2007 Operating Rules
1.0 Membership and Eligibility
1.1 Registration
a) League fees accompanied by a
registration form must be submitted to the League by March 14th, 2007. Fees can be paid by check or money
order and are payable to the "
b) Each team member must be covered by insurance as
specified by the League Executive to be eligible to play.
c) Penticton Slo-Pitch
registration form and preliminary roster must be completed in full and
submitted to the League Executive by March
14th, 2007.
**Official SPN Roster form must be submitted by April 10th, 2007. We require this form to be completed and
submitted for insurance purposes. Your
team will not be allowed to play after April 11th, 2007 if this form
is not submitted. Additions and deletions can be made to your official team
roster up until the end of the regular season.
Rosters are frozen for Playoffs.
Changes to your roster can be made by calling the league statistician,
Judy Kendrick at 492-6971.
d) Team rosters are in effect as of April 1,
2007.
1.2
Team
Roster
a) A minimum of 10 (ten) and a maximum of 20 (twenty) players are
permitted on the team roster. Players may only be on one roster in the
Penticton Slo-Pitch League.
1.3
Team Structure
a) Players not listed on the
preliminary team roster or on the Approved Official Penticton Slo-Pitch team
roster are not eligible for play as of April 1, 2007.
b) A team may consist of 10
(ten) players, of which a minimum of 4 (four) to maximum of 6 (six) must be
female.
c) Playing with only 9 Players
(BC "9" rule) **with alteration for league play.
i)
A team will legally be allowed
to start the game with 9 (nine) players at
the beginning of the game.
ii)
An automatic out will be recorded where the last player (missing
player) in the batting line up would have batted.
iii)
A team is allowed to add a tenth player at any
point for the balance of the game.
iv)
A team may play with only 3
(three) female players if playing with only 9 total players.
d) Teams may substitute a
maximum of 2 (two) pick-up players, 1 (one) male and 1 (one) female. Pick-ups
must be from another Penticton Slo-Pitch team roster and be used for a game
where it can be demonstrated that a shortage of eligible players results from
unexpected, non-preventable circumstances, and that a forfeiture would
otherwise result due to lack of eligible players.
A and B
division players may not sub for C, D, E or F division teams, any other player
may play in any division.
No pick-ups are allowed if any rostered player is
sitting on the bench. i.e.
female player sitting on the bench as a spare must be played before a pick-up
is allowed. This may result in a team playing with 5 male and 5 female or 6
female and 4 males.
e) All players must be 16
(sixteen) years of age by April 2, 2007. All players 16 (sixteen) to 18
(eighteen) years of age, inclusive, must have written consent from
parent or guardian submitted to the League Executive Prior to
playing.
f)
Pregnant players must submit doctor's written consent
to the League prior to playing.
1.4 League Structure
a) For all divisions - based on
the previous seasons regular season standings - the top 2 (two) teams MUST move up to the next
division. The bottom 2 (two) teams MUST
move down to the next division.
2.0 team
responsibilities
a) It is the HOME team's responsibility to ensure
the locks taken off any goal post at the Kettle Valley Diamonds and the
Princess Margaret Diamonds, are safe and at the end of the game are returned to
the goal posts and securely locked. If the locks go missing it is the HOME team's responsibility to pay for
the replacement of the locks.
b) The home team must rake or
drag the fields, and fill in the batters boxes. Especially at Lions, Skaha,
Nkwala and Parkway fields, prior to the game. The home team will be subject to
a fine if the other team lodges a complaint.
2.1
Equipment
a) Home team is to supply game
balls. Balls must be the same type supplied by the league. (
2.2
Umpires
a) All League games, including
playoff games will be officiated by umpires assigned by the Penticton Slo-Pitch
League through the Penticton Umpire Association. League fees include all umpire
fees.
b) All complaints pertaining to
umpires must be submitted in writing to your Division Representative or any other member of the Executive within
24hrs.
2.3
Game
results and publicity
a) Each winning team must
submit results of the game to the League Statistician with 24 hrs. (Judy Kendrick 492-6971) In the case of a tie the home
team submits the results. Failure to report game results will result in a ten
($10) dollar fine for the first offense, fifteen ($15) dollar fine for the
second offense, and twenty-five ($25) dollar fine for the third offense and all
subsequent offenses. Fines must be paid before the next game. Failure to do so
will result in the forfeiture of the game.
b) Statistician (Judy Kendrick 492-6971) must be notified if umpires
fail to show up for a game.
c) Each winning team may submit
the results of the game to the local radio stations and the Penticton Herald on
the forms provided. Completed forms should be submitted no later than 9:00 am
the following day.
2.4
conduct
a) Vehicle parking must be
confined to approved parking areas.
b) Liquor and illicit drugs are
not permitted by law on the playing field or on public grounds during league
play or playoffs. Please go home or to a licensed premise to do your post game
imbibing.
c) Playing fields and
surrounding areas must be left in a clean condition.
d) Profanity on the ball field
will not be tolerated.
3.2
games and schedules
a) Game start time will be
indicated by the schedule. Play must start exactly at this time. There is no mandatory grace period.
b) All games must be played as
scheduled. Only rained out games can
be rescheduled, or forfeiture will occur. Rainouts will be determined
by the 2 team captains and the umpire. Both teams must show up for the
game. Contact your Division Representative to reschedule all rainouts.
c) Before games all warming up is to be done on the outfield grass. This will allow the home
team to rake the infield and preserve freshly raked infields for game play.
d) Game points for the purpose
of League Standings will be assigned as follows:
WIN 3
points
TIE 1
point
LOSS 0
points
3.3
Officiating
a) In the event that an umpire
does not arrive at a game as scheduled the game shall be rescheduled to a time
when an umpire can officiate the game. The two teams can decide to play the
game with the two team captains agreeing on the method of officiating, but NO subsequent protests on the umpire
selected will be accepted with respect to that game.
b) Verbal or physical abuse
towards an umpire will not be tolerated.
4.0 Disqualification
4.1 Disciplinary Action
a) At the discretion of the
Executive, disciplinary action including forfeits, fines and expulsions may be
taken against a player, or players and/or team for one or more of the following
reasons.
i)
Failure to play only with players on the approved Roster.
ii)
Failure to pay league fees by the predetermined date.
iii)
Failure to submit a League Roster by the predetermined date.
iv)
Failure to submit official Penticton Slo-Pitch League Roster by the
predetermined date.
v)
Failure to act in a sportsmanlike manner.
vi)
Failure to conduct themselves in accordance with Section 2.4 of these
operating rules.
vii)
Failure to submit game results to the League Statistician, Section
2.3(a)
viii)
Failure to provide playing equipment for home games, Section 2.1
ix)
Verbally or physically abusing any person in the course of his or her
duties.
x)
Forfeiting any scheduled league game. A game forfeiture due to lack of
players will result in a forty ($40) dollar fine. Continued failure to supply sufficient
players as required will result in additional fines and the teams suspension or
expulsion.
xi)
Failure to pay fines.
b) The league Executive will
initiate disciplinary action against a player, players and/or a team, only
when a written complaint and/or protest of the incident is provided.
c) Fines - if a player or team
is fined for any League infraction they will be notified in writing by the
Executive. After receiving notice of a fine amount owing, Any fine(s) must be paid in full before the player / team is allowed to
play their next game. All fines must
be paid by check or money order, made payable to the "Penticton Slo-Pitch League". The payment
must be delivered to your Division
Representative or to any other Executive member.
5.0 Protests and forfeits
5.1 Umpires
a) Protests regarding an
umpire's judgement will not be accepted. Judgement call are:
i)
Safe
ii)
Out
iii)
Ball
iv)
Strike
v)
Fair Ball
vi)
Foul Ball
5.1 rules
a) Protests regarding rule
interpretation must be noted immediately following the play in question, then
presented to any Executive Member within 48 (forty-eight) hours for resolution.
b) Appeals on an Executive
ruling may be made in accordance with the League Bylaws.
6.0 Rules
of Play
Unless Specifically Stated in these operating rules or in the league
bylaws, all rules of play will be governed by Slo-pitch National (spn). see
official rule handbook 2007.
6.1 equipment
a) It is highly recommended,
but not mandatory, that all catchers wear an approved mask.
b) Spiked track shoes, rounded
metal spiked shoes, and metal baseball cleats are not permitted. Plastic cleats
are allowed.
c) Only standard twelve
(12") inch SPN approved softballs are permitted. (
d) Our league will follow the
SPN 2004 Bat Policy. See the official SPN website for details at http://www.slo-pitch.com/2004_bat_policy.asp
e) Trappers may only be used by
pitchers, catchers and first base. (SPN Rule 2 sec.6)
6.2
The Play
a) Arc of the pitch must be a
minimum of 6 (six) feet and a maximum of 12 (twelve) feet from the ground.
b) A maximum of 7 (seven) runs are
permitted per inning, with the last inning open.
b1) Match Plus 3 (three) Homeruns for all divisions - applies to all
fields.
Note: This rule only applies to
automatic homeruns (hit over a fence or a bank in the air) Any homerun hit in
excess of the allowable is a ground rule double. This applies to all parks that
are fenced or with banks. At no time during the game will the number of
automatic homeruns hit by one team be more than 3 (three) more than that hit by
the opposing team. When a fair fly ball is deflected over the homerun fence or
a bank by a defensive player, the batter will be awarded 4 (four) bases. This
will not be considered the same as a homerun and does not count as such.
c) Teams have the option of
batting with 11 or 12 players (if a team is batting 11 or 12, they must use at
least 5 females). If you start with 11 or 12 you must play with 11 or 12
throughout the game.
ci) When playing with only 9 (nine) players see Section 1.3c of these
operating rules.
d) Free substitution is
allowed. A player must play a defensive position immediately prior to their
turn at bat.
e) Base stealing is allowed only after the ball has
passed home plate and has made contact with someone or something.
f)
Any pitched ball, which lands before or on home plate, will be declared
dead for the purposes of base stealing only. This will be considered a ball
unless the batter swings at it.
g) A base runner must
be hit home. A runner on third base that leaves the base when there is no hit
ball, may be tagged out or forced out at third base. In this situation runners
at first and second base must be tagged out - no force.
h) Sliding is permitted.
(Including 1st base)
i)
Players may exchange positions in the field as long as the batting
order remains the same.
j)
A batted ball shall not be declared dead if it hits the pitcher.
However, if it is felt that a batter is intentionally aiming at the pitcher,
the umpire will take disciplinary action, i.e. - ejection for unsportsmanlike
conduct.
k) A pitched ball cannot be
chopped. (SPN Rule 7 sec.3c)
l)
Bunting is allowed for female players only. However, once a player has
prepared to bunt on the pitch, she may not swing away. If so, the player will
be called out.
m) The batting order is to be
alternated between male and female players. There may be a maximum of only 2
(two) males batting consecutively.
n) A pitched ball will be
declared dead if it hits the batter. The batter does not get first base.
o) A batter cannot try for
first base on his third strike if missed by the catcher.
p) An intentional walk is not
automatic. 4 (four) balls must be thrown, (because there is stealing). If the
walk is intentional (4 straight balls), the next batter if female, has the
option to walk or to hit away. The male batter will be awarded 2nd
base. If there is one strike on the batter an intentional walk cannot be
called.
q) Third strike foul, the
batter is out.
r) A fly ball or line drive
cannot be dropped intentionally for the purpose of making a double play. Time
is called and the batter is called out. Runners will be returned to their
bases.
s) Infield fly rule is in
effect.
t)
All pitchers must pitch within the pitching zone. The pitching zone is 24" wide located
50-60 feet from home plate. A Pitcher may choose to pitch from anywhere within
this zone. (SPN Rule 1 sec.12)
u) Courtesy Runners may be used
(provided the batter has safely reached base) a maximum of three (3) times per
game. Courtesy runners are allowed at any base but they must be male for male
and female for female. (See SPN Rule 8
sec. 15) note: for our league the same
player may be used more than once as a courtesy runner.
Note: If both team captains agree (prior
to the game) this rule can be waived and the teams may use an unlimited number
of courtesy runners.
v) On an overthrow - the runner
is entitled to 2 (two) bases. If a runner is at first base and they attempt to
go to second but are forced to return to first base, the ball is then thrown
out of bounds - the runner will be awarded third base because they have already
obtained first base and the rule is that the runner is awarded the base they
have obtained at the time of the throw plus 2 (two) bases.
xi) Safe line is in effect at home plate. A safe line is a line drawn
in foul territory, starting at the front corner of home plate (closest to 3rd
base) and running perpendicular to the third base line. It shall extend 10
(ten) feet into foul territory. When a runner touches or crosses this line (one
foot touching the ground on or past the line) prior to being tagged or prior to
a defensive player legally holding the ball while in contact with home plate,
the runner shall be declared safe. If not being played on, the runner shall not
be called out if stepping on home plate, providing that there is no contact
with a defensive player. A runner shall not be called out if home plate is
touched in an attempt to avoid a collision. (SPN rule 13 sec.4)
xii) Commitment Line - The
Commitment line is a line drawn 20 (twenty) feet from the back of home plate
and perpendicular to the third base line. When a runner crosses this line (one
foot completely over the line and touching the ground), but does not reach home
plate, he shall be called out, when the ball is legally held by a defensive
player who is in contact with home plate, no tag is necessary. Runners who have
not crossed the line or runners who cross the line but must tag up on a caught fly
ball may return to third base with liability to be put out. If tagged between
the commitment line and home plate, the runner will be called out. (SPN rule 13
sec.4)
y) All bases are to be set at 65 (sixty-five) feet apart.
(where possible)
z) Batters boxes will be enforced.
zi) Jewellery Rule - as per the SPN BC Policy
Handbook pg 20.: Rule 2 section 9 - C Effect.
The first time a batter steps into the batters box wearing jewellery a
warning shall be given to both teams. Second occurrence would result in the
offending player being called out.
7.0 League Standings
At the conclusion of the League regular season play,
standings will be established using the following criteria:
i)
Most points: if tied then
ii)
Most wins: if tied then
iii)
Winners of games between tied teams: if tied then
iv)
Difference of total runs scored for and against in games between tied
teams: if tied then
v)
Difference of total runs for and against of tied teams during League:
if tied then
vi)
Coin toss. This will be done by 2 (two) members of the Executive or
their appointees.
vii)
Finals for all double knockout playoffs will be a best of three
series where the team with the higher standing in the regular season will be
home team for the 1st and 3rd games of the series. (Third
game is only played if necessary).