🔗 Share this article

Less than a day following staggering through one of the most exhausting losses in Fall Classic annals, the Blue Jays displayed complete control.

Guerrero crushed a two-run homer and Bieber delivered a composed start as the Blue Jays beat the Dodgers 6-2 in the fourth game on Tuesday night at their home ballpark, squaring the Fall Classic at two games each and guaranteeing the series will return to Toronto.

Toronto had passed the early hours of Tuesday dealing with their 18-inning third game defeat – equal to the lengthiest Fall Classic contest ever – a defeat that cost them the chance to lead the series and depleted both relief corps. Skipper John Schneider insisted afterwards that “the Dodgers won a game, not the championship”. A day later, his squad provided convincing proof.

Early Innings

The Los Angeles again scored first. Max Muncy walked in the second inning, advanced on a single and scored on Hernández's fly out. But the early score did not shake a Blue Jays club that led MLB with 49 comeback wins this year.

They responded right away in the third. Nathan Lukes lined a one-out base hit to centre and Vladimir Guerrero Jr stepped in hunting a breaking ball. Shohei Ohtani left a sweeper up and he sent it soaring over the outfield fence. It was his initial long hit of the World Series and his 7th homer this postseason – a fresh team mark – regaining the Toronto's advantage after 13 scoreless frames and changing the tone of the night.

Shohei's Performance

That swing also halted Shohei Ohtani's history-making run of 11 consecutive plate appearances reaching base. The two-way phenomenon had hit two home runs and reached safely a record nine times in the Dodgers' Game 3 walk-off. But on Tuesday, he took the mound on short rest – his shortest ever – after requiring an IV to recover from the prior extra-inning game.

Ohtani fastball velocity sat under his regular-season average and he labored more as the contest progressed. Nonetheless, he displayed glimpses of his typical control, setting down 11 of 12 after Guerrero's homer and striking out six. He even walked in the first to continue his World Series record. But the Blue Jays made him work: six hits and four runs were credited to him in over six innings.

Late Game Surge

The bigger problem for the Dodgers was what followed when he finally lost energy.

Daulton Varsho opened the seventh inning with a sharp single to right, and Clement smashed a double off the fence to put two on with no outs. Dave Roberts had little choice but to remove the starter, who exited to a standing ovation from the home crowd. The Dodgers' relief corps could not finish the escape.

Banda inherited the mess and right away trailed in the count. Giménez battled to a full count before driving in the runner with a base hit to left. Ty France came up next with a fielder's choice to make it 4-1, and that was sufficient to knock Banda out of the game. Treinen entered next but also failed to stem the momentum: Bichette and Addison Barger hit run-scoring base hits through the infield, capping a four-score outburst that extended the margin to 6-1.

Blue Jays's Toughness

The Toronto's capacity to withstand initial blows and answer has characterized their whole run. They once again did it without George Springer, the hurt leadoff man who left the third game after straining his oblique.

Shane Bieber, meanwhile, was everything the Blue Jays required. Acquired mid-season while finishing rehab from elbow surgery, the ex- Cy Young winner stranded multiple baserunners and quieted the Los Angeles' dangerous batting order. He gave up one earned run on four base hits and three walks before Schneider called on rookie left-hander Fluharty to confront the heart of the lineup in the sixth inning. Fluharty needed just 4 throws to get out Muncy and Edman, preserving a fragile advantage that quickly became comfortable.

Converted starting pitcher Bassitt then pitched a clean seventh and eighth innings as the Dodgers' bats kept to struggle. The Dodgers have produced only 3 scores over their previous 20 innings, an sudden downturn for a club that was among baseball's top lineups all season.

Final Moments

The Los Angeles managed a run in the ninth inning when Tommy Edman hit into an out to score Hernández after a walk and Max Muncy's double put two on base. But Louis Varland closed it down without permitting a comeback to develop.

After a game when Toronto left a Fall Classic-record 19 baserunners and collapsed after wave upon wave of missed chances, the fourth contest was brutally effective. Six different Blue Jays collected hits, five brought home runs and the team cashed nearly every run-scoring chance presented in the late innings.

Looking Ahead

The victory guarantees the championship title will be awarded at their home stadium, where the Blue Jays have not won a championship since Carter's iconic walk-off home run in '93. They now know they are assured a packed house in Canada on Friday evening – and possibly Saturday – no matter what occurs next in Los Angeles.

Game 5 approaches with the series even and energy shifting north. Dodgers pitcher Blake Snell (3-1, 2.42 ERA) will attempt to halt the Blue Jays's surge. The Blue Jays counter with first-year player Trey Yesavage (2-1, 4.26 ERA) in a repeat of the opener, when the Blue Jays chased Snell early in an 11-4 win.