LOS ANGELES Oct 29 (Kyodo/APP): Shohei Ohtani took the loss in his first two-way World Series start as the Toronto Blue Jays beat the Los Angeles Dodgers 6-2 on Tuesday to tie the best-of-seven contest at two wins apiece.
Ohtani (2-1) yielded four runs on six hits and a walk over six-plus innings at Dodger Stadium, with the Game 4 defeat meaning the Dodgers cannot clinch their title defense at home and will return to Canada on the weekend, at least for Game 6.
Having only batted in last year’s World Series, Ohtani took the mound this year some 17 hours after starring in Monday’s epic 18-inning Game 3 when he reached base an MLB postseason record nine times with two homers, two doubles and five walks, four of them intentional.
The right-hander allowed two runners in the first with a walk and an infield single but no runs, and a 1-2-3 second was followed by the Dodgers scoring the opening run in the home half with a sacrifice fly from Enrique Hernandez off Shane Bieber (2-0).
But Blue Jays slugger Vladimir Guerrero Jr., who won the American League home run title in 2021 ahead of Ohtani when he was at the Los Angeles Angels, took him deep to left-center in the third for a two-run home run off a high 2-1 sweeper, turning the game in Toronto’s favor.
Ohtani recovered to strike out the side swinging in the fourth but began the seventh giving up a single and double before he got the hook after a 95-pitch effort.
The Blue Jays scored two runs each off relievers Anthony Banda and Blake Treinen in the four-run seventh inning to seize total control. The Dodgers got their second run in the ninth.
Ohtani went 0-for-3 with a walk as his run of reaching base ended after 11 trips to the plate, spanning more than three games, while he missed out on his third postseason win as a pitcher.