New KBO season to open April 2

The new regular season for South Korean professional baseball will open April 2, the league office announced Thursday.

The Korea Baseball Organization (KBO) said its 10 clubs will each play 144 games, per usual, starting the first weekend of April.

The top five clubs from the 2020 season will host the two-game series on the opening weekend. The matchups are: the Hanwha Eagles against the Doosan Bears at Jamsil Baseball Stadium in Seoul; the Lotte Giants versus the Kiwoom Heroes at Gocheok Sky Dome in Seoul; the Samsung Lions against the KT Wiz at KT Wiz Park in Suwon; the LG Twins visiting the Kia Tigers at Gwangju-Kia Champions Field in Gwangju; and the SSG Landers versus the NC Dinos at Changwon NC Park in Changwon.

The Twins, who finished fourth in 2020, share Jamsil as their home with the Bears and will be the only top-five club to play on the road to begin the season.

The KBO has scheduled an All-Star break from July 15 to 21, with the All-Star Game set to be played on July 16.

The league will not take a midseason break during the Hangzhou Asian Games in September. In response to criticism on player selection processes for recent international tournaments, the KBO has decided to pick only the under-24 players for the Asian Games this time and to require every club to release up to three players each.

The KBO also plans to organize a series of events throughout the season to commemorate its 40th anniversary.