Guerrero Lifts Blue Jays as Toronto Evens World Series Against Dodgers

Vladimir Guerrero Jr. didn’t wait for anyone else to lift the room. Minutes after the Toronto Blue Jays had dragged themselves off the field from an 18-inning heartbreak, the clubhouse was silent, heads down, energy drained. Then Guerrero spoke up.

“I was the last one to go in,” he recalled. “I saw everybody with his head down. I said, ‘Come on, bro. Head up. It’s not over yet. It’s not over yet. They gotta win four. Four games. You have to win four games to win the World Series. It’s not over.’”

He didn’t just talk, he followed through. On Tuesday night, Guerrero launched a two-run homer off Shohei Ohtani, and the Blue Jays roared back to even the World Series, beating the Los Angeles Dodgers 6–2 in a clean, confident performance that lasted under three hours.

Shane Bieber, making his first World Series start after returning from Tommy John surgery, threw 5⅓ composed innings, holding the Dodgers to one run. Addison Barger chipped in with two hits and an RBI, and the Jays looked every bit like a team that had shaken off the emotional hangover of Game 3.

“Coming off what could be a back-breaking loss last night, it was an absolute pleasure to show up today and see nobody changes,” Bieber said. “Nobody ever wavers. Nobody ever hesitates. It’s the same group of guys each and every day.”

With the win, Toronto reclaimed homefield advantage and ensured the championship will be decided at Rogers Centre.

“I believe in this team, man,” Guerrero said. “This team is something special.”

Ohtani, the Dodgers’ superhero of Game 3, took the mound again just 17 hours after his nine-time-on-base marathon. It was too soon. The Blue Jays tagged him for four runs on six hits across six innings, and two more in the seventh before he was pulled. Ohtani struck out six, but the spark wasn’t there, nor was the run support.

“We’re facing quality arms at this time of year against really good teams,” Ohtani said through his interpreter. “We’re facing the best of the best, so I think it’s not that easy. At the same time, we could do at least the bare minimum and put up some runs.”

Instead, the Dodgers mustered only six hits, one for extra bases. Bieber simply outdueled Ohtani, and Toronto’s bullpen held firm. The Dodgers, now 11–3 this postseason, looked mortal for the first time in weeks.

Game 5 is set for Wednesday at Dodger Stadium. Game 6 shifts back to Toronto on Friday, and if Guerrero’s words are any indication, the Blue Jays plan to make it matter.