South Korea's professional baseball league will open the 2020 regular season in early May, following a more than month-long delay due to the novel coronavirus pandemic.

The Korea Baseball Organization(KBO) announced on Tuesday, after a meeting with its board of governors, that the upcoming season will begin on May 5, which is also Children's Day. The previous Opening Day was set for March 28.

Early games of the season will be played without fans. The KBO plans to gradually increase the number of people allowed to watch the games in person depending on how the coronavirus situation develops in the country.

The league hopes to salvage a full, 144-game season, ending on November 2, but it will discuss shortening the season if any of the players test positive for the virus.

If all goes as planned, the seven-game Korean Series could crown a champion by November 28.