Vladimir Guerrero Jr Homers against Shohei Ohtani as Blue Jays Defeat Dodgers to Level Series at 2-2
Only 24 hours following staggering through one of the most draining defeats in Fall Classic history, the Toronto Blue Jays played with total command.
Vladimir Guerrero Jr crushed a two-run home run and Shane Bieber provided a composed start as Toronto defeated the Los Angeles Dodgers 6-2 in Game 4 on Tuesday night at Dodger Stadium, tying the World Series at two wins apiece and guaranteeing the matchup will head back to Toronto.
Toronto had spent the early hours of Tuesday processing their marathon Game 3 loss – tied for the lengthiest World Series game ever – a defeat that cost them the chance to lead the series and depleted both bullpens. Manager Schneider insisted afterwards that “the Dodgers won a game, not the World Series”. A day later, his squad provided convincing evidence.
Initial Action
The Dodgers again struck first. Muncy drew a walk in the second, advanced on a single and scored on Hernández's fly out. But the early score did not shake a Blue Jays club that topped MLB with 49 come-from-behind victories this season.
They responded immediately in the third inning. Nathan Lukes lined a one away single to centre and Guerrero came to the plate looking for a curveball. Shohei Ohtani left a slider up and Guerrero drove it soaring over the left-center wall. It was his first long hit of the series and his 7th homer this playoffs – a fresh team mark – regaining the Toronto's advantage after 13 scoreless innings and shifting the momentum of the night.
Ohtani's Night
That swing also ended Shohei Ohtani's history-making run 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' Game 3 comeback win. But on Tuesday, he started on short rest – his briefest ever – after needing an IV to recuperate from the prior marathon.
His pitch speed sat below his regular-season average and he struggled more as the game wore on. Even so, he displayed flashes of his usual command, setting down 11 of 12 after Guerrero's homer and striking out six. He even drew a walk in the first to extend his World Series streak. But the Blue Jays made him work: six hits and four runs were credited to him in over six innings.
Seventh Inning Surge
The bigger issue for the Dodgers was what followed when he finally lost energy.
Daulton Varsho opened the seventh with a sharp single to right field, and Clement drilled a two-base hit off the fence to put runners on with none out. Dave Roberts had no option but to pull the starter, who departed to a standing ovation from the home crowd. The Dodgers' bullpen could not finish the inning.
Anthony Banda inherited the jam and right away trailed in the count. Giménez fought to a 3-2 count before driving in Varsho with a single to left. Ty France followed with a groundout to make it 4-1, and that was sufficient to knock Banda out of the game. Treinen came in next but also failed to stop the momentum: Bo Bichette and Addison Barger punched RBI singles through the infield, completing a four-run outburst that extended the lead to 6-1.
Blue Jays's Toughness
The Blue Jays's capacity to absorb early blows and answer has characterized their entire run. They once again did it without George Springer, the injured top-of-the-order hitter who left Game 3 after tweaking his right side.
Shane Bieber, meanwhile, was exactly what Toronto required. Acquired during the summer while finishing rehab from Tommy John surgery, the former Cy Young winner left several runners and quieted the Dodgers' dangerous lineup. He allowed one earned run on four hits and three walks before the manager summoned rookie pitcher Fluharty to face the heart of the lineup in the sixth inning. He needed just 4 throws to get out Max Muncy and Tommy Edman, preserving a narrow lead that soon became comfortable.
Converted starting pitcher Bassitt then pitched a scoreless seventh and eighth as the Dodgers' offense continued to sputter. Los Angeles have scored only 3 runs over their last 20 frames, an abrupt slowdown for a team that was among MLB's elite lineups all season.
Final Innings
The Los Angeles scraped a score in the ninth when Edman hit into an out to score Teoscar Hernández after a base on balls and Muncy's double put two aboard. But Louis Varland finished the game without allowing a comeback to develop.
After a game when the Blue Jays stranded a World Series-record 19 baserunners and fell apart after repeated of wasted opportunities, Game 4 was brutally effective. 6 separate Toronto players recorded hits, 5 brought home runs and the squad cashed almost every run-scoring chance presented in the late innings.
Looking Ahead
The victory guarantees the championship trophy will be awarded at their home stadium, where the Toronto have not won a championship since Joe Carter's iconic walk-off homer in 1993. They now know they are guaranteed a packed house in Toronto on Friday night – and perhaps Saturday – no matter what happens next in LA.
Game 5 looms with the series reset and energy swinging north. Los Angeles pitcher Blake Snell (3-1, 2.42 ERA) will try to halt the Blue Jays's momentum. The Blue Jays respond with rookie Trey Yesavage (2-1, 4.26 ERA) in a rematch of Game 1, when the Blue Jays knocked out the starter early in an decisive win.
