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TEAM STRUCTURE
The
maximum number of players on the field defensively at
one time is 10, 5 male and 5 female. A team may play
with as few as 7 players in a game. Under no
circumstances shall there be less than 3 females. Spares
may be used to help field a team, but if you do call up
a spare and at game time your team is complete without
the spare, you still
must use the spare
in your lineup along with your regular players. We don’t
want to waste anyone’s time. All spares must
have filled out a QHSA 2007 registration form before
playing their first game. The completed registration
form must be turned into the umpire at the
Captains’ briefing before the game. Each captain will be
responsible for ensuring this happens. The umpires will
ask if there are any new spares during the Captains’
briefing before the game and note each new spare on the
game sheet.
If
there are more than 5 females and less than 5 males, the
following procedure may be used: The females who are
playing in place of the missing males will bat in the
male batting order, may use male courtesy runners and
will walk to 2nd base on 4 straight balls. Any males who
show up after the female has batted in the male batting
order will be placed at the end of the male batting
order and the female will continue to bat in her
established position in the male batting order.
During
the regular season, if a team has 6 males and
LESS THAN 5
females the 6th male may play in the catching
position only. If a fifth girl shows up during
the game she must replace the 6th male defensively.
This should be the exception and not the rule. Teams
repeatedly fielding 6 and 4 will have this option
revoked. A team cannot field 6 males defensively
during the playoffs. There will be an automatic out for
missing females during the playoffs.
If a team does not have 7 players at game time they will
be given a 10 minute grace period. If still unable to
field a team after 10 minutes the team will forfeit.
A team
with 7, 8 or 9 players can borrow a catcher from the
opposing team
provided the opposing team agrees.
NOTE:
If a captain is aware that they will not be able to
field a team, the league convenorshould be notified as
early as possible in order to cancel umpires. These
games will be considered a default and will not be
rescheduled.
SPARES DURING PLAYOFFS
Spares must play at least one game during the regular
season to be eligible for playoffs. Captains will
provide the League Convenor with a list of spares they
have used during the year 2 weeks prior to the start of
playoffs. Any qualified spare, who is not required by
the team he/she qualified with, is eligible to play for
another team in the same division in which he/she
qualified or a higher division. Once a spare has played
for one team in the playoffs he/she is not eligible to
play for any other team even if the team he/she played
for is eliminated from the playoffs. Regular players are
NOT eligible as spares once their team is
eliminated from the playoffs.
BATTING ORDER
A
batting order may consist of as many players as you want
but no fewer than 3 females. The order must alternate
male/female at all times, unless there are more females
than males. In this case a female will bat in the males
position. A total of only 10 batters may bat in an
inning, (5male/5 female) or until a total of 3 outs.
If
there are more females than males, a male may not bat a
second time until all females have
had a turn at bat (this
does not apply if you have 9 or more players and at
least 5 women. If a team makes it to 10 batters the 10th
batter must announce his/herself when in the on deck
position. If a team errs and more than 10 batters come
to bat, any runs which may have counted as a result of
that at bat will be erased and the batter who batted in
error will miss his/her turn in the next inning.
If
a team makes it to 10 batters the 10th batter
cannot be walked, but must bat until the ball is hit or
he/she strikes out. Should the ball be hit in the air
and caught for the third out the inning is over.
If there are less than
2 out and the ball is caught any and all runners on base
may advance if they have tagged up. If they have not
tagged up they may be called out on an appeal only
if they reached home plate before a defensive player has
touched home plate (any part of the mat) while in
possession of the ball. Once the ball has reached home
plate and is under the control of a defensive player,
all play will cease and no successive runs may score.
Note: Other methods of achieving the final out may be
used - tag play, throw to first, etc., but only when the
third out is recorded or the ball is received at home
plate, whichever comes first, will all play cease.
BATTER/BASERUNNER
The
batter becomes a
baserunner as soon as he/she hits a fair ball or
receives a base on balls while at the plate. When being
walked it is not necessary that the pitcher throw any
pitches, he may just inform the umpire that he/she
wishes to walk the batter. If the batter is a male and
is intentionally walked and has no strikes on him he
will be awarded 2nd base. He will also be
awarded 2nd on a 4 ball 0 strike count. Any
female batting in the male batting order will also be
awarded 2nd base on a 4 ball 0 strike count.
In this case the next female in the batting order must
bat. A males batter (or females batting in the male
batting order) who has 4 balls and at least one strike
will be awarded first base only.
A
batter/baserunner when
making it safely to first may turn towards fair
territory when overrunning the base. However, if in the
umpire’s judgment, the batter/baserunner has made
an attempt to continue towards 2nd
base the batter/baserunner would be in jeopardy of being
tagged out. A batter/baserunner having overrun first
without an attempt to continue towards 2nd
may return to 1st safely. A baserunner, while
not in contact with a base, will be called out if he/she
is struck by a fair batted ball that has not yet passed
by an infielder excluding the pitcher, unless, in the
umpire’s judgment , no infielder had a chance to play
the ball.
SAFE BASE
A safe
base is a double base used at 1st
base to prevent collisions between offensive and
defensive players. The base is half white (which is in
fair territory), and half orange (which is placed in
foul territory). The orange half is for the batter/baserunner
and the white for the defensive player. The batter/baserunner
must touch any part of the orange in order to be called
safe. The defensive player must touch any part of the
white for an out to be recorded. Either player may come
in contact with the opposite side of the bag while
making a play. This is permitted as long as part of the
body is touching the appropriate colour. The only time
batter/baserunner may use white is to avoid a collision
with the defensive player or the ball has passed through
the infield, and there is no play at first.
COURTESY RUNNERS
A team
will be allowed to use unlimited courtesy runners, even
from home plate, for any
player playing with an injury or medical condition that
does not permit them to run. The courtesy runner must be
the same gender as the batter he/she is running for
unless a female is batting as a male in which case a
male can be the courtesy runner. The courtesy runner
shall be the last available person in the batting order,
of the same gender, prior to the injured player’s
position in the order. Any player requiring a courtesy
runner must be reported to the umpire prior to the start
of the game unless the injury occurs during the game. A
courtesy runner may be used from home plate or from any
base where the injured player has safely touched.
Runners starting from home plate will align themselves
with the backstop post closest to and behind the
extension of the third base line. The discretion of
the umpire will be final in determining whether a
courtesy runner is properly aligned and whether the
courtesy runner left early. If the courtesy runner
leaves early the batter will be declared Out. The use of
courtesy runners is a privilege and should not be
abused. At the umpire’s discretion, if he/she thinks
this is being abused, an automatic out in that batting
position will be assessed for the remainder of the game.
ANTICIPATORY STEP
Base
stealing is not allowed.
Baserunners may leave the base after the ball is batted,
or has crossed home plate. If the baserunner leaves
before either of these options it will be considered
leading, and he/she will be called out.
LAST INNING OF PLAY
No new
inning will be started after 1 hour and 15 minutes.
The umpire will advise both teams when the last inning
of play will begin (based on the time factor). Should
the last inning drag out to 1 hour 25 minutes the umpire
will stop the game and the final score of the game would
revert to whatever it was at the end of the last
completed full inning. The last inning will not be
subject to the 10 batter limit used for all previous
innings. An unlimited number of batters may bat in the
last inning until three Outs have been registered.
Hustling during the game and not deliberately wasting
time is important to ensure all games are played out in
their entirety.
BATS
Any bat may be used that is an official “softball” bat,
either metal or wood, provided it has not been
designated an illegal bat by the official
“SPN” rule book. For a
list of illegal bats check the web site at (www.slo-pitch.com)
under banned bats. Any illegal bats being used
will result in a warning. The second
offence will be an out.
GLOVES
Trappers may only be used by defensive players at the
catcher, pitcher and
first base positions.
PITCHERS MOUND
An area
24” wide located 50’ to 65’
from home plate. A pitcher may pitch from anywhere in
this area. (Note: The pitcher’s plate is
installed at 50 feet)
HOME PLATE
The
entire mat shall constitute home plate. Any player
stepping on the mat or in front of the mat while making
contact with a pitched ball shall be called Out by the
umpire.
STRIKE
A
legally pitched arced ball going no higher than 12 feet
and no lower than 6 feet
that is either swung at and fouled off, or swung at and
missed by the batter; or a legal pitch that arcs
between 6 and 12 feet that strikes any part of the mat.
HOME RUN RULE
At any
one time during the game, no team shall have more than a
2 home run differential over their opponent. This is
considered “Match plus 2”. An inside the park home run
is excluded from this rule. Any ball hit over the fence
in fair territory in excess of the 2 allowable home runs
will be an Out.
APPEAL PLAYS
When a
runner leaves his base to advance to another base before
a caught fly ball has touched a fielder, when a runner
fails to touch the intervening base or bases in regular
or reverse order, the umpire should
NOT
make any attempt to call the runner out UNLESS
the play is appealed by the defensive team. This appeal
must be made before the first pitch to the next batter.
The umpires should be diligent in watching for these
offences but must NOT indicate to either team
what they saw. It is up to the defensive team to notice
and take appropriate action.
INFIELD
FLY RULE
An
infield fly is a fair ball (not including a line drive)
which can be caught by an infielder with ordinary
effort, when first and second, or first, second and
third bases are occupied, before two are out. The
pitcher, catcher and any outfielder who positions
himself in the infield on the play
shall be considered
infielders for the purpose of this rule. When it seems
apparent that a batted ball will be an Infield Fly, the
umpire shall immediately declare “INFIELD FLY - IF FAIR
THE BATTER IS OUT” for the benefit of the runners. The
ball is alive and runners may advance at their own risk.
If the ball is caught, any baserunner who left his/her
base before the ball was touched can be put out by a
defensive player, in possession of the ball, who touches
the baserunners previously occupied base, the same as on
any fly ball. If the ball is not caught any baserunners
who advanced are safe. If the hit becomes a foul ball,
it is treated the same as any foul ball. There is no
forced play on an infield fly. Any advancing baserunner
must be tagged to be put out.
If a
declared Infield fly is allowed to fall, untouched, to
the ground, and bounces foul before passing first or
third base, it is a foul ball. If a declared Infield
fly falls untouched to the ground outside the baselines,
and bounces fair before passing first or third base, it
is an Infield Fly.
SLIDING
In all
Divisions, baserunners
are allowed to slide at any base except home. Sliding
can be dangerous. Captains should advise their teams
that only players who know how to slide should attempt
to do so and then only when necessary.
COMMITMENT LINE
The
line drawn 20 feet from the front right left corner of
home plate (the corner closest to third base) and
perpendicular to the third base line. Once the
baserunner has touched
the line or touched the ground past this line with any
part of his/her body, he/she is committed to going home.
The baserunner must continue towards home plate unless
he/she is going back to third to tag up on a caught fly
ball.
SCORING LINE
The
line drawn from the corner of home plate closest
to and perpendicular to third, in order for a
baserunner to be safe he/she must have any part of
his/her body, on the ground, on or past the line. The
defensive player will record an Out at home plate by
having control of the ball while in contact with any
part of the mat before the baserunner touches the ground
on or over the line.
THERE WILL BE NO
TAGGING THE RUNNER BETWEEN THE
COMMITMENT LINE AND SCORING LINE
THROWS FROM THE OUTFIELD
An
outfielder fielding a ball may not make a throw directly
to first base in an attempt to put out a base runner. A
relay throw to an infielder may be used.
REPORTING SCORES
The
captains of both teams must report the score of the game
at the QHSA Website at
www.qwhsa.com within 48 hours of the
game. Any team which fails to report the score will be
considered to have defaulted the game and the team that
reported the score will be awarded the win regardless of
the score. Any discrepancy in the reported scores will
be resolved by the League Convenor.
ETIQUETTE
1.
Jewelry
should not be worn as a safety precaution. Our league
has no jewelry rule but common
sense should prevail.
2.
Blood
rule. If a player cuts
him/herself, the affected area must be bandaged
so that no blood is showing before the player is
allowed to continue playing.
3.
NO
alcoholic beverages are allowed in or around the playing
field during the game.
4.
No
smoking on the playing field during the game.
5.
Females
should not play while pregnant, but the league cannot
stop her. However the league does discourage her
participation due to the possible harm to her unborn
child.
EXCEPT
AS EXPRESSLY SET OUT HEREIN TO THE CONTRARY, SLO-PITCH
NATIONAL (SPN) RULES SHALL APPLY. (Check the SPN website
for the latest rules at
www.slo-pitch.com) |
