www.jrhrd.com
FOR MORE INFORMATION Jr.HRD Headquarters c/o LEJ Sports Group 4015 Wetherburn Way Norcross, GA 30092 JrHRD@mlb.com JrHRD.com FOR MORE INFORMATION Jr.HRD Headquarters c/o LEJ Sports Group 4015 Wetherburn Way Norcross, GA 30092 JrHRD@mlb.com JrHRD.com / 2016 Major League Baseball Properties, Inc. All rights reserved.
Welcome to the inaugural year of Major League Baseball Jr. Home Run Derby (Jr.HRD). Major League Baseball would like to thank you for participating in this new and exciting initiative. This national program provides boys and girls, ages 14 and under the opportunity be recognized as a National Home Run Derby Champion. Girls and boys will compete together and advance through three levels of competition: Local, Regional and the National Finals, which will be hosted during MLB All-Star Week. MLB Jr.HRD is a new program under the Play Ball initiative a collaborative initiative between Major League Baseball and USA Baseball. Delivered as a comprehensive website, Play Ball hosts educational resources for coaches, umpires, parents, and participants. Other resources offered include health and safety articles, support programs, Play Ball near you interactive map and championship principles. For more information, visit PLAYBALL.org.
TABLE OF CONTENTS MISSION STATEMENT 1 PARTICIPANTS & ELIGIBLITY 1 AGE GROUPS 1 STRUCTURE 2 LEVELS OF COMPETITION 2 DETERMINING YOUR CHAMPIONS 3 MISCELLANEOUS 3 SAFETY PRECAUTIONS 4 SPONSORSHIP REGULATIONS 4 MLB Jr.HRD OBJECTIVE 5 SUGGESTED GUIDELINES 7 SAMPLE EVENT GUIDELINES 7 LOCAL COMPETITION HOST ORGANIZATION RESPONSIBILITIES 9 SCORESHEETS 10
MISSION STATEMENT Major League Baseball Jr. Home Run Derby (Jr.HRD) strives to provide youngsters across the country an opportunity to showcase their hitting skills in an exciting, free, grassroots home run derby contest. MLB Jr.HRD strives to build strong relationships with local youth organizations by ensuring effective communication, supplying consistent and timely information, and by delivering all materials on schedule in effort to provide the highest quality program of its kind. PARTICIPANTS & ELIGIBILITY MLB Jr.HRD is FREE for participants and hosting organizations. All boys and girls 14 years of age and under are welcome to participate. All participants must submit a signed registration/waiver form. All participants must provide a copy of a valid birth document for age verification. Participants may only participate in one Local Competition or face disqualification. STRUCTURE MLB Jr.HRD is established in geographic regions across the United States. The regions encompass neighboring states, when necessary, to ensure the availability of the program to all participants. Participants are eligible to advance through three levels of competition Local, Regional and National Finals. LEVELS OF COMPETITION Local Competitions Early 2016 thru Early May Each Local Competition Hosting Organization can determine the appropriate format for his/her participants. It is recommended that a Local Competition consist of a minimum of thirty participants with each participant receiving at least ten attempts. Only one Champion in each age group (14U and 12U) advances to the Regional Competition. IMPORTANT NOTE: In order for the Champions to advance to subsequent levels, Local Competition information and all registration forms must be on file at Jr.HRD Headquarters. AGE GROUPS Regional Competitions Mid May Mid June The two age groups are: 14U Born between July 18, 2001 July 17, 2003 12U Born on or after July 18, 2003 *Age is determined as of July 17, 2016 (7/17/16) The second level of competition consists of the Champions from each age group (14U and 12U) from the Local Competitions. The Regional Competitions will be hosted as soon as the Local Competitions in that respective geographic area are completed. All scores are reset to zero and a more structured Regional Competition is conducted to determine a 14U Champion and a 12U Champion that will advance to the National Finals. National Finals July The Regional Champions in each age group (14U and 12U) will compete for the National Championship during MLB All-Star Week. 1 2
DETERMINING YOUR CHAMPIONS Each Local Competition can submit only one Champion in each age group for advancement. A Local Competition Champion must have a winning home run total greater than 1 in order to advance to the Regional Competition. Tiebreakers In the event of a tie at the Local Competition, the Local Competition Host must determine the one Champion in each age group for advancement. It is recommended that the Local Competition Host conduct a hit-off to determine the Champion in each age group. MISCELLANEOUS In the event of threatening weather conditions, cancellations and rescheduling will be determined by the Local Competition Host at the competition site. MLB Jr.HRD endorses proper conduct and good sportsmanship. Major League Baseball, LEJ Sports Group and hosting organizations of MLB Jr.HRD reserve the right to make rulings and recommendations regarding the competition events determined to be in the best interest of the program. All rulings and recommendations are final. Participation in MLB Jr.HRD authorizes Major League Baseball and LEJ Sports Group to use participant s name, likeness and other personal rights for promotional use without compensation. SAFETY PRECAUTIONS Please consider baseball safety regulations throughout the warm-up period and during the administration of the competition to avoid injuries to the participants, staff and spectators. All parents/guardians and spectators should remain off the field at all times. All participants should wear helmets while participating. If you have any questions or need suggestions with regard to safety precautions, please contact MLB Jr.HRD. SPONSORSHIP REGULATIONS If not for the funding of Major League Baseball and its sponsors, this program would not be free for organizations nor participants. There are strict regulations and applicable law for use of the MLB Jr.HRD logo or any wordmark, logo or other trademark of Major League Baseball, any of the 30 Major League Clubs, sponsors or any of their affiliated entities. Request for usage must be submitted to LEJ Sports Group and Major League Baseball. 3 4
MLB Jr.HRD OBJECTIVE To create a fun and exciting competition that allows participants to hit as many home runs as possible from a pre-determined number of pitched attempts Suggested Equipment: Two (2) dozen baseballs Youth field that promotes home runs Pitching protective screen Four (4) helmets Two (2) youth bats differing lengths Pitching Machine (not mandatory) Procedure: Each participant receives a pre-determined number of pitched attempts to hit as many home runs as possible. All participants should receive the identical number of attempts. It is recommended that each participant receive a minimum of ten pitched attempts. If a pitching machine is not used, ensure the pitcher s speed is as consistent as possible for all participants. All participants in a respective age group should hit on the same or identically sized field. It is recommended to use a youth field with a fence distance that encourages home runs. If no youth fields are available, or the field size is not conducive to home runs: A larger field can be used by moving home plate forward towards the pitcher s mound or A chalk line can be drawn in the outfield as a temporary fence. Record the number of home runs hit per participant. Award the Champion in each age group. If a tie occurs in an age group, have the tied participants compete again in a hit-off to determine the Champion. IMPORTANT NOTE: Encourage all participants to stick around to end of the competition to ensure any participant involved in a tie will be available for a hit-off. Safety: Since each participant will be hitting a pitched ball, please ensure that all the participants wear safety helmets and are out of the way of any swinging bats or hit balls. It is recommended that only one participant be in the home plate area at a time and all others remain in the dugout area, behind a fence and/or at a safe distance from the hitting area in order to avoid injury. It is recommended that the individual delivering the pitched ball be located behind a pitching protective screen and that shagging staff be located in the outfield area. Staffing: Registration: Collect participant registration forms, confirm information and determine appropriate age group. Pitcher: Deliver the pitched ball to the participant. It is recommended that the pitcher use a pitching machine to deliver a consistent pitch every time to each participant. Shaggers: Collect the batted balls after each participant to the pitcher. Participants can serve as shaggers as long as they do not rob a hitter of a home run. Scorer: Record the number of home runs hit by each participant Line Control: Keep the next participants in line and ready for his/her attempt. Scoring: Each participant receives a pre-determined number of pitched attempts. Record the number of home runs hit by each participant. Determine the Champion in each age group. If a tie occurs in an age group, have the tied participants compete again in a hit-off to determine the Champion. Submit the Champion information in each age group to MLB Jr.HRD. 5 6
SUGGESTED GUIDELINES Each local hosting organization can determine the most appropriate competition format for their Local Competition. As a reminder, the goal is to encourage home run hitting and success amongst the participants. Recommended Fence Distances (To encourage home runs): 12U Division 170 foot fence distance 14U Division 200 foot fence distance Suggested Bat Restrictions: In making this program free and open to all boys and girls across the country, MLB Jr.HRD is encouraging participation by all. To ensure a level playing field, MLB Jr.HRD encourages all equipment to be made available to all participants. Ensure participants bats comply with these three (3) simple bat restrictions: Bats cannot be greater than 34 inches in length Bats cannot have a barrel greater than 2 5/8 inches in diameter Non-wood bats must be labeled with BPF of 1/15 or less SAMPLE EVENT GUIDELINES Each local hosting organization should establish their Local Competition format in advance and inform participants. Below is a checklist of guidelines along with some examples. Establish the fence distance(s) Recommend 12U Division 170 Recommend 14U Division 200 Divide the participants into the appropriate age divisions 12U Division Born after July 18, 2003 14U Division Born between July 18, 2001 July 17, 2003 Determine the pitching delivery Pitching machine Coach pitch Parent pitch Determine the competition format Predetermined number of pitches Ex. 10 swings per participant and count number of home runs Ex. 10 strikes per participant and count number of home runs Ex. 10 swings per participant plus 1 bonus swing and count number of home runs Predetermined number of outs (any swing that does not result in a home run) Ex. 10 total outs and count number of home runs Ex. 5 total outs and count number of home runs Predetermined time for each participant Ex. 2 minutes Determine the # of rounds and how to award a Champion Ex. 1 round: Participant that hits the most home runs in each age division is Champion Ex. 2 rounds: Top 2 participants in each age division compete head to head to determine Champion Ex. 2 rounds: Top participant on each team competes against other top participants to determine a Champion in each age division NOTE: Conducting 2 or more rounds would require participants to stick around until the conclusion of the competition, or come back on another date to complete. In the case of a tie, determine the hit-off/tiebreaker format Repeat the competition with the tied participants Repeat the competition with the tied participants in a shortened version Conduct a 1 swing hit-off where the participant hitting the ball the farthest wins If those tied participants are not available for a hit-off, the local host must determine a Champion by use of another type of tiebreaker. Ex. Which participant hit the furthest home run Ex. Which participant hit the most consecutive home runs Ex. If tied participants are in the same league, who has: - more regular season home runs - highest batting average 7 8
LOCAL COMPETITION HOST ORGANIZATION RESPONSIBILITIES 1. Register online at www.jrhrd.com 2. Receive Administrative Kit 3. Promote competition through promotional posters, newspaper advertisements, press releases, websites and other social media outlets 4. Make copies of scoresheets as needed 5. Secure appropriate staff 6. Administrate competition 7. Determine and Award Champions (only one Champion in each age group 14U and 12U) 8. Submit Champions Information via www.jrhrd.com website 9. Mail all registration forms to Jr.HRD Headquarters in prepaid envelope (provided): Jr.HRD Headquarters c/o LEJ Sports Group 4015 Wetherburn Way Norcross, GA 30092 SCORESHEETS ALL REGISTRATION FORMS MUST BE SUBMITTED AFTER YOUR EVENT TO QUALIFY YOUR CHAMPIONS FOR ADVANCEMENT. 9 10
Age Group: 12U Age Group: 14U Name Home Runs Name Home Runs 11 12
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