🔗 Share this article Guerrero Homers against Ohtani as Blue Jays Defeat Dodgers to Level Series at 2-2 Only 24 hours after enduring one of the most draining losses in Fall Classic annals, the Toronto Blue Jays played with complete command. Vladimir Guerrero Jr crushed a two-run home run and Bieber provided a steady start as the Blue Jays defeated the Los Angeles Dodgers 6-2 in Game 4 on Tuesday night at Dodger Stadium, tying the Fall Classic at two games each and guaranteeing the matchup will head back to Toronto. The Blue Jays had spent the morning of the next day processing their 18-inning third game defeat – equal to the longest World Series contest ever – a defeat that cost them the chance to take the lead in the matchup and burned through both relief corps. Manager John Schneider insisted afterwards that “they took a contest, not the World Series”. A day later, his team offered emphatic evidence. Early Innings The Dodgers again struck first. Muncy drew a walk in the second inning, advanced on a base hit and crossed the plate on Hernández's fly out. But the initial score did not rattle a Blue Jays team that led MLB with 49 comeback victories this year. They answered immediately in the third inning. Nathan Lukes hit a one-out base hit to center field and Vladimir Guerrero Jr came to the plate looking for a curveball. Ohtani left a slider up and he drove it screaming over the outfield fence. It was his first long hit of the World Series and his 7th home run this playoffs – a new club mark – restoring the Toronto's advantage after 13 scoreless frames and shifting the tone of the game. Shohei's Night That swing also halted Shohei Ohtani's history-making streak of 11 consecutive plate appearances getting on base. The two-way star had hit two home runs and reached safely a record nine times in the Dodgers' Game 3 comeback win. But on Tuesday, he took the mound on limited rest – his shortest ever – after requiring an IV to recuperate from the prior marathon. His pitch speed was under his regular-season norm and he labored more as the contest wore on. Even so, he displayed flashes of his typical command, retiring 11 of 12 after Guerrero's blast and fanning six. He even walked in the first inning to continue his Fall Classic record. But the Blue Jays forced him to labor: six hits and four runs were charged to him in over six frames. Seventh Inning Surge The larger issue for the Dodgers was what followed when he eventually ran out of steam. Daulton Varsho started the seventh with a sharp hit to right, and Ernie Clement smashed a two-base hit off the wall to put runners on with no outs. Dave Roberts had no option but to remove the starter, who departed to a standing ovation from the home crowd. The Dodgers' bullpen could not finish the escape. Banda inherited the mess and right away fell behind. Giménez battled to a 3-2 count before driving in Varsho with a base hit to left. Ty France followed with a fielder's choice to make it 4-1, and that was sufficient to knock the pitcher out of the game. Blake Treinen entered next but also failed to stem the rally: Bo Bichette and Addison Barger hit RBI singles through the diamond, capping a four-score outburst that pushed the lead to 6-1. Blue Jays's Resilience The Toronto's ability to withstand initial blows and answer has defined their whole run. They once again did it without George Springer, the hurt leadoff hitter who left the third game after tweaking his right side. Shane Bieber, meanwhile, was exactly what Toronto needed. Traded for during the summer while finishing rehab from elbow surgery, the ex- Cy Young winner left multiple runners and silenced the Dodgers' dangerous batting order. He allowed one earned run on four hits and three free passes before Schneider summoned first-year left-hander Fluharty to confront the heart of the order in the sixth inning. Fluharty needed just 4 throws to get out Max Muncy and Tommy Edman, protecting a narrow lead that quickly became comfortable. Converted starting pitcher Bassitt then worked a clean seventh and eighth as the Los Angeles' offense kept to sputter. Los Angeles have scored only 3 scores over their last 20 innings, an sudden downturn for a team that was among baseball's elite offenses all season. Closing Innings The Los Angeles scraped a run in the ninth when Tommy Edman hit into an out to score Teoscar Hernández after a base on balls and Muncy's two-base hit put runners aboard. But Varland finished the game without permitting a comeback to develop. After a night when the Blue Jays stranded a Fall Classic-record 19 runners and fell apart after wave upon wave of wasted opportunities, Game 4 was ruthlessly effective. 6 separate Blue Jays collected hits, 5 drove in scores and the team cashed almost every run-scoring chance presented in the late innings. Next Up The victory guarantees the World Series title will be awarded at Rogers Centre, where the Blue Jays have not celebrated a championship since Carter's famous game-winning home run in '93. They now are aware they are guaranteed a full crowd in Toronto on Friday evening – and possibly Saturday – no matter what happens next in LA. The fifth game looms with the series even and energy swinging north. Dodgers pitcher Snell (3-1, 2.42 ERA) will try to arrest the Blue Jays's surge. Toronto respond with first-year player Yesavage (2-1, 4.26 ERA) in a rematch of the opener, when the Blue Jays chased Snell quickly in an 11-4 victory.