The Season of Professional Baseball Returns... 'Play Ball' This Weekend

144 Games Per Team, 702-Game Season Unfolds
WBC Quarterfinal Boost Spurs Record-Breaking Attendance
Powerhouse LG Aims for Back-to-Back Titles After a Decade
Asian Quota Introduced for the First Time, Pitch Clock Shortened by Two Seconds

The season of professional baseball has returned.

After reaching the quarterfinals of the World Baseball Classic (WBC), the Korea Baseball Organization (KBO) League is kicking off its 45th season. Opening series games will take place over two days starting March 28 at five stadiums: KT Wiz vs. LG Twins (Jamsil Baseball Stadium), Kiwoom Heroes vs. Hanwha Eagles (Daejeon Hanwha Life Eagles Park), Lotte Giants vs. Samsung Lions (Daegu Samsung Lions Park), KIA Tigers vs. SSG Landers (Incheon SSG Landers Field), and Doosan Bears vs. NC Dinos (Changwon NC Park). All matches will be held at the home stadiums of last year’s top five teams.

Defending champion LG is challenging for a second consecutive Korean Series title this year. Yonhap News

Each team will play 144 games, with the top five teams advancing to the postseason. Except for the opening two-game series and a four-game series after the All-Star break, all games will be played as three-game series. A total of 45 unscheduled games (nine per team), including games postponed due to rain, will be arranged later. According to the alternating home schedule, LG, Samsung, NC, KIA, and Kiwoom will each host 73 home games, while Hanwha, SSG, KT, Lotte, and Doosan will each host 71 home games. The All-Star Game will be held on July 11, with the venue yet to be determined.

Experts are rating last year’s champion, LG, as the strongest contender. It is evaluated that the team has a high level of balance between pitching and batting. If LG wins the championship again this year, it will achieve back-to-back Korean Series titles for the first time in 10 years since Doosan did so in 2015–2016. Although veteran hitter Hyunsoo Kim transferred to KT as a free agent, most analysts say LG has not suffered a significant loss in strength. Team captain Haemin Park re-signed with LG on a four-year deal worth a total of 6.5 billion won.

LG manager Yeom Kyung-Yeop is watching the exhibition game against the Kiwoom Heroes. Photo by Yonhap News Agency

Samsung is considered LG’s strongest rival. Samsung proved its competitiveness by finishing as runner-up in the 2024 Korean Series and placing fourth in the regular season in 2025, advancing to the playoffs. Hanwha, which finished second in the regular season and runner-up in the Korean Series last year, is also regarded as a championship contender. In addition, Lotte, KT, and Doosan are aiming for the postseason with strong rosters.

The popularity of the league is also expected to continue. In 2024, the KBO League achieved a milestone as the first Korean professional sports league to surpass 10 million spectators in a season, recording a total attendance of 10,887,705. Last year, the record was broken again with 12,312,519 spectators. This season, interest has been high from the exhibition games, fueled by the WBC quarterfinal result. As of March 24, a total of 440,247 people attended 60 exhibition games, far surpassing last year’s figure of 321,763 for 42 games. The league is expected to attract over 10 million spectators for the third consecutive year.

The KBO League is expecting to surpass 10 million spectators again this year. Photo by Yonhap News Agency

This year, the Asian quota system will be introduced. To qualify, a player must have been part of an Asian league in the previous or current year, and players with dual nationality that includes a non-Asian country are not eligible. There are no position restrictions, and for new signings, the total expenditure—including salary, signing bonus, options, and transfer fee—can be up to 200,000 dollars. Out of the 10 clubs, 9 selected pitchers, while KIA acquired infielder Jared Dale to fill the gap left by Chanho Park.

There are also changes to game management. Under the new defensive shift restriction rule, all four infielders except the catcher and pitcher must be positioned within the infield dirt boundary, with two on each side of second base. If a team violates this rule and becomes involved in a ball in play, the offensive team can choose the more favorable outcome.

Hyunsoo Kim, the champion member from last year, became a free agent this year and transferred to KT. Yonhap News

Efforts to improve game pace will continue. The pitch clock will be reduced by 2 seconds: pitchers will have 18 seconds with no runners on base and 23 seconds with runners on base. Each team can request video review twice per game, and if both are overturned, one additional review opportunity is granted. Teams may also request up to two check swing reviews per game, with the opportunity retained if the call is overturned. In addition, to improve the accuracy of judgments, the width of the foul lines will be expanded from 3 inches to 4 inches.

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.