Rules
All games will be played under NFHS rules and amended as follows.
Any rule controversy will be handled at the discretion of the head umpire and tournament director.
Time Limits
No new innings after one hour and forty five minutes (1:45) from first pitch, with exception of championship game that will have no time limit. No drop dead time. Time limits may be adjusted at tournament directors discretion based on weather or other extenuating circumstances.
Run Limits
No maximum run limits per inning.
Mercy Rule
9U/10U/11U/12U: Twelve (12) runs after three (3) innings, or two and one-half (2 ½) innings if the home team is ahead. Ten (10) runs after four (4) innings, or three and one-half (3 ½) innings if the home team is ahead. Eight (8) runs after five (5) innings, or four and one-half (4 ½) innings if the home team is ahead.
13U/14U: Twelve (12) runs after four (4) innings, or three and one-half (3 ½) innings if the home team is ahead. Ten (10) runs after five (5) innings, or four and one-half (4 ½) innings if the home team is ahead. Eight (8) runs after six (6) innings, or five and one-half (5 ½) innings if the home team is ahead.
Batting Lineups:
Teams may bat 9 batters, the entire roster, or any number in between. Once the number of batters is determined, it must remain the same throughout the entire game. Each team must announce their options when exchanging line ups with the other team at pregame conference with umpires. A substitute is defined as any player not placed in the original batting lineup to begin the game. As soon as substitute bats or runs for another player (except courtesy runners), the substitute and the original starter are locked into that batting lineup slot and either one may bat or run at any time (in that lineup position only).
Defensive Substitutions:
Teams may substitute for defensive positions as many times as they wish, as long as the batting order remains the same. A player does not have to bat to play the field. The only exception is the pitcher position where a player may not return to the mound after another player becomes the pitcher of record.
Injuries:
If a player is injured and no substitute is available, that spot in the lineup will be skipped with no penalty. If an injury occurs during an at-bat, the next batter in the lineup will take over that at-bat and assume the count. If an injury occurs while on the base paths and no substitute is available, the player that made the last recorded out will take the place of the injured player on the bases. If a player is unable to bat or run, the player is no longer eligible to play in the rest of the game offensively or defensively.
Field Dimensions
9U/10U: Sixty foot (60') base paths. Forty-six foot (46') mound distance.
11U/12U: Seventy foot (70') base paths. Fifty foot (50') mound distance.
13U/14U: Ninety foot (90') base paths. Sixty and one-half foot (60.5') mound distance.
Game Length
9U/10U/11U/12U: Six (6) inning games, or five and one-half (5 ½) innings if home team is ahead. Three (3) innings, or two and one-half (2 ½) innings if home team is ahead, will be considered a complete game if the game must end early for weather, darkness, or other extenuating circumstances. First pitch thrown constitutes a game for the purposes of refunds.
13U/14U: Seven (7) inning games or six and one-half (6 ½) innings if home team is ahead. Three (3) innings or two and one-half (2 ½) innings if home team is ahead will be considered a complete game if the game must end early for weather, darkness, or other extenuating circumstances. First pitch thrown constitutes a game for the purposes of refunds.
Extra Innings
Seed games can end in a tie (i.e. no extra innings). Bracket games must end with a winner, so extra innings shall be played (even after the time limit) until a winner is determined using the international tiebreaker rule where each extra inning starts with the last batter of the inning on second base.
Infield Fly
9U/10U - No infield fly rule.
11U/12U/13U/14U - Infield fly rule in effect. Runners can advance at their own risk.
Dropped Third Strike
9U/10U - No dropped third strike rule. Ball is alive for all base runners.
11U/12U/13U/14U - Dropped third strike rule in effect. Ball is alive for all base runners.
Leads
9U/10U - No leads allowed. Baserunners may not leave their base until the pitched ball crosses home plate. Leaving early shall result in the runner being called out.
11U/12U/13U/14U - Dropped third strike rule in effect. Ball is alive for all base runners.
Balks
9U/10U: No balks.
11U/12U: One warning per pitcher per game. Immediate dead ball.
13U/14U: No warnings. Immediate dead ball.
Bat Restrictions
9U/10U/11U/12U/13U: All bats must have either the BPF 1.15, USABat, or BBCOR designation displayed on the bat. No other weight or size restrictions.
14U: BBCOR -3 bats required for all players, including younger players playing up.
Courtesy Runner
Optional anytime for pitcher or catcher. The runner must be different for pitcher and catcher in the same inning. Runner should be a substitute player if not batting the entire lineup, otherwise last batted out. If using a substitute player as a courtesy runner, this does not count as a lineup substitution.
Baseballs
The tournament will provide 3 new baseballs per game. It is both teams' responsibility to ensure foul balls and homeruns are returned to the umpire. A team may choose to replace a homerun ball with a new and equivalent baseball if they want to give the homerun ball to the hitter. If teams are unable to retrieve the foul balls, then they should provide new or lightly used baseballs to allow the game to continue.
Cleats
9U/10U/11U/12U: No metal cleats.
13U/14U: Metal cleats allowed
Catchers Equipment
Helmets must conform to the NFHS regulations. A two-piece helmet and mask like MLB is not allowed.
Pre-Game Warmups
No warmup on the infield before games. Teams may warmup in the outfield or in foul territory once the previous game ends. Batting cages may be used on a first come basis where available.
Expected Behavior / Ejections
Negative behavior and bad sportsmanship is not acceptable by players, coaches, or fans. Umpires or the tournament director will eject anyone they deem as not living up to expected behavior. They may issue warnings at their discretion. Anyone ejected from a game will be suspended for the remainder of the tournament. Coaches and fans must leave the premises immediately upon ejection. Ejected players must leave the field and dugout area, but may stay with the fans. Ejection is not appealable, but suspensions for remainder of tournament may be appealed to the tournament director or his delegate.
Use of noise makers is not allowed during the tournament.
Abusive statements towards anyone will not be tolerated.
Alcohol and all tobacco products are not allowed during the tournament.
Dugouts
Hosting team has first priority of dugout, then it is on a first come basis. Teams should remain in the same dugout if playing back-to-back games on the same field.
On-Deck Batter
Positioning of the on-deck batter may vary based on the field layout and will be handled at the discretion of the umpire. For example, on larger fields, the on-deck batter should stay by their dugout, but for smaller fields, they should use the on-deck circle behind the batter to protect them from foul balls.
Reporting Scores
Both teams should text (410-774-6186) or email (carl.aten@gmail.com) scores and any issues to the tournament director immediately following the game. Scores will be posted on this website, but only if they are sent in. If there is a discrepancy in score between two teams, the tournament director will make reasonable efforts to reconcile, but will use the home team's book if unable to do so.
Home Team
Home and away teams specified for for pool play games. Each team scheduled as home team for one game and away team for the other. During bracket games, higher seed (i.e. closest to 1 seed) is home team.
Seeding
Seeding for bracket based in order on:
win/loss/tie record
head to head results
average runs allowed
coin flip
Pitching Limits
There are no pitching limits enforced by the tournament. However, coaches are expected to use good judgement and not overuse any single pitcher. The following are recommendations developed by USA Baseball and MLB. The responsibility ultimately lies with coaches and parents to ensure that each player's health and development is properly maintained.
