Seoul: The start of the postseason in South Korean baseball has been pushed back by a day after a pair of late regular-season games got rained out Friday. The game between the SSG Landers and the NC Dinos at Changwon NC Park in Changwon, some 300 kilometers southeast of Seoul, and another between the Samsung Lions and the Kia Tigers at Gwangju-Kia Champions Field in Gwangju, 270 kilometers south of the capital, were both postponed from 5 p.m. Friday to 5 p.m. Saturday.

According to Yonhap News Agency, the Landers-Dinos tilt has major implications, with the Dinos clinging to the fifth and final ticket to get into the Korea Baseball Organization postseason. The Dinos, at 70-67-6 (wins-losses-ties), are leading the KT Wiz (71-68-5) by a tiny margin in winning percentage, .5109 to .5108, after the Wiz fought back for a 6-6 tie against the Hanwha Eagles on Friday.

The Dinos, who have won eight straight games, would have secured that fifth spot if the Wiz had lost Friday. And the Wiz came within an out of losing the game and missing out on the postseason. The Wiz entered the bottom of the ninth inning at KT Wiz Park in Suwon, 30 kilometers south of Seoul, trailing the Eagles 6-2. Then RBI singles by Ahn Hyun-min and Kang Baek-ho cut that deficit to 6-4, before Andrew Stevenson delivered a two-out double to bring home two runs that tied the score at 6-6.

Neither side scored in the extra innings, and the Wiz will sneak into the postseason if the Dinos lose Saturday. The Lions have already locked down the fourth seed and the home field advantage for the wild card round, which had been scheduled to begin Sunday in Daegu, 235 kilometers southeast of Seoul, but will now instead start Monday.

The Lions will face either the Dinos or the Wiz, and will advance to the next phase with a tie or a win Monday. If the Lions lose Monday, then they will get another crack at getting a win or a tie Tuesday. The lower-seeded team must win two straight games to reach the next round in the postseason.

The three other seeds are all accounted for, with the LG Twins having earned the top seed and a bye to the Korean Series, starting Oct. 25 at Jamsil Baseball Stadium in Seoul. If the best-of-seven series goes the distance, it will end Nov. 2. The Eagles will finish in second place and will start their postseason in the second round on Oct. 17 at Daejeon Hanwha Life Ballpark in Daejeon, 140 kilometers south of Seoul.

The Landers, as the No. 3 seed, will face the wild card winner in the first round starting Thursday at Incheon SSG Landers Field in Incheon, just west of the capital.