Shohei's Night

That swing also ended Ohtani's record-setting streak of 11 straight plate appearances reaching base. The dual-threat star had smashed 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 needing an IV to recover from the prior marathon.

Ohtani pitch speed was below his seasonal average and he struggled more as the contest wore on. Nonetheless, he displayed glimpses 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 continue his Fall Classic streak. But the Blue Jays forced him to labor: six base hits and four earned runs were credited to him in six-plus frames.

Seventh Inning Rally

The larger problem for the Dodgers was what came next when he eventually lost steam.

Daulton Varsho opened the seventh inning with a clean single to right field, and Clement smashed a two-base hit off the fence to put runners on with no outs. Dave Roberts had no option but to remove Ohtani, who departed to a roaring applause from the local fans. The Los Angeles' bullpen could not complete the escape.

Anthony Banda inherited the jam and right away trailed in the count. Giménez battled to a 3-2 count before driving in Varsho with a base hit to left. Ty France came up next with a groundout to make it 4-1, and that was sufficient to knock Banda out of the contest. Blake Treinen came in next but also failed to stem the rally: Bo Bichette and Addison Barger hit RBI base hits through the infield, completing a four-run outburst that pushed the margin to 6-1.

Toronto's Resilience

The Blue Jays's ability to withstand initial blows and answer has defined their whole run. They once again did it without George Springer, the hurt top-of-the-order hitter who exited the third game after straining his right side.

Bieber, in contrast, was everything Toronto needed. Acquired mid-season while finishing rehab from elbow surgery, the ex- award-winning winner left several runners and quieted the Dodgers' dangerous batting order. He allowed one earned run on four base hits and three free passes before Schneider summoned rookie pitcher Mason Fluharty to face the heart of the lineup in the sixth inning. He required just four pitches to retire Muncy and Edman, protecting a fragile lead that quickly grew safe.

Converted starter Bassitt then worked a scoreless seventh and eighth as the Dodgers' offense kept to struggle. The Dodgers have produced only three scores over their previous 20 innings, an abrupt downturn for a team that ranked among baseball's elite lineups all season.

Final Moments

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

After a game when Toronto left a World Series-record 19 baserunners and fell apart after repeated of wasted opportunities, the fourth contest was brutally effective. 6 separate Toronto players recorded hits, five brought home runs and the team converted nearly every run-scoring chance available in the final stanzas.

Next Up

The victory guarantees the championship trophy will be awarded at Rogers Centre, where the Toronto have not celebrated a championship since Joe Carter's iconic game-winning home run in 1993. They now know they are assured a full house in Toronto on Friday night – and perhaps the next day – no matter what occurs next in Los Angeles.

Game 5 looms with the matchup even and momentum shifting to Toronto. Los Angeles pitcher Blake Snell (3-1, 2.42 ERA) will attempt to arrest the Toronto's surge. Toronto respond with first-year player Trey Yesavage (2-1, 4.26 ERA) in a repeat of the opener, when the Toronto knocked out Snell early in an decisive victory.