DENVER MSBL / MSBL RULES 2001 The MSBL and MABL were created to provide men from 18-? With a competitive recreational baseball program with an emphasis on fun, camaraderie, enjoyment and sportsmanship. The following rules apply to all league play in the Denver MSBL and MABL. Herein the Board of Directors shall be known as the Board. 1) AGE REGULATION & ROSTER STATUS a) FAILURE TO ABIDE BY AGE REGULATIONS - This rule must be followed above all others. It is the responsibility of the managers to ensure that this line be never be crossed. All players must have a valid driver's license with a picture ID on their persons at all times. Opposing managers have a right to ask for it. If the player cannot provide it, the manager can lodge a protest by following league rules. If an illegal player is detected the player will be removed from the league without compensation, game forfeited and manager can be suspended for one game. If multiple infractions occur the manager can be suspended for the year. A player must turn 18 before the start of the season and 30 and 40 by December 31st of the year they are playing in. b) PAID PLAYERS - Date for submission of initial roster is April 1st 2001. At this time money for 10 paid players will also be submitted. The remaining money due for players must be paid before their first scheduled game. July 12th will be the cut-off for final rosters. Any variation on a roster after that point must be done because of hardship and be approved by the President or a specified Board member. c) QUALIFICATIONS - All members shall sign a waiver of liability, agreeing not to hold the league, its officers, directors, employees or agents responsible for any injury or damage arising from participation in the league or its activities. Any person can become a member by paying the dues and fees established by the Board. Membership shall be in one-year increments. If a player's check or other method of payment is not valid they shall be suspended until they have repaid the amount and any additional fees to the treasurer. 2) FINAL ROSTERS - Dates for submission will be July 12th. 3) ALL TEAMS MUST WEAR COMPLETE UNIFORMS - All teams must have reasonable uniforms by the first game of the year. Uniforms must be consistent with Major or Minor League Baseball. The Board must approve all other uniform types. No T-shirt type uniforms are allowed. The board shall also approve team names. 4) ALL BATTERS MUST WEAR AN EARFLAP FACING THE PITCHER - There are 4 players left in the league that can wear flapless helmets. Once their membership stops for any reason they will not be permitted to rejoin the league without adhering to this rule. The four players are Ron Beeks, Mike Cross, Randy Blesh and Gary Triolo. These players accept any additional risks resulting from the foregoing exemption. 5) METAL SPIKES ARE PERMITTED 6) THE OFFICIAL BALL - The official ball will be the ball chosen by the Board that particular season. Only if both teams run out of official balls can another ball be used with the approval of both managers. Each manager will give an equal amount of balls to the home-plate umpire. 7) NO ALCOHOL AND TOBACCO - There will be no alcohol and tobacco allowed on designated fields in our league. All high school fields Regis University, School of Mines and Metro State College prohibit the use of alcohol and tobacco on their properties. Please check with the league about the other fields. 8) WOOD, METAL, COMPOSITE LAMINATED OR RIDGED BATS ARE ALLOWED - Metal bats will not exceed minus 5 in length to weight ratio. Wood bats shall conform to those bats allowed in College and professional baseball or adopted by our league any exceptions shall be passed through the Board 9) OFFICIAL GAME - When a team has 8 players at a game they must be ready to play. If they do not play the game is declared a forfeit. If the team is waiting for a eighth player the team must wait 15 minutes before a forfeit is declared. The opposing manager can also wait an additional 30 minutes with time being removed from the game clock. In this case the first 15 minutes is not deducted just the time of the second waiting period. If a team with 8 players loses a player due to injury, ejection or any other reason the game is a forfeit. 10) 12 RUN RULE - If a team is ahead by 12 runs in the 7th inning the game is awarded to that team. 11) HOME TEAM SHALL HAVE THE FIRST BASE DUGOUT 12) INFIELD PRACTICE - The visiting team shall start infield practice 35 minutes before the game and the home team shall start 20 minutes before the game. 5 minutes will be allowed for pitchers to warm up before the first pitch and the umpire meeting. 13) GAMES WILL START ON THE FIRST PITCH - The game clock will start on the first pitch. 14) FORFEITS - If a manager contacts the league and indicates he will not be able to field a team for a specific game it will be deemed a forfeit, if a team forfeits multiple games it may be forced to add another player and the team can face expulsion from the league if the problem persists. 15) NUMBER OF BATTERS - Each team may bat as many batters as they like; however, a minimum often batters must hit if both teams have ten eligible batters. If one team only has nine hitters the other team can also elect to bit nine batters with no penalty, but if a tenth bitter shows up, both teams must then hit ten. In the event of an ejection or loss of a player during a game the other team cannot reduce their line-up to match the other teams. Line-up cards must list all players in uniform that day, whether inactive or active. If a player can play defensively he then, if he is needed must be used offensively. If a player is pinch-hit for he cannot reenter the game offensively just defensively. Batters cannot be skipped over or deleted, regardless of their batting order or time they entered the game. If a player has to leave or injured, another player must be put in his or her position: if you do not have another player that player is skipped over and no out is recorded. The A-B rule is in affect in all leagues. You may bat 1-8 as you normally do than the 9 thru ? can be A-B. Players can be added after the A-B slots as solo spots if you choose. Once you establish an A-B slot that remains an A-B slot. You may substitute for one of the players but you cannot eliminate one. If an A-B batter is injured or has to leave you must put another player in his spot. If no other player is available the other bitter assumes that spot and no out is recorded. If a team starts with or drops to 8 or 9 players no out is recorded at the 9th or 10th spot, it is just skipped over. 16) DESIGNATED RUNNERS - A team will be allowed two designated runners during a game. The manager can elect to denote both of these or one at the beginning of the game on the line-up card or save one or both for later in the game. A designated runner must be put in the game 30 seconds after the players reaches base safely or that runner is forfeited for that at bat. The runner will be the last batted out of that inning or if there are no outs the previous inning. If it is the first inning and no outs have been recorded it is the last player in the line-up that is eligible to run. When there are two outs you may run for the catcher to speed up the game; this again is the last batted out. When both designated runners are used you must then pinch run for the batter and be must then come out of the game offensively. 17) EJECTED PLAYERS - If a player is ejected from a game a written report must be made by the umpire and sent to the league. If the umpire or the President does not deem the ejection flagrant no further action will be taken. If it is deemed flagrant it will be sent to the Judiciary Committee for review and a recommended punishment will be returned to the Board for application. If the offense is deemed flagrant enough the player will immediately suspended until reviewed by the Committee, punishment can be anywhere from one game to the rest of the season plus monetary. A second infraction during the year is an automatic minimum two game suspension or more and a third infraction, the player will be suspended for the rest of the season and have to go before the Judiciary Committee to ask for re-instatement. Any player who confronts and physically attacks or threatens to attack an umpire or another player off the field will be immediately suspended from the league and could well be removed from the league for life. Any such actions on the field will also be dealt with severely. This to be decided by the Judiciary Committee and the Board. If a player is ejected he must, unless otherwise instructed by the umpire leave sight and sound of the field. If he does not the umpire can declare a forfeit. The umpires must warn the players and coaches before he declares such forfeit and if reasonable time passes and his instructions are not followed he can then declare a forfeit. A team will also forfeit if they use a suspended player. All fines must be paid and terms of suspension met before re-instatement. 18) DEFENSIVE SUBSTITUTIONS AND PITCHER RE-ENTRY - All players may be substituted for defensively without affecting the player's offensive status in the line-up. Once a pitcher is removed he may reenter the game in that position but not in the same inning. A certain pitcher may only re-enter a game once. 19) INTENTIONAL WALKS & HIT BATSMAN - Only one intentional walk is allowed per game and four balls must be thrown. If a pitcher hits 4 batters in one game he must be removed and cannot re-enter. 20) FAKE TAGS -If an infielder fakes a tag at any base with the obvious intention of making a runner slide, all runners move up one base and the player can face ejection. The umpire will determine this. 21) DURATION OF GAMES - All games are nine innings. The umpires must tell the managers the time of the first pitch. No new inning will start after 3 hours. The 3-hour limit will start with the first pitch. All ties are played to completion. A new inning is deemed started upon the last out of the previous inning. 22) DELAYED GAMES - In case of a delay in a game due to injury, weather, mechanical difficulties or any other unforeseeable occurrence the umpire will put time back on the clock and notify both managers. 23) PROTESTS - All protests shall be lodged before the next pitch or a runner is retired. The protesting manager shall stop the game and notify the home-plate umpire and it shall be duly noted in both score books. The manager must then notify the league President in writing, by e-mail, fax or postmarked letter of their protest within 24 hours upon completion of the game. A protest arising on a game-ending play must be filed by noon of the next day in the same manner. No protests shall ever be permitted on judgment decisions by the umpire. 24) POOL PLAYERS - All pool players must be league members. Teams may use these players for either the 8th or 9th player. One team cannot use a certain pool player more than three tinges during the season and never as a pitcher or in the playoffs. 40 year olds can be used in all three leagues, 30 year olds in 18 and 30 and players under the 30-year age rule can only be used in the MABL. Only one pool player can be used per team. A player for a special fee can be just a pool player and not belong to a team.
25) RAINOUTS, SUSPENDED GAMES - The home-plate umpire will call a rainout. He will call for a twenty-minute delay to give the teams a chance to restart the game, with that time being put back on the clock. In the event of a deluge he can then call the game. An official game can be called if the home team is ahead after 4 1/2 innings or the visitors are at the end of the fifth. Games where there is a mechanical malfunction or where games are stopped due to darkness, curfew or lightning will be considered suspended games and be picked up from exactly where they left off. The league also reserves the right to call any rain-out a suspended game if a game is in the 3rd or 4th innings and pick up play from that point. 26) COLLISIONS - All runners must avoid intentional collisions with a fielder in the act of fielding a ball. If not, the runner is called out. Players must slide to avoid injury. At second base they must slide directly into the bag and not at arm's length. They must not slide past the bag or pop-up in order to hinder the throw. At home plate the runner must slide or avoid a collision at all costs. The catcher cannot block the whole plate and must allow the runner part of the plate. The catcher cannot stand up the line with or without the ball. If he has the ball and is up the line he must act like any other fielder and not block the baseline. 27) CODE OF CONDUCT - a) DRUGS, ALCOHOL AND CIGARETTES - There will be no alcoholic beverages, illegal drugs or cigarettes used at the ballpark or in the dug-out at any time. Any player refusing to abide by this rule will be suspended and face expulsion from the league from the President, and the Judiciary Committee, b) PROHIBITIONS - Managers and players shall conduct themselves in a sportsmanlike manner at all times. No manager or player shall commit the following: Lay a hand upon, shove, strike or threaten an umpire player or spectator on or in the vicinity of the field or use rough tactics against a opposing player. Managers and players shall also not refuse to abide by or take part in excessive demonstrations against an umpires decisions. Any parties guilty of such will face ejection, suspension and possible expulsion. Umpires must file a written report to the President of any such actions. 28) MAJOR LEAGUE RULES - Major League rules will apply to any and all situations not covered above.
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