WEST HERNANDO ATHLETIC CLUB FOR SENIORS SOFTBALL RULES & LAWS

Transcription

1 WEST HERNANDO ATHLETIC CLUB FOR SENIORS SOFTBALL RULES & LAWS The following WHACS Softball League Rules shall be in effect for the softball season, and shall remain in effect until properly changed, amended, altered, and/or revised in accordance with the WHACS By-Laws. All previous editions are voided and are to be considered obsolete. It is the responsibility of each and every WHACS Softball League Player to follow, adhere, comply and support the Softball League Rules. Individuals violating the provisions of these rules may subject themselves to corrective action by the League. PREFACE 02May2018 GENERAL MEETING passed a motion to eliminate the Player s Committee and the Board of Directors (BOD) will take full league control. As such: One BOD member will play on each team (easier member access), Weekly, another BOD member will become the *BOD REP (on-call/on-site authority), Each week, the other *BOD REPs are simply team members (no authority), Members with comments, gripes, etc can talk directly to their BOD player who, in turn, will bring to BOD President, President oversees all issues. I WHACS LEAGUE RULES (GENERAL): 01. NSA rules will apply unless pre-empted by a WHACS rule stated herein. The purpose of the Rules is to assure competitive and consistent play for all concerned. 02. All players must reach the age of fifty-five (55) or older during the season in order to play. 03. Once the Umpire declares Play Ball, only those who have signed the WAIVER are allowed in a dugout or on the playing field. 04. SEASON s SCHEDULE FORMAT: a. REGULAR SEASON: 1) Regular season shall be one season; starting in Sep and ending in May, 2) Regular season is simply to determine seeding into the Playoffs (see I, 04,b), 3) The BOD to decide if postponed games will need to be made up. b. PLAYOFFS: 1) A Double Elimination Tournament will determine the League Champion, 2) First and second place seeds teams draw a First round BYE, 3) Four remaining teams will play a SINGLE elimination round, 4) Best seed is always home team but, IF game needs a coin toss, 5) No Pick-Up or Pool Players allowed in Post-Season play. 05. GAME TIMES: a. Regular games shall be played on Monday-Wednesday-Friday (Any team plays TWO games/week), b. First game will start at 9:00am; second at 10:30am, c. All January/February games will be moved back to 9:30am/10:00am and 11:00am/11:30am, d. Game times shall revert back to 9:00am and 10:30am in March, 06. SPONSORS UNIFORM: smk 09/01/2018 page 1

2 a. Players, who have been issued a uniform, MUST wear the Sponsor s shirt, at all times, when playing in an official game, b. If uniform is altered, in any way, player will be ineligible to play until uniform is corrected, c. Players will have the choice of wearing a WHACS-sponsored team hat (any season) or NO hat, d. Medical exemptions approved by President only, e. If a player doesn t have his uniform, *BOD REP (on-site) will determine if the reason is reasonable enough to allow him to play. 07. HOME and VISITING TEAM s FIELD RESPONSIBILITES: a. Home team dugout is on first base line, b. HOME teams will provide the Umpire with a game ball and a good backup ball, c. After each game, the home team manager will keep BEST ball (for next game) and place the other ball in a MARKED BUCKET in the shed (for WHACS to recycle) d. FIRST game: the HOME team will lay out the bases, line the field, etc to get field ready to play, e. SECOND game: the HOME team will put all bases, scorekeeper table, etc away, f. POSSIBLE EXCEPTION: Bases (ONLY) will be left on the field ONLY if the SSIL is playing the second game. g. VISITING teams shall provide a scorekeeper for each game; game 2 visitor will score game 1; game 1 visitor will score game MAIN POOL: a. Players, not placed on a team, will be assigned to the Main Pool. b. Anyone refusing to enter the pool shall be entitled to a refund. c. New applicants and WHACS player with less than two (2) consecutive WHACS seasons will be subject to an evaluation try-out. *BOD REP will rate them as A (Best), B (Better) or C (Good), d. POOL players, ready to join a team, will remain in the pool until there are enough to evenly distribute amongst the teams (i.e., 6 for 6-team league, 5- for 5 teams, 4- for 4 teams), e. A special DRAFT will be held for managers to select one player in a Last-Place to First Place order. 09. TEAM ROSTERS and PLAYER RE-ASSIGNMENTS: a. MANAGERS may approach *BOD REP about perceived non-competitiveness and/or imbalance of their team, b. If it is deemed that teams are NOT competitively balanced, *BOD REP may re-assign players as needed, c. *BOD REP will ATTEMPT to gain agreement from both managers and players involved before moving any player. 10. MANAGER RESPONSIBILITIES: a. Before Opening Day, managers must identify an Assistant Manager to the *BOD REP, b. Smoking is NOT ALLOWED in the dugout, near the dugout entrance, on the field or outside the fence (less than 10 ), c. Managers are responsible to remove that player from the game; result is an out when it s the removed player s turn to bat. 11. UMPIRES RESPONSIBILITY: a. Profanity, from any WHACS member, will NOT be permitted in the dugout, on the field or outside the fence (within 10 ), b. Offender will receive one warning, per game, before being ejected. c. Batter s Box: 1) Ensure BOTH batter s feet are entirely within or touching the box s chalk when contact is made, 2) If chalk is not visible, Umpire must mark new line(s). smk 09/01/2018 page 2

3 12. EJECTIONS: a. Any ejected player shall IMMEDIATELY be removed from the game and MUST vacate the vicinity of the ball field vacate the ball field and dugout areas, 1) The player s spot in the batting order will be an out, 2) Teams with less than 11 players will play short for the remainder of the game, 3) The player will also be suspended for the team s next scheduled game, b. Fighting, with contact, will result in a 10 game suspension, 1) The suspension will run through any playoffs and will extend into the start of the next season, 2) It is *BOD REP s discretion to suspend player(s) based on the seriousness of the offense, 3) Player(s) may NOT appeal this suspension nor be at the field while suspended. 13. QUITTING a TEAM or the LEAGUE: a. A player, quitting his team, once the season has started, without a legitimate reason (as determined by *BOD REP) will be suspended for one year from the date of his action, b. The manager shall notify *BOD REP of any player quitting his team, c. There will be NO DUES REFUND, d. Such player(s) MUST APPLY, in writing to the WHACS BoD), for re-instatement to play in subsequent seasons. 14. SUSPENSION of PLAYERS: a. *BOD REP has the authority to suspend a player for disrupting the team or for conduct detrimental to the league. Suspension shall be for the remainder of the game being played PLUS a minimum of the next two (2) games that his team plays, b. The manager will report the incident, IN WRITING, to *BOD REP for both review and approval before any action other than the immediate dismissal from the game, c. Player(s) involved may appeal their suspension. The appeal must be submitted, to *BOD REP, IN WRITING, at their team s next scheduled game, after the initial suspension. 15. PROTESTS: a. Protests must be declared at the time of possible infraction and the Umpire (or ScoreKeeper) will annotate the ScoreSheet (noting time and inning), b. Protests (with a $15 Protest Fee must be submitted by the (protesting) manager, to *BOD REP, in writing within 72 hours, c. The written protest must explain, in explicit detail and citing what rule(s) were violated, d. *BOD REP will base his decision on NSA/WHACS rules and respond within 48 hours to the manager, JOHNSON 19Jul e. *BOD REP s ruling will be final, f. $15 fee will be returned (to the protesting manager) if Protest is upheld. II PLAYING THE GAME: 01. THE BALL (COR / COMPRESSION): a. WHACS will use a 44/375 Trump softball (used in Florida Half Century). 02. HOME PLATE(s): a. Home plate has been widened to 19 by 35, b. A SECOND home plate (regular size) shall be placed, in line with the first base line, eight feet (8 ) past the Main Plate, c. A (second) base line shall be drawn from third base to the second plate, d. A Commit Line shall be drawn, perpendicular to the foul line, 20 from the second plate. smk 09/01/2018 page 3

4 e. If a runner touches or passes the Commit Line, he MUST proceed towards home. f. Plays at home are simple force plays. The runner must touch the outer plate BEFORE the catcher, with the ball, touches the main plate, g. Catcher may use ENTIRE home plate for plays at home, 03. FIRST BASE: a. First base consists of a WHITE base and an ORANGE base (in foul territory), b. If initial play can be made at first; batter must touch orange base (to be safe), fielders must touch white base (to be out). Runner is out if he touches the white; safe if fielder touches the orange, c. If initial play can NOT be made to first; runner may touch the white bag and round to move towards 2B. 04. GAME DURATION: a. Games shall be (minimum of) eight (8) innings, b. Mercy rule is twelve (12) runs after six (6) innings; twenty (20) after four (4) innings, c. EXTRA INNINGS: 1) If game is tied after eight (8) innings, the LAST OFFICIAL batter of the previous inning will occupy second base, 2) The last batter must touch second base prior to time being called to request a courtesy runner. 05. LINEUP CARDS: a. Managers shall provide their line-up sheet to the official scorer ten (10) minutes before game time. b. Official scorer will then pass line-ups to opposing managers. 06. SHORT-HANDED TEAMS: a. GENERAL: 1) Short-handed teams can pick up ONE to THREE or TWO replacements to in order to field 11 players, 2) Teams trying to field 8 will be forced to play 10; missing player s turn at bat will be SKIPPED, SEVEN players or less is a FORFEIT, 3) Replacements must bat at the bottom of the lineup, 4) Replacements, assigned the night before, MUST play a minimum of three (3) innings unless the REPLACEMENT chooses not to, 5) Late arriving players: a) If team is playing less than 11; late-arrival will go directly in lineup batting at bottom, b) If team is playing 11+; late-arrival must sit until his replacement plays 3-innings and, then, assumes replacement s position in lineup. 6) Replacements will NOT be allowed to play in any playoffs nor tournaments b. RESPONSIBILITIES (PLAYERS and MANAGERS): 1) PLAYERS MUST notify their manager at least ONE day before any game they will miss (so managers can secure a replacement), 2) MANAGERS must notify the designated *BOD REP member a need for replacement(s) if 11 can NOT be fielded, 3) *BOD REP will attempt to satisfy the manager s needs with players of equal talent (to those missing). c. REPLACEMENT PLAYERS (SUBS) How it works 1) Two POOLS are available; MAIN POOL (players NOT assigned to a team); VOLUNTEER POOL (assigned players who marked PLAYER APP to be a VOLUNTEER SUB.) 2) When subs are needed MAIN POOL MUST be 100% EXHAUSTED before delving into VOLUNTEER POOL. 3) Each team shall be credited with 6 possible subs PER WEEK ONE A, TWO B and THREE C. 4) When a manager calls for sub(s); he MUST first state ALL his missing players. smk 09/01/2018 page 4

5 5) *BOD REP will inform MANAGER what credits the MANAGER has currently available for use 6) The *BOD REP will validate (missing players against) the CURRENT REPLACEMENT PLAYERS sheets (provided each week by Secretary). 7) *BOD REP will do his best to call POOL players (MAIN first) to locate a SUB. If no available rated sub; *BOD REP will drop down one rating level. 8) Once a sub is identified, *BOD REP will mark his sheet (ie, used A sub and one C ) to show manager used his chit/marker for rest of week thereby leaving one A, two B and one C. 9) No replacement will be assign with a higher rating than what is needed. 07. GAME TIME REPLACEMENT: a. If a team loses a player during the game (injury or other justified reason) they can NOT pick up a replacement if they can still field 11 but, that player s turn at bat will not count as an out, b. If a team cannot continue to field 11; *BOD REP will attempt to replace the lost player with a replacement with similar ability. 08. LINEUPS and EH (same as DH for WHACS purposes): a. Manager must bat all his players who show up to the game, b. Player/Managers are considered PLAYERS and MUST bat (per 08 a above) in ALL his team s games, c. Players, not assigned to a position in the starting 11, will be identified as EH (for scorekeeping only), d. Players, including EH, may play any fielding position but MUST remain in the original batting order, e. Minimum play: 1) Each player play a minimum of three (3) innings on defense, 2) When the game is shortened due to weather or run rule, the rule is waived. 09. PITCHING and the PITCHING SCREEN: a. Each batter will start out with a 1 ball; 1 strike count; no courtesy foul, b. Pitched ball must arc between 6-12, c. Umpire will say (the word) ILLEGAL (loud enough for batter to hear) as soon the arc peaks (so batter has adequate time to decide about swinging, d. A Pitching Screen will be used in all games: 1) Each pitcher can place screen; once placed only next pitcher can move screen, 2) Must be 0 to 5 in front of rubber, 3) One leg of the screen MUST be within the width of the rubber, 4) A batted ball, which hits the screen directly off the bat, shall be declared a foul ball and treated as any other foul ball. 10. COURTESY RUNNERS: a. Teams may use unlimited courtesy runners BUT each courtesy runner may be used only ONCE per inning, b. A courtesy runner, on occupying a base when his turn comes to bat, takes his place at bat and another runner will take his place on the base. 11. FIVE-RUN RULE: a. The 5-Run Rule WITHOUT Catch-Up will be used, b. From 4th inning on; Catch-Up is allowed to solely to avoid a mercy, c. 5-Run Rule is waived from 8th inning on. 12. ON-DECK BATTER: a. Manager must ensure his next batter is in, or moving towards the On-Deck Circle when the current batter steps into the batter s box, b. Umpire will NOT allow a pitch to be thrown (at his discretion). smk 09/01/2018 page 5

6 13. PROTECTED HITTER (PH): a. The premise of this rule is to ensure the batter the opportunity to swing at a minimum of one pitched strike, b. Manager has the option of identifying two (2) batters as PROTECTED HITTER (PH), c. PH s must be marked in the pre-game lineup cards handed to the scorekeeper, d. PH may be intentionally walked once per game, e. PH must receive a strike (called/swinging) before being walked via a pitched ball, f. If no pitched strike, PH has option of walking anytime after the 4th ball is pitched, g. Pool players may not be a PH. smk 09/01/2018 page 6