Yarmouth Little League Softball
2011 Minor League
Local Rules and Select League Rules

League Age
7 to 12

Field Dimensions
The pitching rubber is located 35 feet from the back of home plate.
Bases are located 60 feet apart

Equipment
Minor League Softball uses an 11-inch softball.
Pitchers must wear a protective face mask. Pitchers can wear their own mask or one that will be supplied by YLL. If the player chooses to
wear their own mask, it must be one that is approved by YLL.
All players must wear a batting helmet when batting whether during a game or during practice.
Softball bats must be ASA or Little League approved for fast pitch softball. Minor League Softball bats cannot be longer than 32 inches and
must have a length-to-weight ratio of -12 or less. This ratio should be clearly on all ASA approved bats.
Shoes with metal spikes or cleats are not permitted.
Players cannot wear jewelry of any type, including earrings, unless necessary for medical purposes.
Players with a hair length or style that may cause impaired vision must wear their hair back or in a pony tail.
Players should wear their complete uniform, including visor.
Uniforms must be tucked in at all times.

Conduct
Only players and authorized coaches are allowed in the dugouts during games.
All player-owned or controlled cellphones must be turned off during games.
Players not in the field, on base, or at bat, must remain in the dugout.
Players should be discouraged from making frequent trips to the snack bar or stands.
Players are not allowed to sit in the stands during their game.
The only offensive players who are allowed outside of the dugout are the batter and the runners. There is no "on deck" batter allowed outside
of the dugout. Players must not swing a bat unless they are at bat.
The HOME team has use of the batting cages starting 30 minutes before the scheduled start of the game. The VISITING team has use of the
batting cages 15 minutes before scheduled game time.

Pitching and Restrictions
Seven-year-old players are prohibited from pitching.
Coaches should consider possible safety issues before allowing eight-year-old players to pitch.
No player may pitch more than 3 innings in any one game.
If a pitcher throws one pitch to a batter during an inning, it will count as a full inning toward their innings limit.
The pitcher's pivot foot must remain in contact with the ground when throwing a pitch.
Coaches are not allowed to warm up pitchers.
Players who are warming up pitchers must wear a mask.
Pitchers who are warming up in advance of entering the game, must warm up in the outfield, in foul territory, if possible. Pitchers can not warm
up outside of the field of play.

Batting Order
All players on the team must bat in a set order regardless of whether they are playing in the field.
EX: If a team has 11 players, all 11 players will bat in order. The batting order shall remain the same the entire game.
A player who arrives to the game late must be inserted at the end of the batting order. If a player leaves during the game, her spot in the order
will be skipped with no penalty.

Strikes and Strike Zone
A strike is any pitch that crosses any part of the plate in the strike zone (between the knees and the armpits.)
A pitched ball that strikes the bat, whether the batter is attempting to hit the pitch or not, is a strike.
A swing made by the batter that results in a miss or a foul ball is a strike. A foul ball cannot be counted as a third strike.
If the batter is hit by a pitch while attempting to swing at a pitch, the pitch is a strike, and the batter is not awarded first base.

Balls and Coach Pitch
There are no base-on-balls or walks in the minor leagues.
After the player-pitcher has thrown four balls to a batter, a coach-pitcher from the batter's team must enter the game to pitch until the batter
either reaches base or makes an out.
The coach-pitcher should not offer instructions to the batter.
A batter is awarded first base if they are hit by a pitched ball, even a ball that bounces first (unless the pitch is a strike or the batter makes a swing at the pitch).
However, the batter MUST make an attempt to avoid being hit by the pitched ball. If she do not make an effort, the pitch is called a ball and the batter is not awarded first base.
A hit ball that strikes the coach-pitcher is a live ball.
A batter cannot advance to first base if hit by a pitch that is thrown by the coach-pitcher.

Stealing
There is no stealing.
Runners cannot advance on a passed ball or wild pitch.

Running the bases
Runners cannot advance on overthrows to any base.
Runners can advance only one base if a hit ball remains in the infield.
On a ball hit to the outfield, the batter and all runners on base can can advance as many bases as possible until the ball is returned to the
infield and is in an infielder's possession. Once the ball reaches the infielder, runners can advance only to the base they were approaching, and do so at their own risk.
A runner, who is not standing on a base, is out if she is touched by a batted ball in fair territory. The ball is declared dead and returned to the pitcher.
Runners are not allowed to slide head first into a base when trying to advance. A player who slides head first will be declared "out" and will return to the dugout. Runners may dive headfirst when returning to base.

Foul Ball/Fair Ball
A ball is fair if it hits home plate before rolling into the field of play.
A ball is foul if its rolls into foul territory before passing first base and is not touched by a player.
A ball is fair if it is touched in fair territory by a fielder, even if it then rolls into foul territory.
A ball that lands in fair territory beyond first base and then rolls into foul territory is still a fair ball.

Bunting
Bunting is not allowed.

Defensive positions
In minor league softball, up to 10 players are allowed to play defense on the field.
All outfielders must remain on the outfield grass until the ball is hit.
Infielders must be within three to four paces of the imaginary baselines that run from first base to second base and from second base to third base until the ball is hit.
When a coach is pitching, the pitcher should be no closer to the batter than the pitching rubber.
If possible, nine players shall play defense. A team may play fewer than 10 players defensively if necessary, but not more than 10 players.

Reentering the game
Players who have been removed from a game, may reenter the game at any time, but must bat in the same spot they had previously batted in the batting order.
Players who arrive to the game late, may be inserted into the field and batting order at the coaches discretion. A late player must bat at the end of the existing order.

Game Day responsibilities
The visiting team is responsible for raking and lining the playing field before the game.
The home team is responsible for raking the field after the game. On weekends, the home team should work WITH the visiting team of the following game to prep the field.
The Home team is responsible for putting away all league equipment, locking the storage shed, and locking Heidi's Hut.
The Winning team is responsible for reporting the score to information officer via email at (contact information for the league information officer provided on the league website). Failure to report the score within 48 hours could result in a forfeit.

Base Coaches
All teams at bat must have a first base coach.
Players may serve as a first base or third base coach, but MUST wear a helmet while doing so.

Mercy Rule
No team may score more than 6 runs in any one inning under the league Mercy Rule. The Mercy Rule should be lifted for the final full inning of play by the Umpire, if possible. However, if the Mercy Rule was in effect in the top half of the inning, thus preventing the visiting team from
scoring more than 6 runs, the Mercy Rule cannot be lifted in the bottom half of the same inning for the home team. If the Mercy Rule is to be lifted, both teams must have an opportunity to bat unrestricted. If the visiting team is leading by more than 6 runs at the start of the last half inning of play, and the home team is restricted to scoring only 6 run because of the Mercy Rule, the game is over.

Length of Games and timing restrictions
All minor league games are scheduled for six innings, time permitting.
On weekdays, no new inning can start more than 90 minutes after first pitch or 7:30, whichever comes first. When appropriate, umpires and coaches should note and agree on the start time and end time, before each game.
On weekends, no inning can start within 15 minutes of the schedule start time of the following game.
It is the Umpires sole discretion to determine which is the last inning, based on the rules above. The last inning should be declared whenever possible before the start of a full inning and the Mercy Rule should be lifted. Once the Umpire has declared the upcoming inning is the last inning, the decision is final and takes precedent over other game ending rules. Regardless of whether the announced last inning ends quickly, an additional inning cannot be played.

Official Game
A game is considered official after 3.5 innings if the home team is winning or 4 innings if the visiting team is leading after 3.5 innings. A game
that does not last that long is considered no game and the game must be replayed.

Infield Fly Rule
The Infield Fly Rule is not used in Minor League Softball.

Misc.
Unless otherwise stated in this document or agreed to by the umpire and coaches prior to game time, the official regulations and rules of Little League Softball shall apply.
No pets are allowed on the playing field or in the dugout.
Smoking is prohibited at all Little League events.
Alcohol is prohibited at all Little League games and events.
Anyone smoking or drinking alcohol at a Little League game will be asked to leave the premises.
In the event of lightning, the field must be cleared immediately. The game cannot resume for 30 minutes after the last lightning flash is witnessed.