Bylaws of the Burlingame Girls Softball Association

Transcription

1 Bylaws of the Burlingame Girls Softball Association The principle place of business of this corporation is located in the county of San Mateo, State of California. Article I- Objectives The objective of the Burlingame Girls Softball Association (hereby referred to as BGSA): To teach young women the skills and knowledge necessary to play softball. To that end, the league will provide, to the best of its ability, the equipment, uniforms, playing facilities, team managing, and coaching staffs, and league organization. The association will welcome all players and will never discriminate on the basis of physical or mental handicap. To promote good sportsmanship and fair play for all girls in our community. To raise the skill level of all participating girls. Through age appropriate rules, provide a healthy competitive environment where all girls can achieve their highest potential in physical, mental and social growth. To promote civic pride and personal self esteem in girls athletic endeavors. Article II- Membership Section 1. Eligibility: Any person interested in active participation to promote the objectives of this Association may apply to become a member. Section 2. Class: There shall be the following class members: Player members: Any youth between the ages of 5 and 14 meeting the requirements of any organization to which BGSA is a member or requirements established by BGSA, shall be eligible for participation but shall have no rights, duties or obligations with respect to the management or in the property of the Association. Regular members: Any adult actively interested in furthering the objectives of the leagues may become a regular member if they are the parent or legal guardian of a player member or if they receive approval to be a regular member by a simple majority of the Board of Directors. Section 3. Suspension or Termination: Membership may be terminated by resignation or action of the Board of Directors. The Board of Directors, by majority vote at any duly constituted meeting, with a quorum attending, shall have the authority to discipline or suspend or terminate the membership of any member of any class when the conduct of such member is considered detrimental to the best interests of BGSA and/or any regional or national organization to which it belongs. The member involved shall be notified of such meeting, informed of the general nature of the charges and given an opportunity to appear at the meeting to answer such changes. If the member involved is a player member, their parents or legal guardian will also be informed of the charges and given an opportunity to appear at the meeting. Article III- Membership Fees Section 1. Fee: Membership or enrollment fee will be required of Player Members. However, if a girl is unable to pay, a donation may be asked at the time of registration to defray the expenses of the Association. Full or partial scholarships may be made available upon request. No girl shall be excluded for financial reasons. Section 2. Refund: No amount of the enrollment fee will be refunded after a player member participates in any league practice or game. All requests for refunds must be submitted to the Association Treasurer. The Board of Directors, by

2 majority vote at any duly constituted meeting, with a quorum attending, may direct the Treasurer to promptly pay each refund. Article IV- Meetings Section 1. Annual Meeting: The annual meeting of the regular members of the league shall be held in June of each year for the purpose of electing the Board of Directors, who shall serve until their successors are installed at the July meeting, receiving reports, and for the transaction of such other business as may properly come before the Board. Section 2. Notice of Meeting: Notice of each meeting shall be made known to the membership at least seven (7) days in advance thereof, setting forth the time, place, and purpose of the meeting. Notice shall be by mail or any other means pursuant to a single notice given. Section 3. Only regular members shall be entitled to vote at any meetings of the league, or to be elected or appointed as directors. Section 4. A quorum shall consist of a majority of the members of the Board of Directors. Article V- Board of Directors Section 1. Board and Number: The management of the property and affairs of the league shall be vested in the Board of Directors. The number of Directors shall consist of not less than seven (7). The persons whose signatures are affixed below shall act as Directors until the election of their successors. Section 2. Required Members: The Board of Directors shall include the following nine elected officers: President, Vice President, Treasurer, Secretary, Funds Director, and Player Agent for the 6U, 8U, 10U, 12U and 14U Divisions. Additional positions may be created each year and filled as deemed necessary by a vote of the membership. Section 3. Elections of Officers: Any regular member in the league may choose to become a member of the Board or an Officer. Written notice must be given to the League Secretary at least one week prior to the Annual Meeting to be eligible to run for election. Officers shall be elected by a simple majority of the regular members at the Annual Meeting. Election will be by secret ballot. Section 4. Term of Officers: Board members and Officers shall be elected at the Annual Meeting. The term of office is one year. Officers shall serve a maximum term of two years per position. Officers must attend a minimum of 75% of the Board meetings. In the event that a position was not elected at the Annual Meeting or that an officer cannot fulfill their term, a replacement will be elected by a majority vote of the remaining Board of Directors. Section 5. Balanced Voting Privileges: In no case shall a Member of the Board of Directors be given more than one voting privilege, regardless of the number of position held. Additionally, should two or more members of the Board of Directors reside in the same household, they shall only have one voting privilege. Section 6. Committees: There shall be such committees created by the Board of Directors as may be required to carry on the work of the corporation.

3 Articles VI- Method to Amend Section 1. Method to amend Bylaws, Articles of Incorporation or any other rule established by or for the Association. League Management: May be changed by a majority vote of the Board of Directors at a meeting duly called and held. Rules affecting player members: Rules that pertain to player member eligibility, playing time, and/or team formation may be changed only by a 2/3rds vote of the regular membership present at the regularly scheduled meeting not held during the recreational season. Any Bylaws changes must be proposed and members notified a minimum of ten (10) days prior to voting at a meeting duly called and held. LEAGUE COMPOSITION Burlingame Girls Softball Administrative Rules The league will include teams in five divisions: 6 AND UNDER, 8 AND UNDER, 10 AND UNDER, 12 AND UNDER, 14 AND UNDER. The 6U division shall include those players whose playing ages are 5 and 6 years old. The 8U division shall include those players whose playing ages are 7 and 8 years old. The 10U division shall include those players whose playing ages are 9 and 10 years old. The 12U division shall include those players whose playing ages are 11 and 12 years old The 14U division shall include those players whose playing ages are 13 and 14 years old Playing age is defined as: The age of a player as of December31 st of the previous league year. Established age groupings shall not restrict the Burlingame Girls Softball Board of Directors from periodically reassessing the league age structure and recommending revisions therein to the voting membership. Neither shall the established league structure preclude the Board of Directors from considering and recommending future league expansion into additional age groups and league divisions. PLAYER SELECTION AND ELIGIBILITY- LEAGUE Player selection and assignment to teams shall follow the DRAFT method. Procedures shall be those heretofore adopted by this league. It shall be the duty of the Burlingame Girls Softball Board of Directors or its designated committee, to draft a written procedure for the DRAFT selection process. This document shall be subject to the review and approval of the Board of Directors and the voting membership. The 6U & 8U will be based upon age. See Appendix A for the DRAFT PROCEDURE. A scholarship program, awarded at the discretion of the Board of Directors, shall assure that no player, for the lack of funds, is precluded from participation. Experienced players, who have played at least two years in an age division, may request to play up in the next age division. To be eligible to play up, a parental request, IN WRITING, must be filed with, and approved by, the League s Board of Directors.

4 Players may request to play down in the next lower age division during their first year of eligibility in the higher age division. Physical handicap or other exceptional and severe reason should be the only reason to ever even consider to allow playing down. Players playing up are eligible to play on All Star A and B post- season teams in the age division they have played in during league play as well as any lower division that their birth date allows them to qualify for. Players playing down are not eligible for All Star or post season play in either the lower division or upper division they could have played in during the league play. Players registering for participation in Burlingame Girls Softball for the first time shall be required to present acceptable proof of birth dated. All registrations shall include the permission and signature of a parent or guardian. Open registration, i.e., registering after the published registration dates or according to the published registration instructions for fee amounts, shall be $20.00 more per player than early registration. Playing age as fixed by the Board of Directors shall be each player s playing age for all games of that season. No player may successfully petition to move to a higher or lower playing division during that season. Siblings playing in the same division shall always be assigned to the same team unless otherwise requested by their parents or guardian in writing. Players registering for participation in Burlingame Girls Softball do so with the understanding that their commitment shall be for the entire season and they will not be released from BGS to play for another team until said season has been completed. Failure to comply may result in the player being ineligible to register in BGS for the following year. Players selected for BGS post-season play must play the tournament schedule to its completion and will not be released to another team or league. Failure to comply will result in the player being ineligible for the remainder of the season and may result in the player being ineligible to register for BGS for the following season.. PLAYER SELECTION AND ELIGIBILITY- ALL STARS Player selection and assignment to the two All Star teams per division shall follow All Star Selection Process. Procedures shall be those heretofore adopted by the league. All Star players are to be selected from eligible players who played in the recreational league and any eligible players made available by partner leagues that are part of our recreational season association. It shall be the duty of the Burlingame Girls Softball Board of Directors or its designated committee, to draft written procedure for the All Star selection process. This document shall be subject to the review and approval of the Board of Directors and the voting membership. UNIFORM CODE See Appendix B for the current All Star selection process. Every player will come to the game in full uniform: jersey, pants, socks and hat. It is not necessary for all players to wear sleeves under team shirts if one player wishes not to do so. TEAM MANAGEMENT RESPONSIBILITIES

5 Team management/coaching staff is restricted to parents of registered girls. Exceptions to this rule must be approved by the Board of Directors. The manager of teams will be a female at least 21 years of age, who can have as an assistant a female chaperone. Team functions will not be permitted unless an adult female is present. Teams will have one rostered coach who shall have one rostered assistant coach. The coach and assistant coach can be either male or female and shall each be not less than 21 years old. Graduates of the league program who are 18 years or older may be rostered as assistant coaches with Board approval, if no parent on the team wants to be the assistant coach. Team personnel shall complete a personnel survey form, which will be kept on file with the league secretary. The president, vice president, and player agents will form a list of qualified coaches and managers and select the appropriate number for the teams in each division. During formation of teams, the coaches will be placed with a team first. Managers will be assigned to a team by vacancy, draw or by request. A coach and manager may request to team up together. However, if a coach and manager teaming together would result in two A pitchers or two or more All Star A players or any combination thereof, said combination will not be allowed. A combination of A players and/ or A players and an A pitcher could result from the Draft. However, the teaming up of personnel prior to the Draft will not be allowed since it could result in some teams having an unfair number of A players or a combination of the top A players. (see draw procedure). The final selection of managing personnel is subject to approval by the league Board of Directors. The player agent(s) shall never manage in the division that they are player agent for nor may their spouse be a head coach or manager in that division. They can, however, manage in a division separate from their player agent duties. The coach and the manager are both responsible for the team s equipment and uniforms. The coach is the team field manager and has final responsibility for team and game strategy, line-ups and substitutions, player utilization and all practices. The manager is the team administrator and has final responsibility for control of the team s actions, including verbal remarks by coaches and players. Team management personnel are expected to adhere to all rules and regulations and to set an example of sportsmanship, fair play, and healthy competition for the players and spectators. Any violation should be reported to the umpire and a written report submitted to the player agent for that division. Note: Do not confuse the definition of coach and manager for BGS with the ASA handbook. In actuality, the coach for BGS is the manager per ASA. However, for purposes of BGS and especially for post-season tournament play, the BGS coach is the field manager and the BGS manager is the administrative manager. If any team member, including managing personnel, makes a farce of the game or displays unsportsmanlike conduct, it will be within the jurisdiction of the umpire to assess a penalty against a player or any member of the team s managing personnel or team. Such a penalty could, after a warning, include removal from the game, or forfeiture, depending upon the seriousness of the action. It is forbidden to use profanity, alcohol or tobacco on the playing field during regular league games, practice sessions, or during league activities which include players. All adults on the field or in the audience, involved in any BGS activity, are expected to set good examples of sportsmanship. Umpires are not obligated to take action on problems which are not on the playing field, or concerning other than members of the two teams playing the game. Managers may request time and bring concerns to the attention of the umpire, if

6 affecting team play. A manager, for reasons of discipline, may request to temporarily suspend a player from her team, but must first notify the player agent and obtain his/her approval. The player agent must be notified in writing, including the reason for suspension. Either the team manager or the chaperone must remain at games and practice fields until all the players have been picked up or have permission to walk or ride bikes home. Parents must be advised by managers what time their players should be picked up so the manager will not have to wait indefinitely at the field for the player s ride home. All accidents will be reported, in writing, to the player agent as soon as possible. In the event a manager cannot be present for a scheduled game, she must ask her chaperone or a substitute to act as manager. All managers are required to attend 80% of all games and practices unless they have prior Board approval. BURLINGAME GIRLS SOFTBALL TEAM DRAFT PROCEDURE The purpose of the team draft is to attempt to select teams to ensure parity within each division. All players will be assigned to the appropriate group category within their respective divisions. The board or its committee reserves the right to place any player in a specific group category based upon facts or circumstances that necessitate such a placement in order to maintain the overall fairness of the draw. I. TEAM FORMATION The teams in the 6U & 8U division will be formed by equally dividing the players by age and to the best extent possible assigning the players to teams made up of other players who attend their elementary school. All other divisions will utilize the draft method to form the teams. The player agents will preside at the team formation meetings in 8U and 6U divisions. The President and/or Vice President or other designated board member may be present to assist if warranted. The coach and manager of the respective teams are the only other parties allowed to be present. The player agent will announce the number of teams in the division as was determined by the board. The rostered number of players per team will be no more than twelve players. The 6 U & 8U division should not exceed fourteen players per team. II. SPECIFIC CONSIDERATIONS (For 14U, 12U and 10U) Team Draft Objective The objectives of the team draft is to create evenly balanced teams within age division coached and managed by parents who can work together to the betterment of the players and the league. Team Draft Management The team draft process is to be managed by a committee made up of the Player Rep, President and Vice President. A majority vote of this committee is responsible for all interpretations of the bylaws and dispute resolutions. C. Coach and Manager 1. A coach can team up with one other parent prior to the Team Draft Meeting this will be considered the teaming up of a Coach and a Manager. In this circumstance the daughters of the coach and the manager will be on the same team. 2. A coach and/or manager will have his/her daughter(s) placed on his/her team unless written notice is given to the player agent prior to the draw to do otherwise.

7 3. Sisters of coaches and managers within the same division will placed on the same team, unless written notice is given to the player agent prior to the draw to do otherwise. 4. Either the Coach or the Manager must be a female. 5. Prior to the beginning of the draft, the draft management committee consisting of the President, Vice President and Player Rep will evaluate all the players assigned to each team prior to the draft through being the daughter of a coach or managers, and assign them a round in the draft where they believe the player would be have been selected. Teams will not have choices in the rounds that the draft management committee determines these players would have been selected. D. Player Selection Pools Player selection pools will be used to create evenly balanced teams. All 14U, 12U and 10U drafts will have a pitcher selection pool. At the discretion of each division s draft management committee made up of the Player Rep, President and Vice President other selection pools could be created for groupings such as A Players, B Players or Catchers. 1. Pitchers To insure each team receives the best quality pitching available a separate pitcher s pool will be created prior to the draft. The committee made up of the Player Rep, President and Vice President will identify the best available pitchers in each division. The number of pitchers identified will equal the number of teams in the division. (At the committee s discretion the number of pitchers identified can be expanded to 2 times the number of teams in the division.) This pool can include coach s and manager s daughters. Pitchers will than be assigned to each team so that each team has either 1 or 2 pitchers (depending on the number identified by the committee). Coach s and manager s daughters will be assigned to their team. The other pitchers will be assigned to the remaining teams based on a method that the remaining coaches agree upon. If they cannot agree upon a method, the pitchers will be assigned to the teams based upon a random draw conducted by the Player Rep. 2. Any additional player selection pools created will be handled in the same manner as the pitchers pool described above. 3. The Board of its committee reserves the right to place any player in a specific grouping based upon facts or circumstances that necessitate such a grouping in order to maintain the overall fairness of the draft (e.g. player plays A ball during the summer rather than league All Stars.) That player would be grouped the following year for league purposes as an A or B All Star and not as just an experienced returning player. III. THE TEAM DRAFT MEETING Segments of the Draft There shall be three segments of drafting 10U & 12 U & 14U

8 14U will go 1 st followed by 12U and then 10U B. The Process 1. Each coach draws a numbered piece of paper at random from a hat or box held by the league president. e.g.: the numbered pieces of paper should be equal to the number of coaches in the draft. If there are 8 coaches there should be 8 pieces of paper numbered If a coach draws the #1 he/she gets the 1 st pick in the 1 st round and so on until all coaches have chosen in the 1 st round. 3. Once the draft order is complete, the coaches will be provided a list of all available players and the board becomes live with a list of all the girls available. The Player Agent for the division in question will be responsible for keeping track of who is selected and crossing out any girl chosen so that everyone can see who is still alive on the board. Each coach will have 2 minutes of clock time to choose. Once the two-minute mark expires the coach will then be informed that his time is up and he will revert to the back of the queue. Once round #1 is over the selection process flip flops and the person who drafted last in round #1 chooses 1 st in round #2 and so on. This process is repeated in each round. As described above in certain rounds teams will not have selections based on the evaluation of the Draft Management Committee of which rounds the players they were assigned prior to the draft would been selected. Each selection is recorded by the registration chair that also pulls the registration sheet for each girl as they are chosen and places it in a master folder sorted by team. At the end of the meeting this folder is given to each coach. 5. All disputes will be handled and voted upon immediately by the committee made up of the Player Rep, President and Vice President.. B. SPECIFIC PLACEMENTS 1. Sisters: When a team receives sisters then her sibling is placed into that team s matrix at the same time (e.g. sister 1-12 exp and sister is 11 exp- then after sister 1 is placed in her category, sister 2 will be placed in hers). 2. Inexperienced Players: Prior to the final round, the Player REP will determine how many players will end up per team. If some teams will have more players than others, then the player agent can either have the remaining experienced players chosen randomly per drawing cards or if some team clearly has more A players, etc, then those teams should receive the extra inexperienced players. The goal is to attempt to maintain parity among the teams. 3. Last minute players: If any player joins the league after the draft (only if the rosters permit the addition) they will be placed on a team using the same criteria as (2) and also equalizing the roster numbers. If more than one team is involved then a random draw will take place to determine the placement.

9 BURLINGAME GIRLS SOFTBALL GENERAL DUTIES OF BOARD MEMBERS PRESIDENT Chairman of the Board and presides over all league meetings. Coordinates and is responsible for all league activities and the functioning of the league. Assigns duties and projects to other Board members. Responsible for all league assets. Oversees the team draw each year. A member of the three-person committee to select coaches for each playing division. Oversees the All Star selection process each year and is a voting member of each division s All Star selection committee.. Ensures the league and the Board has adequate insurance coverage. Coordinates the operating budget with the Treasurer. Coordinates with Vice President the assignment of practice fields with the Park and Recreation Department. One of the counter signatures on checks with the Treasurer. VICE PRESIDENT Presides over all league meetings and activities in the President s absence. Assists the President in all league activities. Responsible for the coordination of all volunteers for all league activities including opening day. Responsible for coordinating the league Year End Tournament and the Billie Sue Tournament. Responsible for all scheduling of games and field maintenance and coordination with the Park and Recreation Department A member of the three-person committee to select coaches for each playing division. A voting member of each division s All Star selection committee. One of the counter signatures on checks with the Treasurer. Responsible for maintaining league standings. Available to assist other Board Members and to assist with other league projects. SECRETARY Responsible for taking and maintaining the permanent minutes of all Board meetings. Responsible for maintaining current membership rolls. Responsible for all official correspondence, all mail (P.O. Box), and maintenance of permanent files in coordination with the President. Responsible for the newsletter, registration notices to all schools, and registration postcards to all players. Responsible for notifying all voting members of the annual meeting. Coordinates the yearbook. Available to assist other Board Members and to assist with other league projects. Responsible for all league funds and bank accounts. TREASURER

10 Signs all checks and obtains the necessary countersignature for all league expenditures. Responsible for and coordinated and oversees all league collections, including but not limited to: registration fees, equipment, uniform and promotional sales, sponsorships, donations and advertising revenues, tournament revenues, snack shack revenues, league of our own revenues. Responsible for preparing annual operating budget with President for Board approval. Provides Board with monthly financial statement and explanations. Prepares year-end statements (Note: year-end is June, must estimate final June revenues and expenses for preliminary year-end statements for June annual meeting). Available to assist other Board Members and to assist with other league projects. PLAYER AGENTS Board liaison for their division. Representative of all the players in their respective division. Responsible for the behavior and activities of all coaches, managers and players in their respective division. Must investigate any player injuries. Must resolve any player problems and/or coach manager problems subject to Board approval. Responsible for coordinating registration for their division, including: Verifying the accuracy of playing ages. Confirming any player move-ups subject to Board approval. Verifying the accuracy of all player information and keeping it confidential. Furnishing respective coaches the second copy of the registration form (Note: this also is the medical release form). A member of the three-person committee to select coaches for their playing division. Responsible for their team draw, including: Rating all players: A, B, EXP, UN-EXP Confirming designated A and B pitchers. Compiling final team rosters for each team and for the Board. Coordinates the distribution of uniforms, equipment and correspondence to their teams. Ensures that all first aid kits are adequately filled. Coordinates with the Vice President any rain-out reschedules and notifies their teams. Coordinates with the Vice President the year-end league tournament. Responsible for the All Star selection process for their division and is a voting member of their division s All Star selection committee. Completes typed rosters of the Red Star and Blue Star teams and indicates alternates. Responsible for any necessary replacements for either All Star team. Assists in the coordination and distribution of All Star uniforms, tournament entry forms, birth certificates and insurance cards. Coordinates division standings with the Vice President. 10U player agent- assists Vice President in running the Billie Sue Tournament. 8U player agent- responsible for dividing teams for year-end tournament. Available to assist other Board members and to assist with other league projects.

11 Burlingame Girls Softball Policy Statements Draft Procedure (refer to draw procedure document) Why can t girls request to be on the same teams? Why can t two coaches team up prior to the draft? Why can t a coach and manager team up prior to the draft if they have daughters who are A players? The draft is designed to be as impartial as possible. Sometimes it isn t possible to determine until the last minute based upon the number of teams if a player will be a designated pitcher and that can affect not only the draft categories but also the possible teaming up of a coach/manager. If any exceptions are allowed to any of the above it can skew the draft and result in an unfair allocation of players both weak and strong to various teams. The intent is to balance the teams. By not allowing any exceptions no charges of favoritism and/or stacking a team can be raised. Move-Up or Move-Down Why can t a player move up or down? ASA sets age categories per divisions as of December 31st of the previous year. This is a nationwide policy for the purpose of having the girls play with other girls of the same age. We follow those rules in most cases even if a girl misses the cut-off by a day or two. Cut-offs are cut-offs. Burlingame Girls Softball has always been by age and never by grade. When you allow movement between divisions you usually create two main problems: (1) the leaving division is weaker and (2) the upper division is weaker. The player is a much bigger asset to her true division and in some cases can actually weaken the team she is on in the upper division. If you make an exception for one player then where do you draw the line? It is an impossible situation. Also, it affects the All Star Teams in both divisions for the same reasons as above. It s not a good idea to start playing younger athletes against older competition. While a few of these

12 so-called gifted kids can handle the competition of an older age bracket, the vast majority of children struggle to hold their own. And though they won t tell their parents this, many of them feel that when they are forced to play against older kids, sports participation goes from being fun to serious, nononsense drudgery. They feel they have to please mom and dad with their performances. Adding this kind of undue emotional pressure on 8 to 12 year olds really isn t necessary at this stage of their development. Just because your child happens to be big for her age doesn t mean she is emotionally ready to play against older competitors. Big doesn t necessarily mean mature. Wait until your gifted child is in her early teens before you consider playing up. When they are 12 or younger, take your time. After all, there is nothing wrong with being the star in one s own division. (Good Sports, by Rick Wolff, sports psychologist.) Moving-down should never be allowed for the same reason as above. There are always a few girls in the 12U and 14U divisions who are playing softball for the first time. They belong in their own age division and are capable of learning the basic skills of softball. Also, a lot to times these girls demonstrate a skill level that warrants consideration for one of the All Star teams. A girl is only eligible for the All Star team in her division. If she has played down then she would not be eligible since she would be too old for the cut-off. NOTE: The board will consider applications to move up or down and take them on an individual basis. Rescheduling of Games Why can t games be rescheduled? The league is too big to allow any rescheduling. Each team plays games and if they have to forfeit a game it is not the end of the world. We have both a fields problem and an umpire problem if a game was to be rescheduled. Also, one team wants a reschedule and the other team doesn t and then they can t ever agree on a new date, etc. the only free day that we have is Sunday and the automatic reschedule rules are followed. We have an agreement with both the Cities of Burlingame and Millbrae and the umpires that allows this accommodation. We have no other choices. All Star Selection Process Why do we have both an A and B team? Why can t girls choose what team they want to be on? Why can t the B Team have pitchers assigned? Why are the President, VP and Player Agent on the selection committee? The object of the all star selection process is to choose the best 12 girls for the A team and the next best 12 girls for the B team. It should be noted that it takes about a 70% + vote of the selection committee to make the A team. The President, VP and Player Agent are part of the voting group because they are the representatives of the Board. They are there to ensure the integrity and fairness of the voting process. They are there to make sure that no girl is ignored for any reason whatsoever and more so to make sure that they are picked because they deserve it and not because of any politics, etc. The girls are chosen on ability. Those chosen to play on the A team were chose because of their ability. They were chosen solely for the A team not the B team. A girl does not have a choice where she plays. We don t want to get into a situation where Sally wants to play on the same team as her friend Susie, etc. More so we can t have someone or someone s parents saying Sally doesn t want to play for that coach but will play for the other coach. As far as the B team goes, sometimes they will have a pitcher and sometimes they won t. The A team is lucky if they have two strong pitchers. There are only so many girls in the available pool, i.e.

13 Division. Just because a girl pitches doesn t make her a tournament pitcher. Also, you cannot ask a girl, chosen for the A team, to play on the B team just because she can pitch (imagine the reaction of her parents, let alone the girl). She won t make that much difference on the B team anyway because she will be hit period since she will not be a dominant pitcher. The purpose of the B team is to give those girls the opportunity to further develop their softball skills and have tournament experience so that they will be better players in the league the next year and also make the league stronger. As long as there are 12 girls that want to play on the B team we will have a team for them. The league will sponsor these girls and give everyone who wants to play summer ball the opportunity to try out U Summer League and Winter League Why don t we sponsor teams in the 16U summer league or any teams in the winter league? Both of those leagues are sponsored and put together by the J.O. Commissioner for our ASA District. Neither of them is in any way affiliated with the Burlingame Girls Softball League. The teams that enter those leagues are usually select teams picked by some coach, not all the girls in our league are given a chance to participate. As far as the 16U usually half the girls aren t even from Burlingame or even go to Burlingame schools. The winter league also can have girls from all over. It isn t fair that we should be involved with either of these leagues since they are not part of our league and they are not available for all the girls in our league on an equal basis. Anyone who wants to play in either of those leagues just has to contact the J.O. Commissioner and she will help place them on a team. Any dad who wants to coach a team can apply to coach the team. They purchase insurance, etc. directly from the J.O. Commissioner. The girls buy their own uniforms, etc. We never let any of those teams use our equipment. In the old days it occasionally happened and the equipment came back beat up or lost. Again, it belongs to the league and not to some private teams. They need to purchase their own just like anyone else. The same rationale applies to our field equipment too. It s just too expensive to repair, replace or to try and chase it down to get it returned. This especially applies to the pitching machines. PAGE PAGE 3