🔗 Share this article

Only 24 hours after enduring one of the most exhausting defeats in Fall Classic annals, the Toronto Blue Jays displayed complete command.

Guerrero crushed a two-run homer and Bieber delivered a composed outing as Toronto defeated the Los Angeles Dodgers 6-2 in Game 4 on Tuesday night at Dodger Stadium, squaring the World Series at two games each and ensuring the series will head back to Canada.

Toronto had spent the morning of the next day processing their 18-inning third game defeat – equal to the longest World Series contest ever – a loss that denied them the chance to take the lead in the matchup and burned through both relief corps. Manager Schneider stated afterwards that “they took a contest, not the World Series”. Twenty-three hours later, his squad provided convincing proof.

Initial Action

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

They responded immediately in the third inning. Nathan Lukes hit a one-out single to centre and Vladimir Guerrero Jr came to the plate looking for a curveball. Ohtani left a sweeper up and Guerrero sent it screaming over the outfield fence. It was his initial long hit of the World Series and his 7th homer this playoffs – a new team mark – regaining the Toronto's advantage after 13 scoreless frames and shifting the momentum of the game.

Shohei's Performance

That hit also ended Shohei Ohtani's history-making streak of 11 consecutive plate appearances getting on base. The dual-threat star had hit two home runs and reached safely a historic nine times in the Los Angeles' third game walk-off. But on that night, he started on short rest – his briefest ever – after needing an IV to recuperate from the previous marathon.

His pitch speed was under his regular-season average and he struggled more as the contest progressed. Even so, he displayed glimpses of his typical control, retiring 11 of 12 after Guerrero's blast and fanning six. He even drew a walk in the first to extend his Fall Classic record. But the Blue Jays made him work: six hits and four runs were charged to him in six-plus innings.

Seventh Inning Surge

The bigger issue for the Dodgers was what followed when Ohtani eventually lost energy.

Daulton Varsho opened the seventh with a sharp single to right, and Ernie Clement drilled a double off the wall to put runners on with none out. Dave Roberts had no option but to pull Ohtani, who departed to a roaring applause from the home crowd. The Los Angeles' relief corps could not complete the escape.

Anthony Banda came into the mess and immediately trailed in the count. Giménez battled to a 3-2 count before driving in the runner with a single to left. France followed with a groundout to make it 4-1, and that was enough to remove Banda out of the contest. Treinen came in next but also was unable to stop the rally: Bichette and Addison Barger hit RBI singles through the infield, completing a four-run barrage that extended the margin to 6-1.

Blue Jays's Toughness

The Toronto's capacity to absorb early blows and respond has defined their entire postseason. They once again did it without George Springer, the injured top-of-the-order man who exited Game 3 after straining his oblique.

Bieber, meanwhile, was exactly what the Blue Jays needed. Traded for during the summer while finishing rehab from Tommy John surgery, the former Cy Young winner left several runners and silenced the Dodgers' dangerous lineup. He gave up one earned run on four base hits and three free passes before the manager called on rookie pitcher Mason Fluharty to confront the core of the order in the sixth. He required just 4 pitches to get out Muncy and Tommy Edman, preserving a fragile advantage that quickly grew safe.

Converted starting pitcher Bassitt then worked a scoreless seventh and eighth as the Dodgers' bats kept to sputter. Los Angeles have produced only 3 scores over their last 20 frames, an abrupt slowdown for a team that ranked among MLB's elite lineups all year.

Closing Innings

The Los Angeles scraped a run in the ninth when Edman hit into an out to score Teoscar Hernández after a base on balls and Max Muncy's double put two on base. But Varland closed it down without permitting a rally to develop.

Following a game when Toronto left a World Series-record 19 baserunners and fell apart after wave upon wave of missed chances, Game 4 was brutally efficient. 6 different Blue Jays recorded base hits, 5 brought home scores and the team cashed almost every run-scoring chance available in the late innings.

Next Up

The victory guarantees the World Series trophy will be presented at their home stadium, where the Blue Jays have not won a championship since Joe Carter's iconic game-winning homer in '93. They now know they are assured a packed crowd in Canada on Friday night – and possibly the next day – no matter what occurs next in Los Angeles.

Game 5 looms with the matchup reset and momentum swinging north. Dodgers pitcher Blake Snell (3-1, 2.42 ERA) will attempt 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 Toronto chased Snell quickly in an 11-4 win.