Macintosh Regional Baseball League

Major/60 Rules for 2019 Season

Ayer – Bolton – Groton – Harvard – Lancaster – Littleton Pepperell – Shirley –Townsend/Ashby – Tyngsborough

Summary

This document serves to clarify some of the more important rules of baseball and to emphasize the philosophy and goals of our league. In addition to these rules, coaches should have a copy of the official Babe Ruth/Cal Ripken Baseball rules with them. Unless noted in this document, these Cal Ripken rules will be followed for all games.

MAC League Rotation

Rotating each year will be the MAC League Presidency. The MAC League President will take on the role of scheduling and running MAC board meetings, scheduling and running the Coaches Meeting, making rule updates and building out the game schedules. As new towns added into the league they will go to the end of the current rotation.

Team Building Agreement

As discussed and agreed upon by the MAC League Board Members, multiple teams at the same level must be built evenly. This does not mean that both teams must have a similar record or be .500. The MAC League Board will meet and discuss instances where unbalanced teams are formed at the beginning of the season.

Exemption: Balanced teams that become unbalanced during the season due to injury, player call-up, player movement where call-up becomes permanent or non-player participation are exempt from this ruling.

Player Participation

Majors is intended for players whose ages are up to league age 12.

1) Team rosters will have a minimum of 10 players and a maximum of 15 players.

2) Teams that cannot field enough players for a game may “CALL UP” players from a Minors division to play in regular season games. CALL UP players WILL BE ALLOWED to pitch but MUST NOT neglect their responsibility to the team on which they are rostered. During playoffs CALL UP players will not be allowed. Teams must play their roster only.

3) If during the season a situation arises (i.e. injury) that requires a team to “ADD” a player to their roster, it MUST BE approved by the MAC board. Once approved that player must be removed from any other roster, meaning they can no longer “play down” on their previous team.

4) Every team member will be in a consistent batting order and bat.

5) All players must be in the game for 6 defensive outs. This rule applies to regulation 6 inning games. Failure to comply with this rule will result in an automatic forfeit by the team not complying. However, in a shortened game (darkness, weather, etc.) failure to comply will not result in an automatic forfeit.

6) Free substitutions are allowed between innings, but each team member will remain in the batting order. Players that have already pitched earlier in the game cannot be substituted back into the pitching position.

7) In Majors, if a team cannot field at least 9 players within 15 minutes after the scheduled start time of the game, the game will count as a forfeit for that team (loss). Forfeits will be scored as 6-0.

Games & Scoring

1) All coaches must read and sign the Macintosh League Coach Code of Conduct. Any violation of the Coach Code of Conduct will result in an investigation by the local town board and/or the Macintosh League Board. If the violation is substantiated, action may result in discipline ranging from verbal reprimand to expulsion from the Macintosh League.

2) There are NO protests allowed any level.

3) In the event of inclement weather, the Home team coach is responsible for calling both the umpire and visiting team coach, at least 2 hours prior to the start of the game.

4) All regular season games will start promptly at their scheduled time, no inning will be started after 2 hours and 15 minutes has elapsed since the official start of the game as determined by the umpire. The umpire should make every effort to notify both teams of the official start time at the commencement of the game. (Example: Monday game – The umpire announces to both managers that it is 6:02 pm according to his watch and no inning will be started later than 8:17 pm)

5) The umpire has full authority to call the game earlier than the time limits above due to weather, darkness or any other mitigating circumstance.

6) Both teams will be able to have the playing field for a 10-minute practice before the game begins. Visiting teams should allow for travel time and arrive 30 minutes before game time for their warm ups. The home team will warm up first but MUST ALLOW the visiting team to begin their warm up 20 minutes before the start of the game. The last 10 minutes are reserved for the pregame coaches & umpires meeting and for the home team to take the field for warmups. NO PRE-GAME, ON FIELD BATTING PRACTICE IS ALLOWED.

7) The home team is responsible for paying the umpire(s) and for supplying 2 new game balls. The home team is also responsible for ensuring the field is in safe condition for play (e.g. no holes in the batter’s box or pitching mound, the area around the bases is raked, etc.).

8) Each team will be responsible for cleaning the trash out of their bench area after each game.

9) Each game has a 6-inning limit unless the game is tied, in which case extra innings must be played. All regular season games will play to their natural end (including extra innings), unless the allotted time for the game is reached or the game is ended because of darkness or weather.

10) In Major/60, each inning has a limit of 5 runs per team.  When the fifth run crosses the plate, the half of the inning ends and the team at bat takes the field.  This rule does not apply to the 6^th or last innings where both teams can score unlimited runs.  The umpire must notify the coaches before the start of the last inning.

11) If after 4 innings, 3 1/2 innings if the home team is ahead, one team has a lead of ten (10) runs or more, the victory must be conceded to the winning team. IMPORTANT: The score at the time of concession is what must be reported on the MAC website. No further scorekeeping should be kept after the concession.

12) All pitching stats after a game is conceded will continue be recorded and will count against the weekly pitching stats.

13) (New for 2019) When a game is conceded, the game must continue to be completed to its natural end, but there is then a 2-run limit per inning at all levels of play.

14) Playoff games will end immediately after a game is conceded.

15) The coach of the winning team MUST POST THE SCORE on the MAC League Website within 24 hours or prior to their next scheduled game whichever comes first. http://www.leaguelineup.com/welcome.asp?url=macintosh

16) Both teams must also report the number of innings pitched by all players regardless of a win or loss. Enter first name, last initial, uniform number and total innings pitched. This information will be used to insure compliance to our pitching limitations rules and for the safety of the kids. http://www.leaguelineup.com/welcome.asp?url=macintosh

17) All playoff games must be completed to their natural end. In the event a game is not completed it shall be considered a suspended game and must be continued at another time.

18) League standings, and playoff seeding will be determined by:

a. Most Points (3 per Win, 2 per Tie, 1 per Loss, 0 per Forfeit)

b. Head to Head

c. Runs Against (RA)

d. Runs For (RF)

Games Not Played

1) In Major/60, all West teams will all have 14 regular season games and are encouraged to play all games.

2) In Major/60, all East teams will all have 12 regular season games and are encouraged to play all games.

3) If a game is canceled, both coaches need to arrange a make-up date within 10 days of the originally scheduled game or the end of regular season, whichever comes first.

4) The Home team shall have the opportunity to arrange a home field first. If the Home team cannot schedule a field within 5 days, the Visiting team will try to schedule the game on their field (with the original Home team still being the Home team).

5) If neither team can schedule the make-up game within 10 days, the Home team must notify their Town Coordinator. The Town Coordinator will work with the League Director to schedule the game.

6) In any event, the League Director must be notified with 48 hours of the cancellation.

7) Games not played and unreported will be counted as a loss for both teams.

Rain Outs / Incomplete Games

1) Prior to the start of the game, the home team is responsible for calling off a game because of rain. All efforts should be made to cancel the game 2 hours prior to the start (so that teams/umpires can be contacted appropriately). Should a game be canceled, it is the responsibility of the home team to reschedule the game (which includes securing a new umpire).

2) A game is a regulation game after the fourth inning has been completed or, if the home team is ahead, after the completion of three and a half innings. A game postponed before or in the first inning will be restarted at an agreed upon time. A game postponed after the second inning is started and before the fourth inning is completed will be resumed at the point which it stopped. All records, including the pitching shall be counted (and the batting orders, where possible, should be kept intact).

3) After the first pitch is thrown, a game can only be canceled by the umpires.

Pitching

1) In Major/60, the distance of the pitching mound to home plate will be 46 feet.

2) Regular season pitching rules will follow the Macintosh League Pitching Limitation Regulations. In Summary:

a. 6 innings per week, 1 pitch constitutes an inning

b. Week is Monday thru and including Sunday

c. 2 calendar days rest when pitching 3+ innings

3) Pitching substitution may be done during an inning. Substitutions DO NOT NEED TO BE 1 FOR 1. Example: Johnny is pitching, Billy is playing 1st base and Bobby is playing right field. Johnny is replaced by Billy, Billy is replaced by Bobby and Bobby is replaced by Johnny.

4) Once a pitcher has been removed from the pitching position, that player cannot pitch again for the duration of that game. This rule applies to both regular season and playoff games.

5) A new pitcher gets 8 warm up pitches, returning pitchers only get 5 warm up pitches between innings. (this is intended to speed up the game)

6) No pitcher in the Macintosh League playoffs shall be allowed to pitch in more than six innings in any two successive playoff games. All players have full eligibility at the start of league playoffs. (Pitcher eligibility is not re-set again after playoffs begin.)

7) Only coaches, assistants or team members will be allowed to warm up the pitcher. (everyone must wear a catcher's mask)

8) Any visit to the mound by a coach will count as an official visit. If it is the second visit of the inning the pitcher must be removed. (Please work with umpires to have them help to explain the infraction if/when it occurs. This is a teaching level and we want the players to learn the proper technique).

Batting and Base Running

1) In Major/60, games will be played on diamond with 60’ base paths.

2) All players must use a bat that has been certified by USABat. BBCOR or USSSA bats are not allowed.

3) Any player intentionally throwing a bat will be out and the ball dead. Play stops and the runners will return to their original occupied bases and the player will be ejected from the game.

4) (New for 2019) Any player throwing a bat, without malice, will get a warning the first time it happens. The second time, the player will be called out, and must then be removed from the batting lineup for the remainder of the game. The player can and should still play on defense. When that person’s spot in the lineup comes up the next time, the slot should simply be skipped, and no out should be recorded.

5) There shall be no slashing. Slashing is defined as: the pitcher is on the pitching rubber and the batter fakes a bunt to draw the infielders in and then the batter swings away. The pitcher does not need to be in his windup, the ball does not need to be struck. This is a safety issue, with the batter showing bunt, the charging third baseman does not stand a chance of protecting himself against a line drive off an aluminum bat. Penalty: Batter is out, and ball is dead. A second offense will result in the batter being ejected.

6) There is a no-contact rule in effect. A runner may not interfere with a player making a defensive play. Runners must make every effort to avoid interfering contact by either sliding or running around a defensive player. If a runner does not avoid interfering contact, then he/she is out. If contact is ruled incidental and does not interfere with the play, then the runner may be ruled safe in the event he/she has reached the base before being forced or tagged out. Headfirst sliding into a forward base is not allowed. Headfirst sliding returning to a previously occupied base is allowed.

7) Players hit by a pitch will be awarded first base - a batter must take first base (if a batter is hurt and unable to run, he/she may be replaced by the last person that got out).

8) Bunting is permitted. All established baseball rules are in effect (for instance, a foul bunt with two strikes is considered a strikeout).

9) Runners must slide into 2nd, 3rd, and home if there is a play at the base. The catcher cannot block the plate or the baseline without possession of the ball. Headfirst slides are not allowed.

10) In Majors, there is no limit to the number of bases a runner may steal or advance to on passed balls/wild pitches.

11) In Major/60, when stealing, runners my leave the base only when the ball crosses the plate. Runners may attempt to steal any base (except 1^st base) after a pitch has crossed the plate.  If a player leaves the base before the ball crosses the plate, the umpire will instruct the player to return to the base.

12) In Major/60, runners must return to their base when the play had ended when the pitcher has control of the ball and is on the mound (i.e. dirt around the mound or portable mound).  Additionally, prior to the ball returning to the pitcher, if the catcher remains in the catcher’s box and the runners have stopped forward momentum, runners must return to their base.

13) In Major/60, there is NO leading allowed, as a result, NO balks can be called.

14) In Majors, the infield fly rule is in effect, with the following guidelines:

a. An infield fly is a fair fly ball (not including a line drive, nor an attempted bunt) 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 stations themselves in the infield on the play shall be considered infielders for the purpose of this rule.

b. When it seems apparent that a batted ball will be an Infield Fly, the umpire must immediately declare "Infield Fly" for the benefit of the runners. If the ball is near the baselines, the umpire shall declare, "Infield Fly, if Fair." The ball is live, and runners may advance at the risk of the ball being caught, or retouch and advance after the ball is touched, the same as on any fly ball. If the hit becomes a foul ball, it is treated as any foul.

c. 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 baseline, and bounces fair before passing first or third base, it is an Infield Fly.

d. When an infield fly rule is called, runners may advance at their own risk. If on an infield fly rule, the infielder intentionally drops a fair ball, the ball remains in play despite the provisions of Rule 6.05(1). The infield fly rule takes precedence. If interference is called during an infield fly, the ball remains alive until it is determined whether the ball is fair or foul. If fair, both the runner is out, and the batter returns to bat.

15) In Majors, the dropped third strike rule is in effect, with the following guidelines:

a. A batter may advance to 1st base on a dropped 3rd strike by the catcher if 1st base is unoccupied or if 1st base is occupied and there are 2 outs. The batter is out when he is either forced out at 1st base or tagged out.

b. No runners on, 0, 1 or 2 outs – a batter may advance on a dropped 3rd strike. The batter is out when he is either forced out at 1st base or tagged out.

c. Runners on 2nd and or 3rd, 0, 1 or 2 outs – a batter may advance on a dropped 3rd strike; other runners may advance at their own peril. The batter is out when he is either forced out at 1st base or tagged out, and the other runners are out when they are tagged.

d. Runners on 1st and/or 2nd and/or 3rd, 0 or 1 out – a batter may NOT advance on a dropped 3rd strike. He is automatically out.

e. Runners on 1st and/or 2nd and/or 3rd with 2 outs – a batter may advance on a dropped strike and the other runners a forced to advance as well. The batter is out when he is either forced out at 1st base or tagged out. The other runners may be forced out at any base or tagged out.

16) Two adult base coaches are permitted. They must be rostered coaches or CORI non-rostered coaches. Rostered players are also allowed to base coach but there should always be at least 1 adult base coach.

Equipment and Attire

1) All batters and base runners must wear a batting helmet.

2) Youth Base Coaches must always wear helmets.

3) Players may NOT wear watches, rings, pins, jewelry or other metallic items.

4) Pitchers may NOT wear sweatbands on their wrists. Exception: Medically relevant bracelets.

Umpires / Sportsmanship

1) Umpires will call balls and strikes and all safe/out calls on the bases. Neither coaches, parents or players may dispute any call by an umpire at any time. Failure to adhere to this rule may result in the coach being removed from the league for this and all future seasons. If a coach has a question on a rule interpretation, he/she may raise it with the umpire after the inning – however, an umpire's decision is final and binding. Even if you are not in agreement with the umpire, arguments will not be tolerated. It is extremely important to note that the players will be watching you and your actions, and you will be setting an example.

2) Coaches are encouraged to raise any issues and/or problems with an umpires’ performance to both the MAC League Board and umpire coordinator immediately following the game.

3) One of the most important things we are trying to teach the players is good sportsmanship. Coaches should not accept the kids throwing helmets, arguing with umpires, heckling the other team or other similar types of behavior. If/when these types of incidents occur, the coach needs to deal with it immediately.

4) At the end of each game, players are encouraged to shake hands with the other team.

5) Cal Ripken prohibits taunting of opposing players, coaches, or umpires. The rule states that “No manager, coach, or player, shall at any time, whether from the bench or the playing field or elsewhere use language which will in any manner refer to or reflect upon opposing players, manager, coach, an umpire or spectators.” If your team is on the receiving end of any taunting, you should have the umpire put a stop to it immediately. If the umpire is unable or unwilling to do so, issues of this sort should be brought to the attention of the MAC League board immediately.