With heat wave over, KBO goes back to regular start times

Korea's baseball league announced Tuesday that starting times for its games will move back to previous slots, as severe heat has showed signs of abating nationwide.

The KBO said starting next Tuesday, weekday games will once again begin at 6:30 p.m. and weekend games will go back to having their first pitch at 6 p.m.

For games scheduled after August — the end of the July-August summer season as designated by the league — weekend games will begin at 5 p.m., while the starting time for weekday games will not change.

On Aug. 6, the KBO decided to push starting times for all games to 7 p.m. as the country was under siege from a record-breaking heat wave. The league also canceled every game from Aug. 5 to 9, citing safety concerns for fans and players. The season resumed last Tuesday.

The league said starting times can be pushed back as far as 7:30 p.m. depending on weather conditions.

The KBO earlier implemented cooling breaks after the third and seventh innings during the heat wave. Starting Tuesday, those breaks will only take place if the host city is under a heat advisory as of 1 p.m. on game day.

Yonhap