T-BALL RULES 

(Last Edited February, 2022) 

ELIGIBILITY 

A player’s age on August 1st is the player’s age for the upcoming season 

SEASON 

The league will consist of at least 8 games plus a yearend tournament. 

EQUIPMENT 

1. 10” FLEX style softball. 
2. Softball fast pitch bats shall be used stamped ASA or USSSA. 
3. Each team shall supply their own batting tee. 
4. Catchers must wear catching helmets with throat protector, shin guards and chest protector 
5. Each batter is required to wear a batting helmet and continue wearing it as long as the player remains on the playing field. 
6. Helmets shall be NOCSAE approved and shall be equipped with a NOCSAE-approved face protector. 

SCOREKEEPER 

Scorekeepers should confer with the opposing scorekeeper after each inning

UMPIRES 

1. The home team will provide someone who is 17 years of age or older to umpire the game. Parents or assistant coaches are highly recommended to be the umpire volunteer. The umpire volunteer will umpire from the pitching circle area. 
2. The TB league was created to provide players with a positive first experience with softball. It is encouraged by both teams to support the umpire in all calls. 
3. If there is confusion on an umpire call, both head coaches should approach the umpire and decide on the call. “Out” and “safe” calls are final by the umpire and should not be discussed. 

RULES: 

Rules shall be as in GSLJC with the following exceptions: 

 A. COACHES 

1. A team shall have a head coach and any number of assistant coaches as determined by the head coach. 
2. Base coaches shall not touch, push or pull their runners as players run the bases. 
3. When a team is up to bat, one coach will be designated to help with the tee. The tee will be set up with the back corner of the tee touching the middle front of the home plate. The tee shall be moved out of the way by the coach after the ball is put into play. 
4. No more than two coaches may take the field with their team and provide defensive instructions from the outfield positions. 

B. TEAM 

1. Teams shall not have more than 10 players on their official roster unless approved by the Board. 
2. All players of a given team, present for a game, shall take part in the entire game unless prevented from doing so by illness, injury or bathroom break. The player may re-enter the game at any time and must resume the player’s original place in the batting order without penalty. 
3. Up to 8 players of a given team go onto the field on defense each inning. Eight (8) players will play in the infield. There shall be pitcher (fielding only), catcher, 1st baseman, 2nd baseman, 3rd baseman and shortstop. The defense may include 2 more short fielders. The pitcher must be in the pitching circle before the ball can be hit. All other fielders must remain within 5 ft. of an imaginary line connecting bases until the ball is hit. 
4. The batting order must include all players present in the game. 
5. A team must have at least 5 players (both defensively and offensively) present at game time and present at the entire game or it will be a forfeit. 
6. If a player arrives after the game has started, that player must bat in the last position in the batting order. 

C. PLAYING FIELD 

1. Bases shall be 50 feet apart 
2. Pitching rubber distance is 27 feet 
3. A circle with 8-foot radius is centered about the mid-point of the pitching rubber. This is to confine the movement of the pitcher fielder until the ball is hit by the batter. 
4. An arc of 8 feet, from the back point of home plate extends between the foul lines. A batted ball must travel to this line or beyond to be in play. Exception: See Rule G.2. 
5. A chalk line shall be placed halfway between 1st and 2nd bases, halfway between 2nd and 3rd bases and halfway between 3rd base and home. 

D. GAMES 

1. Games will be 5 innings or one hour long with no new inning starting after 55 minutes. The entire inning shall be completed and the game declared official (unless time has expired and the home team trails by 9 or more runs.)
2. In case of a tie, there is no tie breaker and the score remains tied. 
3. In case of unfavorable field conditions, 1 inning constitutes a full game. 

E. PITCHING 

There will be no pitching by coaches or players. 

F. BATTING 

1. A batting tee is set up at home plate and the batter is allowed 5 swings (and only 5 swings regardless of how if/and/or/where) to hit the ball into fair territory or the batter is retired. 
2. Bunting is not permitted. If, in the judgment of the umpire, the batter attempts to bunt the ball, the batter will be charged with a swing. 
3. Sliding is permitted. 
4. A batter throwing the bat intentionally or unintentionally shall be called out. 
5. Maintaining proper batter order is the responsibility of the head coach and assistants. Recognizing the excitement and eagerness of young players, the handling of a situation in which a player bats out of order will be to recall the batter, return all runners to their original bases and replay from the point of error. 
6. A batted ball that is stopped by an infielder will result in either an out if a runner is put out or the ball is caught in the air, or only a single if a batter/runner is not put out.  All runners may only advance one base
7.  A batted ball that gets past the infield and continues to the outfield will be declared an automatic ground rule double. All runners will advance only two bases from the base they started from. 

8.8 batters shall bat each inning. After each set of 3 outs, the bases will be cleared and the batting order resumed and scoring continued. 

            1.The scorekeeper/coach of the team at bat is responsible for informing the umpire that the 8th batter is at the plate. If the “at bat” team                fails to notify the umpire of the 8th batter and the outcome of the play is affected, the play will be nullified, all runners returned to                        bases and the 8th batter will hit again. 

             2.In the case of the 8h batter, play will continue until a third out or the ball is controlled by the catcher at home plate. 

G. FIELDING 

1. TB encourages players to work to make softball plays. Fielding and throwing balls to bases is encouraged. 
2. If a player, including the catcher, touches a moving ball before the ball reaches the 8-foot arc, the umpire shall declare the ball live and is played out accordingly. 
3. The infield fly rule will not apply. 
4. Once the ball is called “dead”, no further play can be made prior to the next pitch (i.e. if ball is dead, pitcher makes a throw to a base to make an out…ball is still dead), the runner returns to base. 
5. Runners may not advance further as a result of an overthrown ball by the defense. A single is a single and a ground rule double is two bases for all runners. 

H. BASE RUNNING 

1. Runners may not lead off from a base. At least one foot of the runner shall remain in contact with the base until the ball is hit by the batter. There is no base stealing. 
2. If a runner is not on her own base at the time the ball is hit, the umpire will immediately call the ball dead. The runner will be called out and all other runners will return to their original bases. Since the play was effectively dead before the ball was hit, no swing will be charged to the batter. An injury to a player shall result in the immediate stoppage of play with the base runners achieving only the base to which they were advancing. 
3. A base runner hit by a batted ball prior to it being touched by a defensive player will be called out. The ball is “dead”, other runners return to bases. In the case of the 8th batter, the ball is “dead”, no runs will score and the inning is complete. 
4. Runners may not advance an extra base on any throw to any base by any infielder or short fielder who has played a batted ball. No advancing bases on overthrows. 
5. Once the ball is called “dead”, no further play can be made prior to the next pitch (i.e. if ball is dead and pitcher makes a throw to a base to make an out, the ball is still dead), runner returns to the base. 
6. Sliding is permitted.