🔗 Share this article

Only 24 hours following enduring one of the most exhausting defeats in Fall Classic history, the Blue Jays displayed complete control.

Vladimir Guerrero Jr crushed a two-run homer and Shane Bieber delivered a composed outing as Toronto 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 guaranteeing the matchup will head back to Canada.

The Blue Jays had spent the morning of the next day dealing with their marathon Game 3 loss – tied for the longest World Series contest ever – a loss that cost them the opportunity to take the lead in the matchup and burned through both bullpens. Manager Schneider stated later that “they won a contest, not the championship”. A day later, his squad offered emphatic proof.

Early Action

The Dodgers again struck first. Max Muncy walked in the second, moved up on a base hit and scored on Kiké Hernández's sacrifice fly. But the initial score did not shake a Toronto team that topped Major League Baseball with 49 come-from-behind victories this season.

They answered right away in the third. Nathan Lukes lined a one-out base hit to center field and Guerrero came to the plate hunting a curveball. Shohei Ohtani left a sweeper up and Guerrero sent it soaring over the outfield fence. It was his first extra-base hit of the World Series and his seventh homer this postseason – a new team record – regaining the Blue Jays's advantage after 13 shutout innings and shifting the momentum of the night.

Ohtani's Night

That hit also halted Ohtani's record-setting run of 11 consecutive at-bats getting on base. The two-way star had hit two homers and reached safely a record nine times in the Los Angeles' Game 3 comeback win. But on that night, he took the mound on limited rest – his shortest ever – after requiring an IV to recuperate from the prior marathon.

His pitch speed sat under his regular-season norm and he struggled more as the game progressed. Nonetheless, he showed flashes of his typical control, retiring 11 of 12 after Guerrero Jr's homer and striking out six. He even walked in the first to continue his Fall Classic record. But the Blue Jays made him work: six hits and four runs were charged to him in six-plus innings.

Late Game Rally

The bigger problem for the Dodgers was what followed when Ohtani finally ran out of energy.

Varsho opened the seventh inning with a sharp hit to right, and Clement drilled a two-base hit off the fence to put two on with none out. Roberts had little choice but to remove the starter, who departed to a roaring applause from the home crowd. The Los Angeles' bullpen could not complete the inning.

Banda inherited the mess and immediately trailed in the count. Giménez fought to a 3-2 count before driving in the runner with a single to left field. France came up next with a groundout to make it 4-1, and that was enough to knock Banda out of the game. Blake Treinen entered next but also failed to stem the momentum: Bichette and Barger punched RBI singles through the infield, capping a four-score outburst that extended the margin to 6-1.

Blue Jays's Resilience

The Toronto's capacity to absorb early blows and answer has defined their entire run. They once again did it without George Springer, the hurt leadoff man who exited Game 3 after straining his right side.

Shane Bieber, in contrast, was everything the Blue Jays needed. Acquired mid-season while completing recovery from Tommy John surgery, the former Cy Young winner left multiple runners and quieted the Los Angeles' potent batting order. He gave up one run on four base hits and three walks before Schneider summoned first-year pitcher Mason Fluharty to face the heart of the lineup in the sixth. Fluharty needed just 4 pitches to retire Muncy and Tommy Edman, preserving a narrow advantage that soon became safe.

Former starter Chris Bassitt then worked a clean seventh and eighth innings as the Los Angeles' bats kept to sputter. Los Angeles have scored only three runs over their last 20 frames, an abrupt slowdown for a team that was among baseball's top offenses all year.

Closing Moments

The Los Angeles managed a score in the ninth inning when Edman hit into an out to bring home Teoscar Hernández after a base on balls and Max Muncy's two-base hit put runners aboard. But Louis Varland closed it down without allowing a rally to develop.

Following a night when Toronto stranded a Fall Classic-record 19 baserunners and fell apart after repeated of missed opportunities, Game 4 was ruthlessly efficient. 6 different Blue Jays recorded base hits, 5 brought home runs and the team converted nearly every run-scoring chance available in the final innings.

Next Up

The win guarantees the championship title will be awarded at their home stadium, where the Blue Jays have not won a title since Joe Carter's iconic game-winning homer in 1993. They now know they are assured a packed house in Canada on Friday evening – and possibly the next day – no matter what happens next in Los Angeles.

The fifth game looms with the series reset and energy swinging to Toronto. Dodgers left-hander Blake Snell (3-1, 2.42 ERA) will attempt to arrest the Blue Jays's surge. The Blue Jays respond with rookie Yesavage (2-1, 4.26 ERA) in a rematch of Game 1, when the Toronto knocked out the starter early in an 11-4 victory.