Secondary School》Blake did not show up for pre-game practice, took two days off to start, and all pitchers are on standby

The Unified Lions released Lake first. (File photo, taken by reporter Liao Yaodong)

[Reporter Xu Zhengyang/Taichung Report] The 2026 Secondary School Postseason Challenge will be held in the final game of the Intercontinental League today in Game 4. CITIC Brothers and the Uni-President Lions did not announce the starting pitcher until the list was submitted before the game. The Uni-President Lions announced Blake as the starter on the official Facebook fan group one hour before the game started. He was the only one who did not participate in the practice of the pitchers before the game, which was considered a signal to prepare to start.

Blake served as the starter in Game 1 and gave up 10 hits in 5 innings, allowing 4 runs. The Lions pitching staff warmed up in the outfield before today's game. He was the only one who did not show up. Since he pitched 88 pitches on October 9, today was a bullpen day according to the adjusted schedule. He only had 2 days of rest before he started again. It is expected that the number of pitches will not be too many. The Lions pitching staff is on standby to take over at any time.

The pitchers that the Lions can serve as starters today are Guo Junlin and Hu Zhiwei. Guo Junlin and Blake are both set by CITIC as possible starters. Lions head coach Lin Yueping only said before the game that Hu Zhiwei's condition in the second half of this year was not as good as last year. His defensive rating against his brothers this season was over 18. The chance of being the starter in today's desperate battle is relatively low.