LEAGUE CONSTITUTION
Contents:
I. Organization
II. Rules
III. Code of conduct
IV. Amendments
April 2011
I. Organization
League Board – The governing body of the league. The League Board shall consist of one representative from each participating team, some of whom may be designated as League Officers and Directors (outlined below). The League Board meets at least once pre-season and once pre-tournament, and additionally as necessary, and makes decisions by majority vote. A quorum of five (5) League Board members must be present for any vote to be taken.
League Constitution – This document. The League Constitution is approved by the League Board to be the sole source of reference for league rules and regulations. As such, this document necessarily overrides all previous league documents. Therefore, any parts of previous league documents that the League Board wishes to retain must be added to this document; they can not be enforced otherwise.
League Officers – Elected yearly by the League Board. Any league participant is eligible to be an officer, regardless of whether they are on the League Board.
League President – Duties include but are not limited to:
1. Call League Board meetings; at least one pre-season and one pre-tournament must be held.
2. Preside over league meetings (set agenda, keep discussion on topic, etc.)
3. Serve as a tie-break vote for the League Board.
4. Appoint League Directors.
5. Make league schedule, including scheduled rain-out dates.
6. Make tournament schedule based on season standings.
7. Serve as league contact to HAAA and all other organizations outside the league.
8. Purchase necessary league equipment as approved by the League Board.
9. Maintain open communication with League Board, League Officers, League Directors, and team coaches.
10. Oversee all league functions.
11. Fulfill all the duties appointed to League President in this document or by the League Board, or delegate as necessary to ensure duties are fulfilled.
League Secretary – Duties include but are not limited to:
1. Ensure the clear communication of League Board decisions and league rules to all league participants.
2. Track game results and update season standings.
3. Maintain official scorebook for tournament games and assign scorekeepers for each tournament game.
4. Fulfill all the duties appointed to League Secretary in this document or by the League Board, or delegate as necessary to ensure duties are fulfilled.
League Treasurer – Duties include but are not limited to:
1. Maintain a checking account in the league’s name.
2. Report to the league board on the balance of the account, as well as a summary of withdrawals and deposits.
3. Pay umpires (in cooperation with Director of Upmires).
4. Provide funds to League Officers, Directors, or Board members for purchases approved by the League Board.
5. Collect and record all fees and fines, including entry fees, from league participants.
6. Fulfill all the duties appointed to League Treasurer in this document or by the League Board, or delegate as necessary to ensure duties are fulfilled.
League Directors – Appointed as needed by the League President. Any league participant is eligible to be a director, regardless of whether they are on the League Board. League directors will fulfill the tasks delegated to them by the League Board regarding their area of directorship. Below are common League Director positions:
Director of Umpires – Serves as the contact point for all umpires. Schedules umpires to fulfill all scheduled games. Informs umpires of cancelled and rescheduled games. Ensures that umpires are paid promptly. Mediates umpire conflicts with the League Board or League Officers. Reports on behalf of umpires regarding ejections, rule confusion, etc.
Director of Field Maintenance – Schedules and organizes diamond work days. Reports on potential projects. Completes routine maintenance on the bleachers, crow’s nest, etc, with League Board approval. Ensures that field is set properly before tournament games. Sprays infield, drags diamond, etc. as necessary and with Board Approval.
Director of Website – Maintains League website, including updating frequently to include schedule changes, most recent standings, tournament brackets, and announcements as approved by the League Board.
II. Rules
A. Game Rules
1. All games will be governed by A.S.A. rules, unless specifically mentioned in this document.
2. Umpires interpret all game rules, A.S.A. or league.
3. On weeknights, the first game must start by 7:00pm and no inning will begin after 8:30pm. The second game will start at 8:30pm, if possible, and no inning will begin after 90 minutes of play. Sunday games, no inning will begin after 90 minutes of play. There is no time-limit during post-season games.
4. A team must have seven players to start a game. If a team is short of players, game time is forfeit time. If both teams agree to delay the start of the game in order to avoid a forfeit, the game may be played, but still must follow the 90 minute time limit from the original scheduled start time.
5. The ten-run rule will be in effect for regular season games and all post-season games after 5 innings of play.
6. No infield practice is allowed before games.
7. During the regular season, a team may extend the batting order up to 12 batters. Any combination of 9 fielders from the multiple batters may be used. Once the game is started, the number of batters on each team can not be changed, or automatic outs will be issued. A team may not use fewer batters than fielders.
B. Rain-Out Rules
1. The League President will contact both coaches and the Director of Umpires by 5:45pm on regular weeknights (or 1 hour 15 mins before any regularly scheduled game) to inform of a game cancellation. After this time, all decisions (even the most obvious) are considered “game time” and left at the umpire’s discretion in order to avoid confusion. When a game is canceled at the umpire’s discretion, the home team is responsible for notifying the League President.
2. A game that is rained out in progress is final if 5 or more complete innings are played (4½ if the home team is leading). Otherwise, the game will be replayed from the beginning.
3. Only the League President (up until minus 1:15 game time) and the umpires (any time after that) have the authority to cancel or stop games due to field condition. A team that chooses not to play otherwise will be considered to have forfeited the game.
4. On regular weeknights, if the 7:00pm game is cancelled due to rain, the 8:30pm game will be automatically cancelled as well to avoid confusion and as a courtesy to umpires. The League President will contact both coaches and the Director of Umpires. The Director of Umpires will contact the umpires.
5. If a game is cancelled or stopped but both teams agree to play anyway, the teams are welcome to play without umpires and the game may be counted pending approval of the League President.
6. Cancelled games will be automatically rescheduled for the first built-in rainout date. The League President will inform coaches and the Director of Umpires of the date and time.
C. Bookkeeping/Roster Rules
1. Home team is responsible for keeping book each game during the season. Season scorebooks will not be officially kept with the league – the League Secretary will keep track of wins, losses and ties.
2. Season standings will be calculated with each win counting as 2 points for a team. Season games ending in a tie due to time limit or rain-out after 5 innings will be considered final; each team will be given 1 point. In the event of a tie in the standings, the tie will be resolved by head-to-head records, and then by coin toss. Post-season games cannot end in a tie.
3. The post-season tournament will be in double-elimination format, and will be seeded according to season standings.
4. In order to participate in the post-season, a player must have participated in 5 regular season games. Teams are expected to follow this rule through the honor system – there will be no official record of season rosters.
5. Each team should make an effort to include players from its namesake church, and any members from a team’s namesake church wishing to participate should not be excluded from that team.
6. Any player wishing to play in the league tournament for the first time must be approved by the League Board at the pre-tournament meeting. Each team is responsible for submitting players from their planned tournament roster before the League Board.
D. Protest Rules
1. A protest may be filed by any league coach in the event that they feel any league participant is acting in contradiction with league rules. (This includes acting in contradiction with ASA rules where applicable.) The protest must first be formally declared to the head umpire of the game being played; if the coach finds the head umpire’s response to be unsatisfactory, the coach may file the protest with the League President.
2. Any protest and a protest fee of $20 must be filed with the League President within 24 hours after the game in question, or the protest will be invalid. The protest will be decided by the League Board as soon as possible. The protest fee will be refunded if the protesting team wins the protest; otherwise, the fee will be deposited into the League’s general fund.
3. If the League President is involved in the protest, he will assign a disinterested League Officer or League Board member to present the protest to the League Board.
E. Other Rules
1. Ejections – Any participant ejected from a game will be fined $20 by the league and will not be eligible to play until the fine is paid. Failure to pay the fine by the pre-tournament meeting will result in the participant’s team being declared ineligible for tournament play. Umpires shall notify the Director of Umpires of any ejections, who shall in turn notify the League Board.
2. Entry Fee – The League Board will determine the entry fee necessary for each season at the preseason league meeting. The League Board will also determine the due date for entry fees for each season at the preseason league meeting. (For example, the 2011 due date is Thursday, June 8) The entry fee will be paid in full by each team to the treasurer before the determined due date. Failure to do so will result in an additional $50 penalty to the unpaid team and the forfeiture of all further games until entry fee and penalty are paid in full.
3. Schedule Disputes – Church functions, involving an entire congregation, will be the only valid reason for disputing the schedule in order to not cause forfeiture by the disputing team. Team coaches must make an effort to notify the League President of schedule disputes as soon as possible to allow for schedule changes when appropriate.
4. Game-Time Field Maintenance – The home team of any scheduled game is responsible for setting bases, chalking lines, and raking/dragging the field and filling holes as necessary before the game begins. The home team of the day’s final game is responsible for storing bases, raking/dragging the field and filling holes as necessary, and turning off lights after play is complete.
5. Cancellations (Other Than Rainouts) – The League President may cancel a game at any time due to schedule conflicts or other unforeseen events. The cancelled game will be rescheduled as if it were a rainout.
III. Code of Conduct
In order to help keep the league Christian-based and family-friendly, all participants are expected to follow the league Code of Conduct:
1. All games played, regular season or tournament, will begin with both teams joining in prayer. This prayer will be led by a member of the visiting team.
2. All players on all teams need to make an effort to show pride in their team and in the league. This includes keeping the dugouts and stands clean, participating in assigned league workdays, participating in one’s respective team functions, helping the opposing team get the field ready when necessary, etc.
3. Players should strive to be good Christian stewards towards each other. This involves acting civil with players on your own team, players on the opposing team, and towards the umpires.
4. Cursing will no longer be tolerated in the league. Any player caught cursing by the umpires will be ejected from the game and required to follow the ejection process outlined in section II:E:1.
5. Along with cursing, the throwing of equipment (bats, helmets, etc.) will no longer be tolerated. This rule focuses on thrown equipment on the field of play but the umpire will have discretion if a player has an over-the-top outburst in the dugout/bleachers area as well. Any player caught throwing equipment by the umpires will be ejected from the game and required to follow the ejection process.
6. Any player deemed by the umpires as intentionally trying to cause injury to a player of an opposing team will be ejected from the game as well as for the rest of the season. This includes any intentional attempt to spike a player, run over a player, or lowering a shoulder against a catcher on the opposing team that could lead to serious injury. Since this is a serious infraction with a lengthy suspension and is ruled on discretionarily, the incident may be reviewed by the League Board if requested by the player in question. Also, the League Board will review the player’s standing in the league before the following season and determine the best plan of action (fines, etc.).
7. No one is permitted to have/drink any alcoholic beverage on the field or in the dugouts. Umpires will have the authority to make a player sit if they feel the player is unfit to perform on the field due to alcohol consumption. The player will not be ejected or fined, but just asked to not participate for the rest of the game. Teams are expected to police themselves regarding alcohol consumption. If players consume alcohol, they should do so responsibly and make an effort to keep the park free from cans and bottles.
8. The most important rule in the Code of Conduct is the Golden Rule. It encompasses all of the above rules and regulations within itself. ‘Do unto others as you would have them do unto you.’
IV. Amendments
This document may be reworded, added to, subtracted from, and otherwise amended at any time by the League Board. Amendments made during the off-season and pre-season will take effect immediately unless otherwise noted. Amendments made during the season or tournament will take effect at the beginning of the following season, unless otherwise noted.
