The Senior League will attempt to follow Little League Baseball rules that are not specifically identified here, but are within reason to the game being played. Reasonableness will be the sole judgement of the Plate Umpire of the game being played. An appeal of the ruling can be made to the Director of Umpires after the game and in writing (email is fine). The Director of Umpires will render a decision, in writing, for future games only. The original appeal will have no bearing the game or games already played.
***Spring Senior League is an instructional season and should be played and coached with that spirit in mind. The league expects all coaches and parents to place an emphasis on improvement and experience over runs and records.***
- Rules: Managers should have a copy of these rules at all games
- Games: Games will be 7 innings long. If score is tied at the end of 7 innings, games will be declared a tie. No extra innings will be played in the regular season (playoffs only).
- Scores/Standings: To avoid disagreements about game scores, each team must maintain a scorebook, abbreviated or otherwise. The league will keep official standings and there will be some form of playoffs TBD.
- Game Times: For weeknights, games will start promptly at 5:30 PM if all players are present and the umpire has arrived. Weeknight games will have no time limit and the umpire will determine if a game is called due to darkness. Should the umpire call the game on account of darkness and an inning is not completed, the score reverts back to the start of the inning. For Sunday games, no new inning may start 30 minutes prior to the start of the next game.
- Cancellations: If a game is called due to inclement weather or poor field conditions, the MYB website will be updated and managers will notify their teams. The League Director is responsible for notifying the umpire or umpire coordinator of the cancellation. Failure to notify the umpire of a cancellation usually results in having to pay the umpire whether the game is played or not. Contact phone numbers will be provided.
- Make-up Games: If practical, make-up games can be scheduled for Saturdays or during an open date with approval of the league director.
- Umpires: One umpire will be assigned to each game. If there is no umpire at the start of the game, please contact the League Director immediately. If unable to provide an umpire, both teams will decide upon an acceptable system for umpiring prior to the beginning of the game. If the umpire arrives, he will take over as soon as mutually acceptable. For make-up games, it is the responsibility of the home team to schedule umpire with League Director.
- Pitching: A. A pitcher may pitch only 8 innings in a week, but no more than 3 innings per game. B. The week begins on Sunday. C. One pitch constitutes an inning, including warm-up pitches. D. If a pitcher has pitched 3 innings in a game, he must rest 1 calendar day. Less than 3 innings, no rest is required. (For example, pitcher throws 3 innings on MONDAY; he cannot pitch again until Wednesday). E. No more than 4 innings in a 2 day period (except playoffs & championship). F. If a pitcher is removed from the mound, he cannot return to the mound later in the game. G. Coaches are encouraged to pitch their 7th grade players. Pitchers from the freshmen team may pitch only when they have permission from their HS coach or after the school season has ended. That permission must come in writing (email is fine) from the High School Coach him/herself.
- Batting: The batting order shall be continuous and shall not change during the game.
- Substitutions: Players other than pitchers can be freely substituted in the field.
- Playing Time: The amount of playing time in the field is at the discretion of the Manager/Coach. MYB strongly suggests the Manager/Coach provide equitable and balanced playing time.
- Late Arrivals: Players who arrive after a game has started will be placed at the end of the batting order. The coach may not position players in the batting order in anticipation of a late arrival. A Manager/Coach may change his batting order any time up to the start of the game.
- Number of Players: If a team has less than 9 players, they may borrow players from the opposing team (of comparable skill level of the missing player) or call up 12 year old Majors’ Players. A call up list will be established by the Director of Majors upon parental consent similar to the current process in the Majors Division. This will serve not only as an introduction to the larger field for younger players, but help a team in need of an additional player to make a full team. Twelve year old players are not allowed to pitch under any circumstance. Managers may also use players from another team not playing at that time to get to 9 players, as mutually agreed on by both managers. In the interest of fairness, managers should use their best discretion when choosing substitute players.
- Balls: The home team will supply 3 new game balls for each game. Balls will be Diamond Babe Ruth DBR1. Both teams should have at least 2 extra balls in good condition available. New balls will be located in the trailer.
- Balk Rule: The umpire shall inform the pitcher of a balk and give a warning at the first infraction. Subsequent balks will be enforced at the discretion of the umpire. Spring regular season should be a time of instruction and balks should only be called if there was an egregious error that deceived the runner. Umpires will work with coaches to help correct any infractions. Playoffs will be less lenient with balks.
- No Contact Rule: Base runners must make an effort to slide OR avoid when advancing or retreating to a base. If a player violates this rule, he shall be declared out at the umpires discretion. A flagrant violation will result in ejection and suspension. A base runner cannot leave his feet to avoid a tag. Head first slides are allowed into every base.
- Bats: Only metal bats with the USA Baseball or BBCOR stamp are eligible for game play. Wood bats will also be allowed. USSSA bats are STRICTLY PROHIBITED. Use of an unapproved bat will result in a dead ball situation, the batter will be ruled out and the manager and offending player immediately ejected from the game. The player's spot in the lineup will be recorded as an out and if the team is only batting nice players, they will have to continue with eight fielders. Managers/Coaches will enforce this rule. Umpires will not be responsible for policing this rule, but will render final judgement on the reasonableness of the player and adherence to the rule if challenged by a manager. The umpire will explain his decision process to each manager if needed.
- There will be a five run limit per inning, with the exception of the last inning. Be mindful of darkness or time restrictions as the "last" inning may not be the 7th inning. If daylight is fading, managers should meet with the umpire in between innings to make a decision on "last inning".