🔗 Share this article

Less than a day following staggering through one of the most draining defeats in World Series history, the Toronto Blue Jays played with complete command.

Vladimir Guerrero Jr crushed a two-run home run and Bieber delivered a steady outing as the Blue Jays beat the Los Angeles Dodgers 6-2 in the fourth game on Tuesday evening at their home ballpark, squaring the Fall Classic at two games each and ensuring the series will head back to Canada.

Toronto had passed the early hours of the next day dealing with their 18-inning Game 3 loss – equal to the longest Fall Classic contest ever – a defeat that cost them the chance to lead the matchup and depleted both relief corps. Manager Schneider stated afterwards that “they took a game, not the World Series”. Twenty-three hours later, his squad offered convincing proof.

Initial Innings

The Los Angeles again struck first. Muncy walked in the second inning, moved up on a single and scored on Hernández's sacrifice fly. But the initial score did not rattle a Toronto team that led Major League Baseball with 49 comeback wins this year.

They answered immediately in the third inning. Nathan Lukes lined a one-out single to center field and Vladimir Guerrero Jr came to the plate looking for a breaking ball. Shohei Ohtani threw a sweeper up and he sent it screaming over the outfield fence. It was his initial long hit of the series and his 7th home run this postseason – a fresh club record – regaining the Blue Jays's lead after 13 scoreless innings and shifting the tone of the night.

Shohei's Night

That hit also halted Shohei Ohtani's record-setting run of 11 consecutive plate appearances getting on base. The two-way phenomenon had smashed two homers and reached safely a historic nine times in the Los Angeles' third game walk-off. But on that night, he started on limited rest – his shortest ever – after needing an IV to recuperate from the prior marathon.

Ohtani pitch speed was under his regular-season average and he labored more as the contest progressed. Even so, he displayed flashes of his usual command, retiring 11 of 12 after Guerrero Jr's blast and fanning six. He even drew a walk in the first inning to continue his World Series record. But the Blue Jays forced him to labor: six hits and four earned runs were credited to him in over six innings.

Late Game Rally

The bigger issue for the Dodgers was what came next when Ohtani eventually ran out of energy.

Daulton Varsho opened the seventh with a clean hit to right field, and Clement drilled a two-base hit off the fence to put two on with no outs. Dave Roberts had little choice but to remove the starter, who departed to a standing ovation from the local fans. The Dodgers' bullpen could not complete the inning.

Banda inherited the mess and immediately fell behind. Giménez battled to a 3-2 count before scoring Varsho with a single to left field. Ty France followed with a groundout to make it 4-1, and that was sufficient to knock Banda out of the game. Blake Treinen came in next but also failed to stem the rally: Bichette and Addison Barger punched RBI singles through the diamond, completing a four-run outburst that extended the margin to 6-1.

Blue Jays's Toughness

The Toronto's capacity to absorb initial setbacks and answer has characterized their whole run. They once again succeeded without George Springer, the hurt top-of-the-order man who exited Game 3 after tweaking his oblique.

Shane Bieber, meanwhile, was everything the Blue Jays needed. Acquired during the summer while finishing recovery from Tommy John surgery, the ex- award-winning winner stranded several runners and quieted the Los Angeles' dangerous lineup. He allowed one earned run on four hits and three free passes before Schneider summoned rookie pitcher Fluharty to confront the core of the order in the sixth. Fluharty needed just 4 throws to retire Max Muncy and Edman, preserving a narrow advantage that quickly grew comfortable.

Converted starting pitcher Bassitt then pitched a clean seventh and eighth as the Los Angeles' offense continued to struggle. The Dodgers have produced only 3 scores over their previous 20 innings, an abrupt downturn for a club that was among baseball's top offenses all year.

Final Innings

The Los Angeles scraped a score in the ninth when Tommy Edman hit into an out to score Hernández after a walk and Muncy's two-base hit put two aboard. But Louis Varland finished the game without allowing a rally to develop.

After a night when Toronto left a World Series-record 19 runners and fell apart after wave upon wave of wasted opportunities, the fourth contest was brutally efficient. Six separate Blue Jays recorded hits, five drove in scores and the squad cashed nearly every run-scoring opportunity available in the late stanzas.

Next Up

The win ensures the World Series trophy will be presented at Rogers Centre, where the Blue Jays have not won a championship since Joe Carter's iconic walk-off home run in '93. They now know they are assured a packed house in Canada on Friday evening – and perhaps Saturday – no matter what happens next in Los Angeles.

The fifth game approaches with the series reset and momentum swinging north. Los Angeles left-hander Snell (3-1, 2.42 ERA) will try to halt the Toronto's surge. 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 quickly in an decisive victory.