🔗 Share this article

Less than a day following enduring one of the most draining defeats in Fall Classic history, the Toronto Blue Jays played with total control.

Guerrero smashed a two-run home run and Shane Bieber provided a steady start as Toronto beat the Dodgers 6-2 in the fourth game on Tuesday night at their home ballpark, tying the World Series at two wins apiece and guaranteeing the series will head back to Toronto.

The Blue Jays had spent the early hours of the next day processing their marathon third game defeat – tied for the longest World Series contest ever – a defeat that denied them the chance to lead the matchup and depleted both bullpens. Manager John Schneider insisted later that “the Dodgers won a contest, not the World Series”. Twenty-three hours later, his squad provided emphatic evidence.

Initial Action

The Dodgers again struck first. Max Muncy walked in the second, advanced on a base hit and scored on Hernández's fly out. But the early score did not shake a Blue Jays team that topped Major League Baseball with 49 come-from-behind victories this year.

They answered right away in the third inning. Lukes lined a one away base hit to centre and Guerrero came to the plate looking for a curveball. Shohei Ohtani left a slider up and Guerrero sent it soaring over the outfield fence. It was his first long hit of the World Series and his seventh homer this playoffs – a fresh club record – regaining the Toronto's advantage after 13 shutout frames and shifting the tone of the night.

Shohei's Performance

That swing also ended Ohtani's history-making run of 11 straight plate appearances reaching base. The dual-threat phenomenon had smashed two homers and reached safely a record nine times in the Dodgers' third game walk-off. But on that night, he started on limited rest – his shortest ever – after requiring an IV to recuperate from the previous marathon.

Ohtani pitch speed was under his seasonal norm and he struggled more as the contest wore on. Even so, he displayed flashes of his usual command, setting down 11 of 12 after Guerrero's homer and fanning six. He even drew a walk in the first inning to extend his World Series streak. But the Blue Jays forced him to labor: six base hits and four runs were credited to him in six-plus innings.

Seventh Inning Surge

The larger problem for Los Angeles was what came next when Ohtani eventually lost steam.

Varsho started the seventh inning with a clean single to right, and Clement drilled a two-base hit off the fence to put runners on with none out. Roberts had little choice but to pull Ohtani, who exited to a roaring applause from the home crowd. The Dodgers' bullpen could not complete the inning.

Anthony Banda came into the mess and immediately trailed in the count. Andrés Giménez fought to a full count before scoring the runner with a single to left. Ty France came up next with a groundout to make it 4-1, and that was sufficient to remove Banda out of the game. Treinen came in next but also failed to stem the rally: Bo Bichette and Addison Barger hit run-scoring base hits through the diamond, completing a four-run outburst that extended the lead to 6-1.

Toronto's Toughness

The Blue Jays's ability to absorb early setbacks and respond has characterized their entire postseason. They once again succeeded without Springer, the injured leadoff man who left the third game after straining his right side.

Bieber, in contrast, was exactly what Toronto needed. Traded for during the summer while finishing recovery from elbow surgery, the former Cy Young winner left multiple runners and quieted the Los Angeles' potent batting order. He gave up one run on four hits and three free passes before Schneider summoned rookie left-hander Fluharty to face the heart of the order in the sixth. Fluharty required just four pitches to retire Max Muncy and Tommy Edman, protecting a narrow advantage that quickly grew safe.

Converted starter Bassitt then worked a clean seventh and eighth innings as the Dodgers' offense continued to struggle. The Dodgers have scored only 3 scores over their last 20 innings, an sudden downturn for a club that was among baseball's top offenses all season.

Closing Moments

The Dodgers managed a run in the ninth inning when Tommy Edman grounded out to score Hernández after a base on balls and Max Muncy's double put runners on base. But Louis Varland finished the game without permitting a comeback to develop.

Following a night when Toronto left a World Series-record 19 baserunners and collapsed after wave upon wave of wasted opportunities, Game 4 was ruthlessly effective. 6 different Toronto players recorded hits, five brought home runs and the team cashed nearly every scoring opportunity available in the late innings.

Next Up

The victory guarantees the championship trophy will be presented at Rogers Centre, where the Toronto have not celebrated a championship since Joe Carter's famous game-winning homer in 1993. They now know they are guaranteed a packed crowd in Canada on Friday night – and possibly the next day – no matter what occurs next in LA.

Game 5 approaches with the matchup even and energy shifting north. Dodgers left-hander Snell (3-1, 2.42 ERA) will attempt to halt the Toronto's momentum. The Blue Jays respond with rookie Yesavage (2-1, 4.26 ERA) in a repeat of Game 1, when the Blue Jays chased Snell early in an decisive victory.