Seoul:The South Korean baseball postseason is scheduled to commence next week, potentially extending over four weeks, as announced by the league office.
According to Yonhap News Agency, the Korea Baseball Organization (KBO) will kick off its postseason with the wild card round next Wednesday, featuring a matchup between the fourth-place and fifth-place teams from the regular season. The higher-seeded team needs only a win or a tie in up to two games to progress, while the lower-seeded team must secure two consecutive victories to advance.
The wild card round, introduced in 2015, has seen a fifth-place team upset a fourth-place team only once, when KT Wiz triumphed over the Doosan Bears in 2024. Following this round, the first round will be a best-of-five series, with the third-place team from the regular season receiving a bye to face the wild card victor.
The Kia Tigers, LG Twins, and Bears are competing for the final three postseason spots. The winner of the first round will face the second-place team from the regular season, Samsung Lions, in another best-of-five series.
The Korean Series, beginning November 2 barring any rain delays, will be a best-of-seven contest. KT Wiz, having clinched the pennant, will proceed directly to the championship round to face the second-round winner. Each series will include a travel day, and the first two rounds will have an off day after Games 2 and 4 if necessary.
In the Korean Series, there will be a break after Games 2 and 5, should the series extend beyond five games. KT Wiz will host Games 1, 2, 6, and 7, while the second-round winner will host the middle three games. Postseason games will declare ties after 15 innings, compared to 11 innings during the regular season.