9U (ROOKIE)

For 9U (Rookie) the player must not turn 10 or older in the calendar year of play.

Home / Visitor & Scorekeeping

Home and visitor can be decided by a glove flip / coin toss. Score will not be kept, this is introduced in 11U.

Defensive Positions

Players will be placed in the following defensive positions LF, CF, RF, 1st, 2nd, SS, 3rd, catcher and pitcher (5 steps behind the coach that is throwing to the hitters) for a total of 9 positions. If a team prefers, they can play with a 4th outfielder instead of having the pitcher position in the rotation.

Rotate Positions

Participants will rotate one defensive position after every 2 batters, with the exception of the catcher. This position will not rotate every batters the participant will be the catcher for the complete half of their defensive inning.

Bases Loaded

The team that is batting will start with the bases loaded (one runner on each base). Same concept as if the first 3 batters of the game got walked and it instantly engages 3 extra players beyond just the hitter and on-deck hitter.

Extra Base Hits

If a player hits the ball far enough and can get a double, triple or homerun they are encouraged / allowed to, with the base runners in front of them also advancing. Once the play stops, celebrate / acknowledge the great hit by the batter and reload the bases with the batter that just hit going to 1st base and the 2 base runners in front of them returning to 2nd and 3rd. This will also result in all 3 of them getting additional base running experience, physical activity and keeps more players engaged.

Outs

“Outs” will be called (eg. thrown ball beats the runner to first base, runner is tagged when not on a base, etc.). The participant that is “out” will just return to their bench and this baserunner position will remain empty.

Advancing on Overthrows / Ball Returned to the Infield / Stealing & Lead-offs

For balls that are hit / overthrown to the outfield or overthrown into foul territory (eg. shortstop overthrows 1st base), all baserunners may run / advance UNTIL the ball reaches the infield (controlled or uncontrolled by an infielder). At the end of the play all baserunners will return to the necessary base to load the bases. Participants are not allowed to steal bases or lead-off.

Everyone Bats

The offensive team will bat every participant, there is not 3 “outs”. Once each participant has hit, the teams will switch.

Helmets 

Helmets are mandatory for all hitters, on-deck batters and base runners.

Maximum # of Pitches Per Batter 

In order to keep the game moving along, each batter will receive a maximum of 5 pitches (May) / 4 pitches (June) from their coach, either underhand or overhand at the coach’s discretion based on the participant’s ability. If they have not made contact after 5 swings (May) / 4 pitches (June), a ball will be placed on a batting T for them to hit.

Game Balls

A soft stitch indoor ball will be utilized as the game ball. As the coaches pitch to their batters from such close proximity, using these balls provides a safety factor when coaches get hit with a line drive / hard ground ball. This also encourages players to get in front of the ball and not just hold their glove out to the side of their body when attempting to field or catch a ball.

Base Distance

Thrown down bases will be set up 15 - 16 regular walking steps (approx. 45 - 50 feet) apart.

On-deck & Catcher Circles

To ensure the on-deck batters and catchers remain a safe proximity to the batter, a hoola hoop can be used to represent the on-deck circle and the catcher’s area.

A couple aspects that aren’t in the package but could be discussed at a pre-season coaches meeting are:

Equipment

Equipment bag, set of throw down bases & home plate, bucket of balls (6 soft stitch, 20 whiffle balls, 10 tennis balls, 10 incredi-balls), 10 cones, 8 hoola hoops, 3 bats (24”, 25” & 26”), set of catcher’s gear, first aid kit.

Pitching

Coaches pitch from being on one knee, essentially throwing darts, as an adult standing and throwing results in way too high of an arm angle that the ball comes from to home plate. They place a regular plastic baseball bucket in front of themselves and use a glove as added protection. They are encouraged to move closer / further away depending on the hitter’s ability and if they are throwing overhand or underhand to the hitter. We use Easton Soft Stitch Incredi-balls, they’re essentially an indoor nylon ball, but they work great for this program and are a lot better then the typically plastic covered incredi-balls.

Coaches are encouraged to throw underhand to all of the batters for the first week, however, after the first week they can throw overhand or underhand based on the player’s ability. The goal is to eventually get everyone hitting overhand pitching.

Catchers

The catcher for the next inning should be the first batter so they have time to get the gear on. Catchers do not throw each ball back to the coach / pitcher. If they miss it, they leave it and get ready for the next pitch. If they catch it they just roll it behind their back or flip it up to the coach at the home plate area that is helping out (making sure catchers don’t get too close to hitters, hitter’s stand properly, etc.)

Position Cones

Short, very flimsy soccer cones are placed at each position for the first week to assist the players with where each position typically plays / positions themselves. It helps to avoid someone rotating to play second base and just standing on the base. It also gives the young players a visual of where to rotate to. In the 2nd week the cones are removed halfway through the game, players are encouraged to help each other with where they need to rotate to after every 2 batters. In the 3rd week the coaches can continue with the cones for half the game or not use them at all. An email reminder will be sent out at the start of each week to the coaches about the progression.

Maximum Swings

This is just a reminder: players get 5 swings in May and 4 in June. If they swing 5 / 4 times and do not make contact, there will be a batting T approx. 6 feet from home plate that is placed at home plate and the struggling hitter hits off the batting T.

Roster Size

Roster size preference is 8 players / team but 9 is the maximum and is not exceeded for any reason. The concept behind this is that as quantity goes up, quality often goes down. This also assists inexperienced coaches with not getting overwhelmed.