Guerrero Homers against Shohei Ohtani as Blue Jays See Off Dodgers to Level Series at 2-2
Less than a day following staggering through one of the most draining losses in World Series history, the Blue Jays played with complete command.
Vladimir Guerrero Jr smashed a two-run homer and Bieber delivered a steady start as the Blue Jays beat the Los Angeles Dodgers 6-2 in the fourth game on Tuesday night at Dodger Stadium, tying the Fall Classic at two games each and guaranteeing the matchup will head back to Canada.
The Blue Jays had spent the early hours of the next day dealing with their 18-inning Game 3 loss – equal to the lengthiest World Series contest ever – a defeat that cost them the chance to take the lead in the matchup and depleted both relief corps. Manager Schneider insisted afterwards that “they won a contest, not the World Series”. A day later, his team offered convincing proof.
Early Innings
The Los Angeles again struck first. Max Muncy walked in the second inning, moved up on a single and crossed the plate on Hernández's sacrifice fly. But the initial breakthrough did not rattle a Toronto team that led MLB with 49 comeback wins this season.
They answered right away in the third inning. Nathan Lukes lined a one-out base hit to centre and Guerrero came to the plate looking for a curveball. Ohtani threw a slider up and he drove it screaming over the outfield fence. It was his initial long hit of the World Series and his 7th home run this playoffs – a new team record – regaining the Blue Jays's advantage after 13 shutout frames and shifting the tone of the game.
Ohtani's Night
That swing also halted Shohei Ohtani's record-setting streak of 11 consecutive at-bats getting on base. The dual-threat phenomenon had hit two homers and reached safely a historic nine times in the Los Angeles' third game comeback win. But on that night, he started on limited rest – his shortest ever – after needing an IV to recuperate from the previous marathon.
His fastball velocity sat below his regular-season average and he struggled more as the contest progressed. Nonetheless, he showed flashes of his typical control, retiring 11 of 12 after Guerrero Jr's homer and striking out six. He even drew a walk in the first inning to continue his Fall Classic streak. But the Toronto made him work: six base hits and four runs were charged to him in over six innings.
Seventh Inning Surge
The bigger problem for Los Angeles was what followed when Ohtani finally ran out of energy.
Daulton Varsho started the seventh with a sharp hit to right field, and Ernie Clement smashed a two-base hit off the wall to put two on with no outs. Roberts had little choice but to remove the starter, who exited to a roaring applause from the local fans. The Dodgers' relief corps could not finish the inning.
Anthony Banda came into the jam and right away trailed in the count. Giménez battled to a full count before scoring Varsho with a base hit to left. France came up next with a groundout to make it 4-1, and that was enough to remove the pitcher out of the game. Blake Treinen entered next but also failed to stem the rally: Bo Bichette and Addison Barger punched RBI base hits through the infield, completing a four-score outburst that pushed the margin to 6-1.
Blue Jays's Resilience
The Toronto's capacity to withstand early blows and answer has characterized their entire postseason. They once again did it without George Springer, the hurt leadoff hitter who left the third game after tweaking his oblique.
Bieber, in contrast, was everything Toronto needed. Acquired during the summer while completing recovery from Tommy John surgery, the former Cy Young winner left several baserunners and silenced the Los Angeles' potent batting order. He gave up one run on four base hits and three free passes before Schneider summoned first-year left-hander Mason Fluharty to face the heart of the lineup in the sixth. He required just 4 pitches to get out Muncy and Edman, protecting a fragile lead that quickly became safe.
Converted starter Chris Bassitt then worked a clean seventh and eighth as the Los Angeles' bats continued to struggle. Los Angeles have scored only three runs over their last 20 frames, an sudden downturn for a club that ranked among baseball's elite lineups all year.
Final Moments
The Los Angeles scraped a score in the ninth inning when Tommy Edman hit into an out to bring home Hernández after a base on balls and Max Muncy's two-base hit put runners aboard. But Varland closed it down without allowing a comeback to build.
Following a game when the Blue Jays left a Fall Classic-record 19 baserunners and fell apart after repeated of wasted opportunities, Game 4 was brutally efficient. Six different Toronto players recorded hits, five drove in scores and the team converted nearly every run-scoring chance presented in the final innings.
Looking Ahead
The win guarantees the championship title will be awarded at Rogers Centre, where the Toronto have not won a championship since Joe Carter's iconic game-winning home run in 1993. They now are aware they are guaranteed a full house in Toronto on Friday night – and possibly Saturday – no matter what happens next in Los Angeles.
Game 5 approaches with the matchup reset and energy shifting to Toronto. Dodgers pitcher Snell (3-1, 2.42 ERA) will attempt to arrest the Blue Jays's surge. The Blue Jays counter with first-year player Trey Yesavage (2-1, 4.26 ERA) in a rematch of the opener, when the Toronto knocked out the starter quickly in an 11-4 win.
