Heading into the All-Star break, the KBO is in the midst of a wild ride, with the standings shifting as we speak.

The Kia Tigers, who led the league from the start of the season, have faltered of late and lost the top spot, but a win against SSG pushed them back to the top of the standings, just five days after knocking LG off the top spot. LG, on the other hand, lost to Samsung by one or two points for the second consecutive day, dropping to second place and forcing a realignment.

The presence of Samsung and Doosan, who are closely chasing Kia and LG, cannot be ignored. Samsung"s recent three-game winning streak has kept it within two games of leader Kia, while fourth-place Doosan, which is tied with Samsung on points, is looking to rebound from a three-game losing streak.

 

This season"s All-Star Game will be held next month at SSG Landers Field, which means there are 19 games left before the All-Star break. Teams will need at least 10 wins to stay above .500, and those that do well will be in good shape for the second half of the season, when the race for the top spot will begin in earnest.

Looking at the race so far, there are no clear favorites or underdogs. The teams at the top of the standings are not allowed to win more than 6% of the time, and the bottom of the standings is still too close to give up at over 4%.

 

The bifurcation point is again at 5% odds. Fifth-place SSG Landers is barely holding on to a 5.508 win percentage (.508) and is three games behind fourth-place Doosan, while the totopick.pro bottom teams are clustered within two games of each other, meaning that the standings could change on a whim.

 

The top four teams will have their work cut out for them in a three-game series this weekend. Coincidentally, all four teams are facing teams from the bottom of the standings.

First up, leader KIA will take on 9th-ranked KT in Suwon. However, Kia is 4-5 against KT this season, so there is no reason to be optimistic.

LG will host Lotte. The head-to-head record is 5-1 in favor of LG. If LG can sweep the three-game series, they could regain the lead.

Third-place Samsung travels to the NC with a 3-3 record, which is evenly balanced. After fighting for the top spot in the early to mid-season, the NC has lost steam recently and Samsung will need to capitalize on that.

 

Doosan"s opponent is Kiwoom. This season, Doosan has an absolute dominance of 5-1 against Kiwoom, and they are especially confident after taking all three games away from home.