THE MIDTOWN SOFTBALL LEAGUE’S BY-LAWS - 2008
Download the 2008 By-Laws as a Word Document
ARTICLE I - PURPOSE
The purposes of the Midtown Softball League (the “League”) are to establish organized softball play, to promote camaraderie among those participating in the League, and to raise funds for charitable organizations.
ARTICLE II - DISSOLUTION
If the Midtown Softball League ever dissolves, all assets shall be liquidated for the purpose of distributing all remaining cash to charity in the form of a grant.
ARTICLE III - FRANCHISES
Section 1. The League shall consist of such number of franchises as the members determine to be feasible and desirable. Each franchise shall endeavor to have a sponsor, preferably a restaurant or liquor related business, but it is not required. Franchises may be self-sponsored. The players hold franchises on the team, not the sponsor, and franchises may change sponsors. Franchises will be awarded automatically to teams that played in the League the previous year, except as otherwise set forth in this Article. Each franchise shall be responsible for payment to the League of fees as set by the Executive Committee. Franchises are also expected to make donations for fundraising events held by the League and to the League party at the end of the season.
Section 2. Any team, which forfeits three weeks (3) games during any regular 10-week (20-game) scheduled season, shall forfeit its franchise; provided, however, that a team that has forfeited its franchise may be reinstated by a majority vote of the coaches.
Section 3. Available franchises, if any, shall be awarded on a first-come, first-served basis (based on full payment received) beginning at the end of each season’s championship game. If more than one request is received on the same date, the recipient of the franchise shall be determined based on which team paid their franchise fees in full first. Requests for franchises are valid for one year only and must be resubmitted on an annual basis.
Section 4. All franchises make the post-season play-offs, regardless of their regular season record. Any franchise that does not participate in playoffs shall forfeit its franchise; provided, however, that a team that has forfeited its franchise may be reinstated by a majority vote of the coaches.
ARTICLE IV - COACHES
Section 1. Each franchise shall be represented at League meetings by a coach or other representatives who shall be entitled to cast the franchise’s vote on matters before the League. Any franchise not represented at a coach’s meeting shall not be entitled to vote on any matters at such meeting, unless a written proxy is submitted to the Commissioners prior to the meeting. Any team that is not present at a league-scheduled meeting will be assessed one strike (see ARTICLE X – STRIKES).
Section 2. There shall be a minimum of four (4) coaches’ meetings held each year. Tentative schedule should be as follows:
- Meeting #1: February (pre-season) **MANDATORY**
- Meeting #2: March (pre-season) **MANDATORY**
- Meeting #3: April (pre-season)
- Meeting #4: May (after season has begun)
- Meeting #5: June (mid-season)
- Meeting #6: July (after regular season, prior to play-offs) **MANDATORY**
- Meeting #7: August or Septemer (post-season) **MANDATORY**
The four (4) mandatory coaches’ meetings and any such other coaches’ meetings as the Commissioners may deem necessary or desirable shall be held at such time and place as the Commissioners may designate. A quorum for a coaches’ meeting shall consist of a simple majority of coaches.
Section 3. At the second pre-season coaches’ meeting (March), the franchise BALLS fee is due (as established by the Treasurer. At the final pre-season coaches’ meeting (April), the Commissioners shall announce the membership of the Executive Committee. All franchises must pay the balance of their League fees at or prior to this meeting (as established by the Treasurer). Any team that does not pay their league fees on time by the deadlines established/published by the commissioners will be issued a strike (see ARTICLE X).
Section 4. At or before the mandatory coaches’ meeting following the conclusion of the regular season of play (July), each coach shall designate his or her team’s representatives to the All-Star game and HR Derby (one male and one female for each, with no repeats – 4 different nominees). Candidates for the next year’s officer positions will be discussed and voted on (Commissioner, Secretary, Treasurer, and Benefit Chairperson). All officer candidates shall make presentations at this meeting, as needed. Nominations will also be solicited for the SERVICE AWARD, and a vote taken. Finally, the league will take nominations and vote on the league’s choice for the two (2) championship game umpires.
ARTICLE V - COMMISSIONERS
Section 1. There shall be two (2) Commissioners who are the chief executive officers of the League. The powers and responsibilities of the Commissioners shall include, but not be limited to, the following:
- Calling meetings of the Executive Committee and coaches meetings, notifying the relevant persons of the time and location of such meetings, and presiding at all such meetings;
- Effecting all decisions of the coaches or Executive Committee.
- Executing such documents as may be necessary to carry out the business of the League;
- Contacting the appropriate Recreation Department(s) on the first of each year regarding field reservations for the coming season (including a suitable site for the championship game); this includes Arlington County and the City of Alexandria, and DC Parks and Recreation (as needed).
- Arranging for ASA umpires to officiate league games.
Section 2. One (1) Commissioner shall be elected each year for a term of two (2) years, so that one Commissioner is always in the final year of his or her term and one Commissioner is always in the first year of his or her term.
Section 3. A Commissioner may be removed from office if two-thirds of all coaches determine that the Commissioner has abused his/her authority (e.g., misappropriation of League funds). In the event a Commissioner is removed from office or resigns from office, an interim Commissioner shall be elected by a majority vote of the coaches to fill the remainder of that Commissioner’s term.
ARTICLE VI - EXECUTIVE COMMITTEE
Section 1. There shall be an Executive Committee consisting of
- the two (2) Commissioners
- one (1) coach from each franchise
- all league officers (Treasurer, Secretary, Website Coordinator, Newsletter Editor, and Benefit Chairperson)
- all ex-commissioners that are still active in the league,
- and any such other persons as they may appoint;
The members of the Executive Committee each have a vote in all league matters.
Section 2. One of the two co-commissioners shall be designated as Umpires Liaison. The Umpires Liaison is responsible for weekly contact with the Head Umpire, including discussion regarding disputes, rule clarifications and/or forfeits/schedule changes. The Umpires Liaison shall make him or herself available to the Grievance Committee for discussion/interpretation of the rules of the League. The Umpires Liaison shall not serve on the Grievance Committee except as provided in Section 3 of this Article.
Section 3. The Commissioners shall designate an uneven number of persons, but not less than three (3) nor more than five from the Executive Committee to serve on the Grievance Committee and shall designate one of those persons as Chairman of the Grievance Committee. Every person designated to serve on the Grievance Committee shall be from a different franchise. The Grievance Committee shall conduct hearings at League headquarters on the day of any incident brought before it and shall make such rulings in accordance with the League rules, as the members deem appropriate. In the event any member of the Grievance Committee is affiliated with any team involved in or affected by an appeal to the Committee, that person shall disqualify him or herself from the consideration of such appeal. The Umpires Liaison shall serve in place of any such disqualified person. In the event more than one member of the Grievance Committee (including the Umpires Liaison) is disqualified, the Commissioners shall designate appropriate people to serve in place of the additional disqualified people.
ARTICLE VII - LEAGUE HEADQUARTERS
Section 1. At the second pre-season coaches meeting (March), any franchise interested in serving as League headquarters and meeting the criteria set forth in Section 2 of this, shall submit a written proposal detailing the food, drink and entertainment to be provided for the entire season (including playoffs) and any other information that franchise deems relevant to its possible selection as League headquarters.
Section 2. In order to be eligible to serve as League headquarters, a sponsor must have participated in the League during the previous season (e.g., Tavern A, who sponsored Team A in 2007 can bid for League headquarters in 2008, even though it is now sponsoring Team B). A restaurant can serve as league headquarters for more than one year in a row.
Section 3. At the second pre-season coaches’ meeting (March), a representative of each franchise that has submitted a proposal for League headquarters shall make an oral presentation of that proposal and respond to any questions from the coaches. Representatives making presentations on behalf of a franchise may not be present during the presentations of representatives of other franchises. Immediately following the presentations, the coaches shall vote for their choice as League headquarters. The two franchises receiving the most votes will be finalists for League headquarters, and the coaches shall then vote for one of the two finalists. The finalist receiving a majority of the coaches’ votes shall be League headquarters for that season.
ARTICLE VIII - VOTING
Section 1. Except as otherwise specified herein, all League matters, including changes to these By-laws or the Rules of Play shall be determined by a majority vote of the Executive Committee once a quorum is reach (quorum is two-thirds of all eligible voters).
Section 2. In all elections for League matters requiring a vote, members of the Executive Committee are entitled to one (1) vote. Ex-Commissioners who also serve as coaches of their franchise get two votes
ARTICLE IX - SCHEDULE
Section 1. The season shall initially consist of 10 weeks of regular season play, each week consisting of a double-header. All double-headers will be scheduled from noon-2pm and/or 2-4pm. Initially, there will be no games scheduled on Mother’s Day Weekend, Memorial Day Weekend, or Fourth of July Weekend. Games WILL be scheduled on Father’s Day Weekend.
Section 2. One week of regular season play (usually the final week) is designated as a league-wide make-up date. If there are no league-wide cancellations during the regular season, that week can be used for intra-division match-ups.
Section 3. In the event of more than one (1) league-wide rain-out or cancellation, the commissioners will take a vote on how to handle those cancellations. Options are:
- Schedule games on one of the aforementioned holiday weekends (Mother’s Day Weekend, Memorial Day Weekend, or Fourth of July Weekend).
- Extend the season to accommodate the make-up games (assuming the fields for post-season play-offs / tournament are also available on the adjusted dates).
- Drop those make-up games all together, thus reducing the total number of regular season games.
Section 4. The post-season play-offs should be scheduled to commence on the 2 nd to last weekend in July, with the Championship Tourney scheduled on the last weekend of July, to conclude the entire season before August.
ARTICLE X - STRIKES
Section 1. A strike will be assessed to any team that:
- does not pay their ball and/or league fees on time by the deadline established/published by the commissioners.
- is not present at a league-scheduled meeting and/or does not send a delegate to represent their franchise.
- does not turn in a weekly team roster / sign-in sheet by noon on Monday following the Sunday double-header.
- turns in a weekly team roster / sign-in sheet that is NOT on the pre-printed, typed format.
- does not show up and/or sell raffle tickets at the league headquarters on their assigned date.
- That forfeits a game on the day of the game (one strike for each game forfeited). This does not apply to forfeits with advance notice before the day of the game.
Section 2. If 3 strikes are received, the franchise is suspended from the league; however, a strike can be bought back for a $25 contribution to the league for donation to our league charities.
ARTICLE XI – CHARITABLE GIVING
Section 1. The league will discuss / vote on the charitable organizations they are supporting at the beginning of each season (no later than the 2 nd pre-season meeting in March). All coaches are encouraged to champion a charity if it meets the following requirements, as set forth by the Benefit Committee:
- Ability to provide information regarding need for funding, a copy of their annual report, and/or other financial disclosure information;
- Ability to interact with the league through regular league activities including Sunday games, 50/50 raffles, benefit committee meetings, and end of the year Community Service Day;
- Ability to provide additional outreach and/or volunteer opportunities to league participants;
- Ability to provide newsletter updates regarding charitable partner programs and activities; and
- Ability to provide other contributor information and/or invite other contributors to attend the benefit or other league activities.
Section 2 . The league will NOT vote on dollar amounts to award to the charitable organizations chosen – they will vote on % splits to award our budget surplus at the end of the season. This should be voted on at the coaches meeting following the conclusion of regular season play, just prior to the play-offs (July).
ARTICLE XII – SPIRIT AWARD
Section 1. T he Midtown Softball League has always encompassed the spirit of good sportsmanship and charity. With this being said, the Midtown Spirit Award will be awarded to a team that represents these qualities set forth in this document. The team does not have to comply with all the bullet points but has to meet a majority of the ideals. All teams are eligible for the award unless they are suspended or disqualified from the league in that particular season. The award is a symbol of not how many wins you get, how much money you raise, or how many people you have at a certain event but to the quality and character of a team's willingness to participate in Midtown functions and the spirit in which they do it in, whether on the field or off the field.
- Display Good Sportsmanship! Above all else this at the heart of the Midtown league. Teams should not only be good sports during the games but should genuinely have fun!
- Be Fun! This should happen both at the fields and league headquarters. The team that embodies the Midtown Spirit mixes with other teams, participates in Midtown events and brings new ideas to the league.
- Participates! The team that embodies the Midtown Spirit participates in league activities by selling raffle tickets, attends the benefit, volunteers at the benefit or before the benefit to ensure that it is successful, turns in their rosters, writes up game recaps for the newsletter, may have at least one team member involved in a committee or serving as an officer.
- Promotes Midtown! Midtown is not just about the summer season it goes on all year. Teams can support the league by looking for new teams/bars to recruit and finding new charity organizations to promote.
Section 2. The Spirit Award will be voted upon by all teams in the league. A vote will be taken each week of the Midtown Softball season, including Spring Training Sundays, and the weekly vote tallies will be maintained all season long. At the end of the season, the team with the most weekly Spirit Award wins will
be the overall Spirit Award winner for the season. Coaches are responsible for submitting a vote each week, as requested/tracked by the commissioner(s). Additionally, one (1) bonus point is awarded to each team for each representative from their team that serves in any of these roles: Commissioner, Treasurer, Secretary, Benefit Committee, Roster Tracker, Newsletter Editor, and any other role as determined by the board.
Section 3. Teams that have forfeited any game without at least one week's advance notification to the other team are not eligible for the Midtown Spirit Award.
APPENDIX
RULES OF PLAY
The rules of the ASA shall apply except as otherwise provided in these Rules of Play . These Rules of Play are part of the by-laws of the Midtown Softball League and may be modified at any time by a majority vote of the coaches; provided, however, that any such modification shall apply prospectively.
A. Scheduling and Officiating of Games
- Teams must be ready to play at the scheduled game time. Teams not ready to play or with an insufficient number of players to play 10 minutes after the scheduled game time shall forfeit. As soon as the team has the minimum number of players after the scheduled start time (even if it is prior to the 10-minute grace period expiring), the game must begin. If the forfeit for insufficient players takes place for game #1 of the double-header, and the team deficient in players believes they WILL have ample players by the scheduled start time of Game #2, the other team must wait until that time before the outcome is determined. If the team deficient in players knows they will not have enough players by the start-time of Game #2 and they concede that forfeit as well then there is no need to wait around until the official start-time. If a forfeit does result due to insufficient players, both teams should STILL complete/turn in a weekly team roster / sign-in sheet. All players who were present at the time of the forfeit and who sign the roster / sign-in sheet will earn eligibility for that game.
- Teams still in active play need not attend games scheduled against teams that have been disqualified/suspended.
- Teams must play at the designated time and place on the schedule unless both team captains: (a) agree to reschedule/relocate the game; (b) notify the Commissioners at least five (5) calendar days prior to the originally scheduled game; and (c) in conjunction with the Commissioners, arrange for an umpire for the rescheduled/relocated game. Both teams playing in a game that is conducted other than according to the original schedule of the foregoing rule shall forfeit that game. Additionally, if Team A is unable to field a team on a schedule game date, and their opponent, Team B, is able to and is not interested/willing to reschedule, an “advance forfeit” is awarded to Team B and they are not required to show up at the fields at the scheduled date/time to get their wins.
- The team that earned the wins as a result of a forfeit by a DQ’d team (section A.2 above) or as a result of an “advance forfeit” (section A.3 above) is automatically granted a week’s worth (2 games) of player eligibility for all players on their roster who already have a minimum of at least one week (2 games) played at that point in the season. Any players on the roster who have not played any games yet are not eligible to receive the automatic eligibility as a result of the forfeit. This player eligibility is automatically assessed and does not require that a team roster / sign-in sheet be turned in.
- All forfeits are recorded with a default game score of 7-0 in favor of the winning team.
- In the event of rain, five complete innings must be played for the game to be official (a game is official after 4 ½ innings if the home team is leading). Games which have begun but are rained out before becoming official shall be counted as ties, unless at least one team requests a make-up, in which case the entire game shall be replayed. Individual make-up games must be scheduled in accordance with Rule 3 above.
- In the event the entire schedule of games is canceled due to rain or unplayable conditions, all the games shall be rescheduled by the Commissioners. In the event the Commissioners are unable to reschedule the games due to insufficient time, the unavailability of fields, or for some other reason, the matter shall be brought before a coaches’ meeting for a vote as to the treatment of games that cannot be rescheduled.
- An American Softball Association (ASA) umpire hired by and paid for by the League shall umpire each game. The umpire shall be responsible for explaining and enforcing ground rules for the field on which the game is played and shall otherwise be responsible for the orderly conduct of the game. In the event the ASA umpire does not show up, coaches should endeavor to contact the commissioners to see if alternate arrangements can be made. If no other arrangements can be made to arrange for an ASA umpire to be there, the teams should self-umpire their games (team A has a representative call balls/strikes when Team A is up to bat, and Team A’s 1 st and 3 rd base coaches call the plays at the baess; and, vice-versa for Team B when they are up to bat). The league will not pay for games where umpires do not show up.
B. Lineups and Substitutions
- Prior to the game, teams will exchange batting orders. Home and Away teams are determined by the schedule. When a team has more than one player with the same first name, the last names of such players shall be included in the batting order. A player whose name is in the line-up originally given to the opposing team prior to the start of play shall be considered a starter for purposes of Rule 10, regardless of whether that person actually takes the field or bats.
- Changes in the batting order must be reported to the opposing team. Players substituted into the batting order must be the same gender as the player they replace (i.e., once a spot in the batting order is occupied by a player of a particular gender, it must always be occupied by a player of the same gender) except that a female hitter may replace a male hitter (and vice-versa) when a team increases the number of women in the field beyond the minimum of three. When the number of women falls below the minimum of three you can only replace a male hitter with a female hitter. Also as long as you have the players (male or female) in the line-up, you can replace a player in the field with another player (male or female) i.e.: DH (see Rule 12).
- A starter may be replaced in the line-up at any time during the game. A starter’s replacement may be replaced in the line-up at any time during the game. A starter may re-enter the line-up at any time during the game, but only occupying his/her original position in the batting order. A starter’s replacement may not change places in the batting order once inserted into same and once taken out of the game, may not reenter the game in any position. A starter may not reenter the game a second time, except when, due to injury, the starter is the ONLY player remaining on the roster who is not occupying a position in the line-up. For purposes of this Rule 10, a player’s position in the field is irrelevant.
- Each team must field a pitcher and catcher for the entire game. There are no other restrictions on defensive alignments.
- Teams are allowed a maximum of 12 players in the starting line-up. Of the 12 players, 10 must play in the field. Of the ten that play in the field, at least three must be females. The player(s) that do not play in the field shall be known as the extra player(s) (“EP”). One EP may be used, and may be either male or female. If two EP’s are used, there must be one of each gender. If a team starts a game with less than 11 players in the line-up, it may not increase the number of players except in accordance with Rule 12(c).
- The following minimum ratios must be maintained to field a team: 3 female + 7 male = 10 fielders; 2 female + 6 male = 8 fielders; 1 female + 5 male = 6 fielders. You may field as many females as there are positions, plus one (1) female EP. If at any time a team elects to or is forced to play with less than three females in the field, then: the male EP must be removed from the line-up. If a team has no females in the field, it forfeits the game.
- Only sections (a) or (b) under Rule 12 may be waived by mutual consent of the team coaches. No coach shall be required to consent to this waiver. IN THE EVENT BOTH COACHES AGREE TO WAIVE EITHER SECTION (a) or (b) UNDER RULE 12, BOTH COACHES SHALL BE DEEMED TO HAVE IRREVOCABLY WAIVED ANY APPEAL OF THE OUTCOME OF THE GAME (i.e. if a coach allows a team which began the game with less than 11 players in the line- up to add players to its line-up and loses the game, the coach may not protest or appeal the loss based on the team adding players to the line-up). Just a reminder you must finish with 11 (or 12) players if you start a game with the EP or you will be charged with an automatic out when that person is up. The only time this rule is not in effect is when a player cannot play due to injury.
- Using substitute players from other teams within the Midtown Softball League is prohibited.
- Each team is responsible for completing a weekly team roster / sign-in sheet after each double-header using the pre-formatted, typed forms provided at the beginning of the season. All players in attendance at that week’s double-header must sign the sheet. The weekly team roster / sign-in sheets should be turned in to the league roster checker at the HQ after your games. At the latest, they can be submitted up until noon on Monday following the games.
C. Rules of the Game
- Games shall be seven innings in length. The umpire will notify both coaches the officially recorded start-time of the game. No new inning shall begin after 55 minutes of play from the official start-time of the game. The umpire will notify both coaches when the 45 minute mark has been reached (10 minutes remaining before no new inning can be started). Coaches will be responsible for notifying their team of the time remaining. If a game is tied at the end of regulation play (which occurs when either time has expired or when all 7 innings have been played), it will go into extra innings, and the game switches to “one-pitch.” In one-pitch, each batter only gets one pitch; a ball is a walk, a strike is an out, a foul ball is an out, and a hit is a hit. The automatic walk for a female batter behind a male batter does not apply in “one-pitch”. In regulation play and during one-pitch extra innings, the home team ALWAYS gets their fair-ups, regardless of time constraints. If a new inning starts within regulation time, then the home team will get to bat too.
- Slaughter rule: After five full innings of play, if a team has a 15-run lead, the slaughter rule is in effect (10-run rule applies after six innings).
- Players batting out of order or reentering the game in violation of theses Rules shall be declared out.
- Base runners must wait on the bag until the ball reaches the plate.
- Runners may advance on caught fly-balls by tagging up and leaving the bag after the ball is first touched by a fielder, regardless of when it is caught (i.e. the runner may leave the base as soon as an outfielder touches the ball, even if that outfielder bobbles the ball and the ball is caught seconds thereafter by another outfielder). Teams may appeal if they believe a runner has left the bag early in violation of Rules or 16, or if a runner has failed to touch a base.
- If a batted ball is thrown out of play, runners shall be awarded two bases from the last base touched.
- Any runner interfering with a fielder directly involved in a play shall be declared out. If a fielder not involved in the play obstructs a runner, the runner shall be awarded two bases from the last base touched. It is incumbent upon both the runner and the fielder to avoid a collision. If there is a play on a runner at a base, that runner must either slide into the base or surrender the play and leave the base path—runners may not run into fielders in an attempt to dislodge the ball. Fielders may not block a base, even if they have the ball in their possession.
- Pitching is underhand slow pitch, with an arc of not less than 6 feet and not more than 12 feet. Pitches outside of this range will be declared balls, unless swung at by the batter. Any pitch swung at by a batter is in play. The pitcher may take a position from the front edge to six feet behind the pitcher's plate, within the 24'' of the mound.
- Female hitters shall have the option of hitting the regulation softball (12”), or the “small” ball (11”).
- All batters will start the at bat with a one ball, one strike count.
- A batter with two strikes is allowed one foul ball, two fouls with two strikes the batter is out.
- If a male batter who precedes a female batter in the line-up is walked on three consecutive pitches (regardless of how many outs there are), it shall be deemed an intentional walk. The female batter shall then have the option of hitting, or of taking first base. If the female batter chooses to hit instead of taking the walk, the male batter does NOT automatically advance to 2 nd base.
- Each team is allowed to hit 3 home runs (fence-clearing HR’s) per game. Once both teams get 3 HR’s, they can match additional HR’s one-for-one. Any HR hit when the other team hasn’t reached 3 or hasn’t matched will count as a single and runners will advance as if a single was hit (all baserunners do NOT automatically advance one base – they only advance if forced by the single awarded to the HR hitter). An example of the HR rule would be that Team A hits their 4 th HR and Team B only has 2, then Team A is awarded a single for that HR).
D. Play-offs
- Playoffs will be held in the form of a double-elimination tournament that will begin the week following the conclusion of the regular season .
- All teams will make the play-offs regardless of regular season records. The teams will be seeded by overall record regardless of division, using head-to-head competition as the first tie-breaker, run differential in head-to-head competition as the second tie-breaker, and total runs scored as the third tie-breaker.
- The bracket/match-ups depend on the total number of teams playing. If there are 16 teams, it will be a traditional 16-team bracket with the #1 seed team vs. the #16 seed team; the #2 seed team vs. the #15 seed team, etc. If there are more than 16 teams, play-in games will be required for the lowest seeded teams. In the first and all subsequent rounds (except the championship game), the team with the higher seed shall be the home team. In the championship game, the winner of the winner’s bracket shall be the home team, regardless of seeding. If a second championship game is required because the loser’s bracket winner defeats the winner’s bracket winner, the winner’s bracket team is STILL the home team.
- In order to be eligible for the play-offs: (a) Players must show up for six (6) regular season games (3 double-headers), (b) players must sign the weekly team roster / sign-up sheet, and (c) the coach must turn in that team roster / sign-in sheet on time. In the event a team uses an ineligible player in the play-offs, it shall be disqualified from the play-offs and its spot in the bracket taken by the last team it defeated; or, if the last team it defeated has been otherwise eliminated from the playoffs, from the team it is playing at the time the ineligible player was discovered.
- In the play-offs, the league’s regular time limit requirements apply to all games (no new inning starts after 55 minutes) except for the final 3 games of the tournament – those game will be played to the full 7 innings regardless of time. In addition, the “slaughter rule” does NOT apply to those final 3 games, but it does apply to all prior games in the play-offs. The ASA Rain-Out Rule applyies to all games. In all games, any inning that begins must come to a natural end (barring the ASA Rain Out Rule).
- The regular season HR rule applies in the play-offs too, exactly as stated above.
E. Prohibited Conduct
F. Appeals to the Grievance Committee
- There shall be no appeal to the Grievance Committee of a judgment call by an umpire, except an appeal for a reduction of a suspension imposed under Rule 35.
- A notification of an appeal, of a rule interpretation decision by an umpire or any other matter, must be submitted to the Grievance Committee on the day the incident which gives rise to the appeal occurred. Failure to notify the Grievance Committee of an appeal in accordance with this Rule 33 shall constitute a waiver of the right of appeal.
- The Grievance Committee shall issue such decisions and take such action, as it deems appropriate under the circumstances, provided such action is consistent with these By-laws and Rules of Play. The decision of the Grievance Committee shall be final and not subject to further review.
____________________________________________________________________________________
These By-Laws were formally adopted on 3 September 2008.
Kathy O’Toole - Co-Commissioner
Gary Gross - Co-Commissioner
Kim Holman - Secretary
Jeff Olewinski - Treasurer