Vladimir Guerrero Jr Blasts off Ohtani as Toronto Defeat Dodgers to Tie World Series at 2-2

Only 24 hours after enduring one of the most draining losses in Fall Classic history, the Toronto Blue Jays played with complete control.

Vladimir Guerrero Jr crushed a two-run homer and Bieber provided a composed start as Toronto beat the Dodgers 6-2 in Game 4 on Tuesday night at their home ballpark, tying the Fall Classic at two wins apiece and guaranteeing the series will head back to Toronto.

Toronto had spent the morning of the next day dealing with their marathon Game 3 loss – equal to the lengthiest Fall Classic game ever – a loss that denied them the chance to lead the matchup and depleted both relief corps. Skipper Schneider stated afterwards that “they took a contest, not the World Series”. Twenty-three hours later, his team offered emphatic evidence.

Initial Action

The Dodgers again scored first. Max Muncy drew a walk in the second inning, advanced on a single and scored on Hernández's fly out. But the initial score did not rattle a Toronto club that led MLB with 49 come-from-behind victories this season.

They responded immediately in the third. Nathan Lukes lined a one-out base hit to center field and Vladimir Guerrero Jr came to the plate hunting a curveball. Shohei Ohtani threw a sweeper up and he drove it screaming over the left-center wall. It was his initial long hit of the World Series and his 7th home run this postseason – a fresh club mark – restoring the Toronto's lead after 13 scoreless frames and changing the tone of the game.

Shohei's Night

That swing also halted Ohtani's history-making streak of 11 straight at-bats getting on base. The two-way phenomenon had hit two homers and got on base a historic nine times in the Los Angeles' Game 3 walk-off. But on that night, he took the mound on limited rest – his shortest ever – after needing an IV to recuperate from the prior marathon.

Ohtani fastball velocity was under his seasonal norm and he labored more as the game wore on. Nonetheless, he showed glimpses of his usual command, setting down 11 of 12 after Guerrero's blast and striking out six. He even drew a walk in the first to continue his Fall Classic record. But the Blue Jays forced him to labor: six base hits and four runs were charged to him in six-plus frames.

Seventh Inning Rally

The bigger problem for Los Angeles was what followed when Ohtani eventually ran out of energy.

Daulton Varsho started the seventh inning with a sharp hit to right, and Clement drilled a double off the wall to put two on with none out. Roberts had little choice but to pull the starter, who departed to a roaring applause from the local fans. The Los Angeles' bullpen could not complete the inning.

Banda inherited the jam and immediately trailed in the count. Andrés Giménez battled to a full count before scoring the runner with a base hit to left field. Ty France came up next with a fielder's choice to make it 4-1, and that was sufficient to remove the pitcher out of the game. Treinen came in next but also failed to stop the momentum: Bichette and Barger punched run-scoring base hits through the diamond, capping a four-run barrage that pushed the margin to 6-1.

Toronto's Resilience

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

Shane Bieber, in contrast, was everything Toronto required. Acquired during the summer while completing rehab from Tommy John surgery, the former award-winning winner left multiple baserunners and quieted the Dodgers' dangerous lineup. He allowed one earned run on four base hits and three free passes before the manager called on first-year pitcher Mason Fluharty to confront the core of the lineup in the sixth inning. Fluharty needed just four throws to get out Muncy and Tommy Edman, preserving a fragile advantage that quickly became safe.

Converted starter Chris Bassitt then worked a scoreless seventh and eighth innings as the Dodgers' bats kept to struggle. The Dodgers have scored only 3 runs over their previous 20 frames, an abrupt downturn for a team that was among MLB's top lineups all season.

Final Innings

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

Following a night when the Blue Jays stranded a Fall Classic-record 19 baserunners and fell apart after wave upon wave of missed chances, Game 4 was ruthlessly efficient. 6 separate Toronto players collected hits, 5 brought home scores and the team cashed almost every run-scoring opportunity available in the final stanzas.

Next Up

The victory ensures the championship title will be awarded at Rogers Centre, where the Blue Jays have not won a championship since Joe Carter's iconic walk-off homer in '93. They now are aware they are guaranteed a packed house in Toronto on Friday night – and perhaps Saturday – no matter what occurs next in Los Angeles.

The fifth game approaches with the matchup reset and momentum swinging north. Los Angeles left-hander Blake Snell (3-1, 2.42 ERA) will try to arrest the Blue Jays's surge. Toronto respond with first-year player Trey Yesavage (2-1, 4.26 ERA) in a rematch of Game 1, when the Blue Jays chased the starter early in an 11-4 victory.