Guerrero Blasts off Shohei Ohtani as Toronto See Off Dodgers to Tie Series at 2-2

Less than a day after staggering through one of the most exhausting defeats in World Series annals, the Blue Jays displayed total control.

Guerrero crushed a two-run homer and Bieber provided a steady start as Toronto defeated the Los Angeles Dodgers 6-2 in the fourth game on Tuesday night at their home ballpark, squaring the World Series at two wins apiece and guaranteeing the series will return to Canada.

Toronto had passed the early hours of the next day dealing with their marathon third game defeat – tied for the longest World Series game ever – a defeat that cost them the opportunity to take the lead in the series and depleted both relief corps. Skipper John Schneider insisted afterwards that “they took a contest, not the championship”. Twenty-three hours later, his squad provided emphatic evidence.

Initial Innings

The Dodgers again scored first. Max Muncy drew a walk in the second inning, advanced on a single and crossed the plate on Hernández's sacrifice fly. But the initial score did not rattle a Toronto club that topped Major League Baseball with 49 comeback victories this season.

They responded right away in the third. Lukes lined a one-out single to centre and Guerrero stepped in hunting a curveball. Shohei Ohtani left a slider up and he sent it soaring over the left-center wall. It was his first long hit of the World Series and his 7th homer this postseason – a fresh team record – regaining the Toronto's lead after 13 scoreless frames and shifting the momentum of the game.

Shohei's Performance

That swing also ended Ohtani's record-setting streak of 11 straight plate appearances getting on base. The dual-threat phenomenon had hit two home runs and got on base a record nine times in the Los Angeles' third game comeback win. But on that night, he took the mound on limited rest – his shortest ever – after needing an IV to recover from the prior marathon.

His fastball velocity was below his regular-season norm and he labored more as the contest progressed. Even so, he showed flashes of his usual command, retiring 11 of 12 after Guerrero's homer and striking out six. He even drew a walk in the first inning to extend his World Series streak. But the Blue Jays forced him to labor: six base hits and four runs were charged to him in over six frames.

Seventh Inning Rally

The bigger problem for Los Angeles was what came next when he finally ran out of energy.

Daulton Varsho started the seventh inning with a clean single to right field, and Ernie Clement smashed a double off the fence to put two on with no outs. Dave Roberts had little choice but to pull Ohtani, who exited to a standing ovation from the local fans. The Dodgers' relief corps could not finish the escape.

Anthony Banda inherited the mess and right away fell behind. Andrés Giménez fought to a full count before scoring Varsho with a single to left. Ty France came up next with a groundout to make it 4-1, and that was enough to knock the pitcher out of the contest. Treinen came in next but also failed to stop the rally: Bichette and Barger punched run-scoring base hits through the diamond, completing a four-run barrage that extended the lead to 6-1.

Blue Jays's Resilience

The Toronto's capacity to absorb early blows and answer has defined their whole run. They once again succeeded without Springer, the hurt top-of-the-order hitter who left Game 3 after straining his oblique.

Shane Bieber, in contrast, was exactly what the Blue Jays needed. Acquired during the summer while finishing recovery from Tommy John surgery, the former award-winning winner stranded several baserunners and silenced the Los Angeles' potent lineup. He gave up one run on four base hits and three free passes before the manager called on rookie pitcher Fluharty to face the core of the lineup in the sixth. He required just four pitches to retire Muncy and Edman, preserving a narrow advantage that quickly grew comfortable.

Former starter Chris Bassitt then worked a scoreless seventh and eighth as the Dodgers' bats kept to struggle. Los Angeles have produced only three scores over their last 20 frames, an sudden slowdown for a team that ranked among MLB's elite offenses all season.

Final Moments

The Dodgers managed a run in the ninth inning when Edman grounded 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 permitting a rally to develop.

After a game when the Blue Jays stranded a Fall Classic-record 19 baserunners and fell apart after wave upon wave of missed opportunities, Game 4 was brutally effective. 6 separate Blue Jays collected hits, 5 drove in runs and the team converted almost every run-scoring opportunity available in the late stanzas.

Looking Ahead

The victory ensures the championship title will be awarded at their home stadium, where the Toronto have not won a title since Joe Carter's iconic game-winning home run in 1993. They now know they are guaranteed a full crowd in Canada on Friday evening – and perhaps Saturday – no matter what occurs next in LA.

The fifth game approaches with the series even and energy swinging to Toronto. Los Angeles pitcher Snell (3-1, 2.42 ERA) will attempt to halt the Toronto's momentum. Toronto counter with first-year player Trey Yesavage (2-1, 4.26 ERA) in a rematch of the opener, when the Blue Jays knocked out the starter quickly in an decisive victory.