The infield at Kia Champion Field in Gwangju is covered in tarp, Oct. 22. Yonhap

The first two games of the Korean baseball championship series were postponed by a day Tuesday due to unplayable field conditions and expected rain in the southern city of Gwangju.

Game 1 of the Korean Series between the Kia Tigers and the Samsung Lions was suspended on a rainy Monday night, with the Lions leading 1-0 in the top of the sixth inning at Gwangju-Kia Champions Field in Gwangju, some 270 kilometers south of Seoul. This was the first suspended game in Korea Baseball Organization (KBO) history. The game was scheduled to resume at 4 p.m. Tuesday, with Game 2 set to begin after the conclusion of the first contest.

However, the KBO announced just before 2 p.m. that it would take more than three hours to repair the ground and get the field ready for the game, ruling out the 4 p.m. start for the suspended game.

With more rain expected in Gwangju in the evening, according to the Korea Meteorological Administration, the KBO decided not to start Game 2, rather than risk having that game be suspended again.

The suspended game is now scheduled to start again at 4 p.m. Wednesday, back in Gwangju. If the game finishes before 5:30 p.m., Game 2 will start at 6:30 p.m. If the first game goes beyond 5:30 p.m., then the second game will begin an hour after the conclusion of the opener.

The Lions had taken a 1-0 lead on a solo home run by Kim Hun-gon off Tigers starter James Naile just minutes before the game was put on hold. Naile was yanked after walking the next batter, and reliever Jang Hyun-sik walked the first batter he faced. Jang fell behind 1-0 in the count against Kim Young-woong when the game was suspended.

With the disruption in the schedule, Games 3 and 4, scheduled to be played at Daegu Samsung Lions Park in Daegu, 235 kilometers southeast of Seoul, have also been pushed back by a day each, to Friday and Saturday, respectively. (Yonhap)