🔗 Share this article

Less than a day after enduring one of the most draining defeats in World Series history, the Blue Jays displayed total command.

Guerrero crushed a two-run homer and Shane Bieber provided a composed outing as Toronto defeated the Dodgers 6-2 in the fourth game on Tuesday night at their home ballpark, squaring the World Series at two wins apiece and ensuring the series will head back to Canada.

Toronto had spent the early hours of Tuesday processing their marathon third game defeat – tied for the longest Fall Classic game ever – a loss that cost them the chance to lead the matchup and burned through both bullpens. Manager John Schneider stated afterwards that “they won a game, not the World Series”. Twenty-three hours later, his squad offered convincing proof.

Initial Innings

The Los Angeles again scored first. Muncy drew a walk in the second inning, advanced on a single and crossed the plate on Kiké Hernández's fly out. But the initial score did not rattle a Toronto club that topped Major League Baseball with 49 come-from-behind victories this year.

They answered immediately in the third. Lukes hit a one-out single to center field and Guerrero came to the plate hunting a breaking ball. Shohei Ohtani left a slider up and he drove it soaring over the left-center wall. It was his initial extra-base hit of the World Series and his seventh homer this postseason – a fresh team mark – regaining the Toronto's lead after 13 scoreless frames and changing the momentum of the night.

Shohei's Performance

That hit also halted Shohei Ohtani's record-setting streak of 11 consecutive plate appearances reaching base. The dual-threat phenomenon had smashed two home runs and reached safely a record nine times in the Dodgers' third game comeback win. But on Tuesday, he took the mound on limited rest – his shortest ever – after needing an IV to recuperate from the prior marathon.

His fastball velocity was under his regular-season average and he struggled more as the game progressed. Nonetheless, he displayed flashes of his usual command, setting down 11 of 12 after Guerrero Jr's blast and striking out six. He even walked in the first inning to extend his World Series streak. But the Toronto made him work: six base hits and four runs were charged to him in over six frames.

Seventh Inning Rally

The bigger issue for the Dodgers was what followed when he eventually lost steam.

Varsho started the seventh with a sharp hit to right, and Clement drilled a double off the fence to put two on with none out. Roberts had little choice but to pull Ohtani, who exited to a roaring applause from the local fans. The Dodgers' relief corps could not finish the inning.

Anthony Banda inherited the jam and right away fell behind. Andrés Giménez fought 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 sufficient to knock Banda out of the game. Treinen entered next but also was unable to stem the momentum: Bo Bichette and Addison Barger hit run-scoring singles through the diamond, completing a four-score barrage that pushed the margin to 6-1.

Blue Jays's Resilience

The Blue Jays's capacity to withstand early setbacks and respond has characterized their whole postseason. They once again did it without Springer, the hurt top-of-the-order hitter who exited the third game after straining his right side.

Bieber, in contrast, was everything the Blue Jays required. Traded for during the summer while finishing recovery from Tommy John surgery, the former Cy Young winner stranded multiple baserunners and quieted the Dodgers' potent batting order. He gave up one run on four base hits and three free passes before the manager summoned first-year pitcher Fluharty to face the core of the order in the sixth. Fluharty required just four pitches to retire Muncy and Edman, protecting a narrow lead that quickly grew comfortable.

Former starter Bassitt then pitched a clean seventh and eighth as the Dodgers' offense continued to sputter. Los Angeles have produced only three scores over their last 20 innings, an abrupt slowdown for a club that was among baseball's elite offenses all year.

Final Moments

The Dodgers scraped a score in the ninth inning when Tommy Edman grounded out to score Teoscar Hernández after a walk and Max Muncy's double put two on base. But Varland finished the game without allowing a rally to build.

After a night when Toronto stranded a Fall Classic-record 19 baserunners and collapsed after repeated of missed chances, Game 4 was ruthlessly efficient. Six separate Blue Jays collected base hits, 5 brought home scores and the team cashed nearly every scoring chance available in the late stanzas.

Looking Ahead

The win ensures the World Series title will be presented at Rogers Centre, where the Blue Jays have not celebrated a title since Carter's iconic game-winning homer in 1993. They now know they are guaranteed a packed crowd in Toronto on Friday evening – and possibly the next day – no matter what occurs next in LA.

The fifth game approaches with the series even and energy shifting to Toronto. Dodgers pitcher Blake Snell (3-1, 2.42 ERA) will attempt to halt the Blue Jays's surge. Toronto respond with rookie Trey Yesavage (2-1, 4.26 ERA) in a rematch of the opener, when the Toronto chased the starter early in an 11-4 victory.