League Cnstitutin Welcme Welcme t the BaseballHQ.cm fantasy baseball leagues fr 2017! As a valued subscriber, we hpe yur experience will be bth fun and challenging. Althugh the fllwing league cnstitutin may nt address every issue, hpefully it will clarify rules and expectatins fr the upcming seasn. Thank yu fr participating. New fr 2017 Intrducing Fantrax.cm Fantrax.cm will be ur prvider fr auctin leagues in 2017. OnRt.cm will cntinue t be ur prvider fr straight draft rtisserie leagues. OnRt.cm is develping a mbile app. Lk fr the Mbile Friendly Team Hme tab n the OnRt Site Navigatin menu as it becmes available. (This app may nt be available yet in every league.) Sunday transactin deadline (8:00 pm Eastern) Add/drps in every league will nw ccur at 8:00 pm Eastern every Sunday. Lineup changes must still be cmpleted prir t the first game n Mnday. In-seasn trades may still be cmpleted at any time up until the trade deadline. 1
Quick Review f Key OnRt.cm Features We are pleased t annunce that OnRt.cm will again be ur systems prvider fr ur straight draft leagues in 2017. Here is a brief verview f sme f the features n OnRt.cm: Bid-Meister: OnRt.cm s autmated cmmissiner wh accepts, then awards free agent bids and waiver claims. Dummy Player: Nn-scring player used t make up fr rster shrtfalls s that a team s rster will be cnsidered legal fr an upcming r current scring perid. Waiver claim prcessing deadline is 8:00 pm Eastern every Sunday night. At that time, OnRt.cm s Bid-Meister will determine add/drps based upn the pririty f bids r claims in each league frmat. (Auctins are based upn FAAB. Pririty in straight drafts is based upn league standings.) Mbile friendly versin: Change lineups and check yur team s perfrmance n the g with OnRt.cm s mbile versin. 2
Quick Review f Key Fantrax.cm Auctin Features We are excited t annunce that Fantrax.cm will be ur systems prvider fr auctin leagues in 2017! Here is a brief verview f sme f the features n Fantrax.cm: Lineup Change Optins: Fantrax.cm ffers Drag & Drp, Easy Click and Classic Lineup Change Methds. Live Chat n the League Hme Page: Knw which wners are nline at the same time in rder t chat, make trade ffers, etc. Srt player statistics by full seasn r specific dates. Chse a start and end date t evaluate yur team s perfrmance r players n the waiver wire. Player Watch Lists: Keep track f future acquisitins r ther players f interest by placing thse players n a Watch List. 3
Imprtant Dates Here is a handy reference guide f significant dates that may affect transactins and lineup changes. Please pay clse attentin t these dates in yur league: Opening Day: Sunday, April 2 (New Yrk Yankees @ Tampa Bay Rays 1:10 pm Eastern) Lineups lck 5 minutes prir t the start f the game Bids & Waiver Claims: Bids and waiver claims must be submitted each Sunday by 8:00 pm Eastern Each league s first bids and waiver claims will be prcessed n Sunday, April 9 after 8:00 pm Eastern by OnRt.cm s Bid-Meister Last waiver claims are scheduled fr Sunday, September 24 at 8:00 pm Eastern There will be n additinal bids r waiver claims fr Playff Opt-in games Lineups: Lck prir t the start f the first game n Mnday (exceptins include Opening Day and the All-Star break) Patrits Day (Bstn) Mnday, April 17 Lineups lck 5 minutes prir t the 11:05 am start f the Rays vs. Red Sx game 2017 All Star Game: Tuesday, July 11 (Marlins Park, Miami) Lineups will lck 5 minutes prir t the first MLB game n Friday, July 14 Trade Deadline: Saturday, August 12 (11:59 pm Eastern) Regular Seasn Ends: Sunday, Octber 1 Playff Opt-in Games: T be determined. (These games cunt as regular seasn games.) First Add/Drp Transactins: Sunday, April 9 th @ 8:00 pm (Eastern) (**IMPORTANT: All teams must draft a legal lineup prir t the first week f the seasn. There will be n trades befre Opening Day and n add/drps befre April 9 th.) 4
Draft Dates Opening Day: April 2, 2017 Mixed Straight Draft Leagues (OnRt.cm): Friday, March 17 (8:00 pm Eastern) Saturday, March 18 (1:00 pm Eastern) Saturday, March 25 (8:00 PM Eastern) Mnday, March 27 (8:00 pm Eastern) if necessary Mixed Auctin Leagues (Fantrax.cm): Sunday, March 19 (1:00 pm Eastern) AL-Only Straight Draft (OnRt.cm): Wednesday, March 22 (8:00 pm Eastern) AL-Only Auctin Draft (Fantrax.cm): Saturday, March 25 (8:00 pm Eastern) NL-Only Straight Draft (OnRt.cm): Tuesday, March 21 (8:00 pm Eastern) NL-Only Auctin Draft (Fantrax.cm): Friday, March 24 (8:00 pm Eastern) Frum Masters League (Private) T be determined. *NOTE: All draft dates/times are subject t change based upn availability r ther factrs. OnRt.cm standard drafts. Prir t the draft, the rder fr selecting players will be randmized. The draft will snake, reversing the rder f selectins in every even rund. Each team will have 60 secnds t make a selectin. Autpick ptins are available fr absentee wners, and will be emplyed if a team exceeds 60 secnds fr drafting a player. Fantrax.cm auctin drafts. Each team begins with a budget f $280. Once a player is nminated, 30 secnds are allwed fr bids. If a bid is received with less than 10 secnds n the clck, the clck will be reset t 10 secnds t allw ther players t enter a higher bid fr the player. (**Nte: Please remember t include bench players in yur $280 budget. There is nt a separate snake draft fr bench players. All teams must spend at least $1 per player including bench players.) **IMPORTANT: Please be sure t check yur league s hme page fr updates. 5
Standard Rtisserie Leagues Mixed Leagues. All mixed leagues, which use bth the American League and Natinal League player universes, will be cmprised f 23 starters and 5 reserves, plus ne disabled slt fr injured players. Mixed auctin leagues will be limited t twelve teams and serpentine draft mixed leagues will have a maximum f fifteen teams. Mixed leagues will strictly fllw MLB status updates fr injured players as prvided by OnRt.cm and Fantrax.cm. (Players expected t begin the seasn n the MLB disabled list, cannt be added t yur team s disabled list until the first transactin perid. Until then, injured players shuld be placed n yur team s reserve list.) AL-Only and NL-Only Leagues. Leagues using either an American League r Natinal League player universe exclusively will have a maximum f 12 teams. Each team will be cmprised f 23 starters and 3 reserves, plus 2 minr league players. These leagues will als have ne ptinal disabled list (DL) slt available fr injured players. 6
All BaseballHQ.cm leagues will use the standard 5x5 scring system. Scring Categries The hitting categries are runs (R), hme runs (HR), runs batted in (RBI), stlen bases (SB) and batting average (AVG). The pitching categries are wins (W), saves (SV), strikeuts (K), earned run average (ERA), and walks and hits per innings pitched (WHIP). 5X5: R, HR, RBI, SB, AVG, W, SV, SO, ERA, WHIP All categries receive equal weighting, meaning that all categries are cnsidered t be equal fr scring -- ne categry des nt prvide mre pints than the thers. (The abbreviatins are shwn as they appear n scring reprts fr OnRt.cm.) Scring Perids Scring perids begin n Mnday and last ne week (thrugh Sunday). There are 26 scring perids ttal. League Start Date The first scring perid will begin n Sunday, April 2 and cntinue thrugh Sunday, April 9. All teams must draft a cmplete, legal starting lineup there will be n add/drps until the end f the first scring perid. N trades will be allwed prir t Opening Day. Sunday, April 2: New Yrk Yankees @ Tampa Bay Rays 1:10 pm Eastern (Remember, lineups must be set at least 5 minutes prir t the start f the game.) League End Date The last regular seasn Majr League Baseball games are scheduled fr Sunday, Octber 2. The last waiver claims will be prcessed n Sunday, September 24 at 8:00 pm Eastern, regardless f MLB play-in games. There will be n fantasy rster expansins in September. 7
Rster Rsters Psitins Teams must maintain a cmplete starting lineup and legal rster at all times. The starting lineup will cnsist f tw catchers, ne first baseman, ne secnd baseman, ne shrtstp, ne third baseman, ne middle infielder, ne crner infielder, five utfielders, ne utility player and nine pitchers. POS: C,C,1B,2B,SS,3B,MI,CI,OF,OF,OF,OF,OF,UTL,P,P,P,P,P,P,P,P,P Bench Psitins Mixed leagues will have five (5) bench players. AL-nly and NL-nly leagues will have three (3) bench players. Minr League Players AL-Only and NL-Only leagues will have the ptin t carry up t tw minr league players per rster. T qualify, minr league players cannt be n an active 25-man MLB rster. They must be in the minrs, in cllege, r play n an internatinal team. Internatinal Players Internatinal players signed by MLB teams during the seasn may be acquired as sn as thse players are added t the player universe f either OnRt.cm r Fantrax.cm. Internatinal players will fllw the same rules as ther free agents. Player Eligibility Players are eligible at their primary psitin, plus psitins they've played 10 games last year r 5 games this year. Eligibility will be determined by OnRt.cm and Fantrax.cm. A rkie wh has nt reached his psitinal limits at the Majr League level 5 games in the current seasn r 10 games in the previus seasn will qualify at his default psitin. His default psitin is the psitin he played mst ften in the minrs. MLB Trade Plicy fr AL-Only & NL-Only Leagues If a player is traded ut f an AL-Only r NL-Only player universe during the seasn, he will cntinue t accumulate statistics thrugh the end f the seasn. Fr example, if a player was traded frm the Milwaukee Brewers (NL) t the Ls Angeles Angels (AL), he will als cntinue t accumulate statistics fr his NL-Only wners fr the rest f the 2017 seasn. 8
Team Management Lineups Owners set their wn lineups. Hwever, league cmmissiners may adjust illegal lineups as needed. League cmmissins may als restrict lineup changes fr disciplinary reasns r t assure fair play. Owners are required t maintain a legal lineup at all times. Lineup Effective Date Unless therwise stated, all BaseballHQ.cm leagues will lck lineups every Mnday. Any lineup changes must be made at least 5 minutes prir t the start f the first game n that day. Under special circumstances, the effective date fr lineups may change. Tw ntable examples are Opening Day (Sunday, April 2) and the first MLB game scheduled after the All-Star Break (Friday, July 14). Disabled List Each team has ne Disabled List (DL) r Injured rster space t reserve an injured player. Using DL Slts By adding a player t the ptinal DL slt, wners agree t meet the fllwing cnditins: All lineups must be legal. Owners are respnsible fr making rster changes t create legal lineups. Failure t maintain a legal lineup may subject an wner t disciplinary actin. Healthy players must be activated befre the next lineup change perid takes effect. Failing t activate a player wh n lnger qualifies fr Injured status by the next lineup perid (Mnday) may result in that player being drpped frm the current team and added t the waiver prcess. Disabled players must be drafted as an active r reserve. Injured players may nt be added t the team s disabled list until the first free agent acquisitin perid n April 9. 9
Disabled free agents cannt be added directly t a team s DL slt. An Injured player must be added t an active rster r bench spt befre being mved t the DL slt during the next lineup change perid. Failure t meet these cnditins may result in the lss f the injured player. Repeated vilatins may result in the lss f use f the DL slt r ther disciplinary actins. Determining Injured Status Injured r DL statuses will be gverned by the designatins assigned by OnRt.cm and Fantrax.cm nly. Althugh ther wire services, including Majr League Baseball, may reprt a different player status, such as Active r Disabled, the player s status used fr the BaseballHQ.cm games will be determined by nly by ur system prviders in their respective leagues. Suspended Players & Extended Absences Players suspended fr illegal substances r in-game cnduct vilatins will be treated as rdinary inactive players, and will cunt against rster spaces. (Suspended players d nt qualify as disabled players.) Likewise, players wh vluntarily leave their team fr reasns ther than injury will als be treated as rdinary inactive players, and will cunt against rster spaces with n special designatin. Fr example, it is nt uncmmn fr players t take a leave f absence fr family matters related t the birth f a child, a funeral r anther unfreseen circumstance. 10
Transactins Add/Drps All BaseballHQ.cm leagues use a bid r waiver prcess fr adding players thrughut the seasn. Owners will submit weekly bids r claims by fllwing the prcess described belw. Eligible Players Althugh players wh are n the disabled list r still in the minrs can be acquired by teams, they will nt accumulate pints until activated by their respective Majr League club. Cautin: Owners may nt add a player thrugh the waivers prcess t replace a player expected t receive an Injured designatin n a future date. Fr example, if a player is injured n Sunday, and the player is expected t miss several weeks, but has nt been designated as Injured by OnRt.cm.cm r Fantrax.cm, the wner cannt pick up anther player withut an pen rster spt under the assumptin that the Injured designatin will assigned by OnRt.cm.cm r Fantrax.cm n Mnday. All rsters must be legal after cmpleting the waiver claim prcess. Als, wners may nt add players expected t begin the seasn n the disabled list t their team s DL until the first transactin perid. Transactin Cycle Players cannt be acquired n the same day as they are drpped. Fr example, if a player is drpped n Sunday mrning, anther team may nt make a waiver claim fr that player n the same night. The player must g thrugh ne transactin cycle befre ther teams will be able t claim him. Submitting a Bid/Claim All bids and waiver claims are due by 8:00 pm Eastern every Sunday night. 11
Claiming Players in Straight Draft Leagues n OnRt.cm In rder t prvide an equal pprtunity fr all wners t add players t their rster, all free agents will be placed n waivers, including undrafted players and players drpped by ther teams. Owners will submit weekly waiver claims by 8:00 pm Eastern n Sunday night. All waiver claims will then be prcessed by OnRt.cm s Bid-Meister in the reverse rder f the current standings. All lineups need t be set 5 minutes prir t the start f the first game n Mnday. Using OnRt.cm s Bid Meister OnRt.cm s Bid Meister will autmatically determine which teams will receive waiver claims r bids based upn bid r claim requests crrectly submitted prir t each league s weekly deadline. Please be sure t enter crrect transactin infrmatin transactin requests with errrs will be skipped by the Bid-Meister. Bidding fr Players in Auctin Leagues n Fantrax.cm Auctin leagues will bid n players using a Free Agent Acquisitin Budget (FAAB) f $100. Zer-dllar bids will be allwed, meaning players can be acquired withut using FAAB dllars. Pririty will be determined by the highest bid, fllwed by the reverse rder f the standings. Only whle dllar bids are allwed. Fractinal bids (using cents) will nt be allwed. (Fr example, an wner may bid $2, but nt $2.50 fr a player.) Maximum Claims per Perid Each team is allwed an unlimited amunt f claims per scring perid. Hwever, each successful claim submitted under the waiver prcess may change the team s psitin in the waiver rder. Als, any claim that creates an illegal lineup, such as t many players n a team, will be reversed immediately, fllwing the inverse acquisitin rder. (Owners d nt get t chse which players t drp.) Any cntingent bid r ther waiver request that wuld cause a rster t exceed the maximum players allwed will be skipped. 12
Trades Trading in BaseballHQ.cm leagues is instantaneus frm the time the trade prpsal is accepted by bth parties. Hwever, unfair trades r illegal trades can be reversed by the cmmissiner. Unfair trades can be prtested by sending a nte t the league cmmissiner within 24 hurs f the trade in questin. Illegal trades, including trades that d nt allw bth teams t have a cmplete starting lineup fr the upcming scring perid will be reversed. Ultimately, the league cmmissiner and BaseballHQ.cm will determine which trades are fair and legal. Cautin: Unbalanced trades, such as tw-fr-ne r three-fr-tw deals, accepted after the add/drp perid can ften result in illegal lineups fr ne r bth teams. In such cases, the cmmissiner will immediately reverse the deal s that bth parties will have legal lineups fr the upcming scring perid and receive pints. Dummy players can smetimes be used t ensure legal lineups after unbalanced trades as well. Cautin: Dump trades -- especially late in the seasn -- will be immediately reversed by the cmmissiner t prevent cllusin amng league wners. In ther wrds, trading an extremely valuable player, like Mike Trut, t a team higher in the standings, withut receiving adequate cmpensatin wuld be cnsidered a dump trade. Likewise, drpping a superstar player late in the seasn t give anther team a better chance f winning is als nt allwed. Thugh BaseballHQ.cm des nt use an fficial Can t Cut list, these transactins are usually bvius and will nt be acceptable. Dummy Players Sme leagues may use dummy players t prvide teams with legal lineups fr an upcming scring perid after an unbalanced trade r ther event. Dummy players d nt scre pints. FAAB is Nn-Transferrable Free agent acquisitin budget dllars cannt be traded in auctin leagues. 13
Trade Deadline The trade deadline fr all BaseballHQ.cm leagues is at 11:59 pm Eastern n Saturday, August 12, 2017. All trades must be cmpleted by that time. Offseasn Trades Offseasn trades are nt allwed. All trades must be ffered and accepted within the regular seasn, prir t the trade deadline. Pre-seasn trades are cnsidered t be ffseasn trades and will be reversed immediately. Hwever, the trade may be resubmitted after Opening Day. Thank Yu! On behalf f everyne at BaseballHQ.cm, we wuld like t thank yu fr participating in this year s subscriber fantasy baseball leagues. We hpe that yu will find the experience bth enjyable and cmpetitive. If there is anything we can d t enhance yur experience, please let us knw. Thank yu frm everyne at BaseballHQ.cm! 14
15