Return of ace, introduction of new rules to define 2024 KBO season

Ryu Hyun-jin of the Hanwha Eagles pitches in a Korea Baseball Organization preseason game against the Lotte Giants at Sajik Baseball Stadium in the southeastern city of Busan, March 17. Yonhap

The 2024 Korea Baseball Organization (KBO) season, which will begin at 2 p.m. Saturday with five games across the country, will be marked by changes on multiple levels.

On the field, there will be several rule changes.

The KBO will introduce the automated ball-strike system (ABS), after going through a test run during the preseason this month. The league boasted that the ABS, colloquially called the robot umpire, worked to near-perfect accuracy, and is counting on the same for the 144-game regular season.

The ABS uses a tracking system to make calls on balls and strikes, and relays the information to the home plate umpire through an ear piece.

Following the lead of Major League Baseball (MLB), the KBO will institute a ban on infield shifts this year. Four infielders must have at least one foot on the infield dirt, with at least two infielders on either side of the second base.

The Korean league has also enlarged the bases, from 15 square inches to 18 square inches, and this could lead to more steals.

The pitch clock is in operation during a Korea Baseball Organization preseason game between the Kia Tigers and the NC Dinos at Changwon NC Park in Changwon, South Gyeongsang Province, March 10. Yonhap

The pitch clock, though, will not be put in use until 2025. The league had initially wanted to adopt the pitch clock for this season, after it was largely credited with reducing the length of games in MLB last year. Teams here balked at the sudden change and called for a test run during the first half of the season, with club representatives to decide later whether to put the clock in operation for the second half.

There was more pushback during the exhibition season this month, and the KBO announced Thursday that it will delay the introduction of the pitch clock until 2025.

With the pitch clock on, pitchers must deliver a pitch within 18 seconds with the bases empty and 23 seconds with runners on. The KBO said the rule will not be enforced strictly but violators will be notified by umpires.

Oh Ji-hwan of the LG Twins hits a solo home run off Dylan Cease of the San Diego Padres during an exhibition game at Gocheok Sky Dome in Seoul, March 18. Yonhap

In another major change, doubleheaders will be in play from the start of the season, compared with years past when twin bills were considered a last resort to cram canceled games into the calendar.

This year, games that are canceled on Friday or Saturday will be rescheduled as part of doubleheaders to be played the following day. However, games during the summer months of July and August will not be subject to doubleheaders.

The annual All-Star break will be shortened from the current seven days to four days. For 2024, the All-Star Game will be played July 6, and the midseason break will run from July 5 to 8.

This is to ensure the champions will be crowned by the end of October, instead of mid-November as has been the case in recent years. Korea will play in the World Baseball Softball Confederation Premier12 tournament in November and will try to give its national team, made of KBO stars, enough time to prepare for it.

There have been several roster changes across the league, as is the custom each offseason, but none was bigger than the Hanwha Eagles' reunion with their former ace, Ryu Hyun-jin.

After first pitching for the Eagles from 2006 to 2012, Ryu spent the next 11 years in MLB and rejoined the Eagles on an eight-year, 17 billion-won ($12.7 million) contract in February. His presence at the top of the Eagles' rotation has immediately turned them into a playoff contender.

Without Ryu from 2013 to 2023, the Eagles reached the postseason only once.

Kia Tigers starter Yang Hyeon-jong pitches against the Samsung Lions during a Korea Baseball Organization preseason game at Gwangju-Kia Champions Field in the southwestern city of Gwangju, March 18. Yonhap

Fans of the Eagles, already known as among the most devoted groups in the KBO, responded to Ryu's signing by packing their 12,000-seat home stadium in Daejeon, 160 kilometers south of Seoul, for preseason games on March 9 and 10 — even though Ryu didn't pitch in either of the games.

The KBO is hoping Ryu will boost the leaguewide attendance this year. In 2023, KBO teams drew a little over 8.1 million fans, the third-highest total in league history.

If the Eagles can make a postseason push and two of the league's most popular teams, the LG Twins and the Kia Tigers, battle for first place as many pundits expect them to, then the attendance figure could easily surpass 8 million once again.

The Twins, after ending a 29-year title drought last year, will try to become the first team to repeat as champions since the 2015-16 Doosan Bears. (Yonhap)