What is at stake in the Kia Tigers versus LG Twins final regular-season game?

The winner will secure the KBO’s No. 3 seed and advance directly to the best-of-five first round. The loser will finish fourth and host the wild card round against the Doosan Bears.

When and where will the Kia Tigers and LG Twins decide the third KBO postseason seed?

The Tigers and Twins will play their final regular-season game Monday at Gwangju-Kia Champions Field in Gwangju. The game is scheduled to begin at 6:30 p.m.

Why is finishing third significantly better than finishing fourth in the KBO postseason?

The third seed gets four days to rest and prepare its starting rotation before the first round. The fourth seed must play the wild card round after one day of rest, and if two games are needed, its top two starters may not be available until Game 3 of the following series.

Battle for 3rd seed in KBO postseason comes down to regular-season finale

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Summary

The Kia Tigers lost 4-1 to the Lotte Giants in Gwangju on Sunday, leaving the battle for the third seed to Monday’s final regular-season game against the LG Twins. The winner will claim third place and a direct berth in the best-of-five first round, while the loser will enter the wild card round as the fourth seed. The game starts at 6:30 p.m.

Key Facts

The Tigers entered Monday’s game with a 78-63-2 record, while the Twins were 78-64-1.
The Tigers lead their season series against the Twins 8-7-0 and recently swept their three-game series from Oct. 3 to 5.
The Doosan Bears secured the No. 5 seed on Wednesday and will face the fourth-place team in the wild card series.
Tigers starter Adam Oller allowed a grand slam to Han Dong-hee in the sixth inning, and Kia managed one run on six hits against four Lotte pitchers.
The third seed receives four days off before the first round, while the fourth seed has only one day before the wild card round and may not have its two best starters available until Game 3 of the next series.

By Yonhap

Published Oct 11, 2026 7:49 pm KST

KT Wiz's Sam Hilliard celebrates with teammates after hitting his second home run during a 2026 KBO League game against the Samsung Lions at Daegu Samsung Lions Park in Daegu, Sunday. Yonhap

The weekslong battle for the third seed in the South Korean baseball postseason will come down to the final regular-season meeting between the combatants.

The Kia Tigers blew a chance to clinch the No. 3 spot at home Sunday, when they lost to the Lotte Giants 4-1 at Gwangju-Kia Champions Field in the southwestern city of Gwangju.

A victory would have given the Tigers a direct ticket to the best-of-five first round of the Korea Baseball Organization (KBO) postseason as the third seed and sent their rivals LG Twins to the wild card round as the fourth seed. The Doosan Bears, who clinched the No. 5 seed Wednesday, will be the other team in the wild card series.

With Sunday's loss by the Tigers, the winner of Monday's showdown between the Tigers and the Twins in Gwangju will grab the third seed. That game will begin at 6:30 p.m.

It will be the final game of the regular season for both clubs. The Tigers are currently in third place with a win-loss-tie record of 78-63-2, and the Twins are sitting in fourth place at 78-64-1.

The Tigers have a slight edge in their season series against the Twins so far at 8-7-0.

Most recently, the Tigers swept the Twins in their three-game series from Oct. 3 to 5, which allowed them to climb to third place.

In Sunday's game, though, Tigers starter Adam Oller served up a grand slam to Han Dong-hee in the top of the sixth inning that broke a scoreless deadlock, while the Tigers lineup managed just a run on six hits against four Giants pitchers.

With the KBO's postseason system favoring teams with better regular-season records, the difference between finishing third and fourth is significant.

The third seed will have four days off between the end of their regular season Monday and the start of their first round of the postseason Saturday. This layoff will allow that club to set its starting rotation so that its ace will be ready to pitch in Game 1.

The fourth seed, though, will only have one day of break before the wild card round begins Wednesday, and it will have to burn its best starter for that game.

In the wild card stage, the No. 4 seed only needs a win or a tie in two attempts to advance. If it loses the first game Wednesday, it will have to play again Thursday.

And if the fourth-ranked team ends up needing two wild card games to fend off the fifth-seed opponent, then it will only have one day off before starting the next postseason round Saturday. That team will not have its two best starting pitchers available until Game 3 of that series at the earliest.

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