PUYALLUP PARKS & RECREATION YOUTH T-BALL AND COACH PITCH RULES ADMINISTRATION 1. This program is sponsored by Puyallup Parks & Recreation Department. Scheduling is provided by the City of Puyallup Parks & Recreation Department. 2. The Puyallup youth baseball/softball rules will supersede all other rules. Girl's leagues will play under NFHS rules. Where interpretation of baseball league rules are unclear, Official Baseball rules will apply. PRE-GAME AND GAME GUIDELINES 1. Games will be rescheduled only by the Puyallup Parks & Recreation Department. This rule will not be waived except in the case of an extreme emergency. 2. In case of BAD WEATHER, the coach should call the Youth Sports Rain Out Line after 4:00 p.m. at (253) 841-5519 or www.teamsideline.com/puyallup to determine if the games will be played. We do not call you. 3. A ten minute grace period will be allowed before a forfeit will be declared, if it is the only game scheduled on that field for that evening. There will be no grace period for the second game of the evening on one field. 4. PRE-GAME A. Home team will take the 3rd base side of the field. B. Visiting team will take the 1st base side of the field. PROTESTS 1. Player eligibility will be the only protestable item. 2. A written report setting forth all facts of the protest must be filed by 5:00 p.m. of the next business day after the completion of the game being protested. A $25.00 protest fee must accompany the written protest. The fee will be returned if the protest is upheld. 3. The protesting manager/coach must at the time of the protest: (A) Notify the head umpire, the opposing coaches and the official scorekeeper that the game is being played under protest. (B) Insure that both the official home team scorebook and any other scorebook are matched as to the exact situation (batter, runner, outs, players in the game, etc.) at the time the protest occurred. (C) The umpire should announce to the crowd that the game is being played under protest. (D) The protest shall be ruled upon by the Sports Committee. 4. The sports committee must rule and report their findings within two business days after receipt of notice. The report may be verbal followed by a letter within five working days. 5. The sports committee findings will be final.
GAME CONDUCT AND DISCIPLINARY ACTION 1. Any coach, player or spectator found guilty of drinking, use of tobacco or drugs, or swearing while on the playing field or in the presence of the players will be subject to immediate suspension by the umpire or sports committee. 2. Any team, coach, player or spectator who is abusive toward other coaches, participants, umpires, or assigned recreation personnel before, during or after a game shall be subject to immediate suspension. Any player, coach or spectator that strikes an umpire, spectator, player or league official, before, during or after a game, will be suspended from all recreation programs for life. 3. A player, coach or spectator ejected from a game will be subject to review by the sports committee who may impose additional restrictions if warranted. Any player or coach ejected from a game for conduct violations will be restricted from participating in their next scheduled game. A spectator ejected from a game for conduct violations will be restricted from attending their next scheduled game. 4. Any player or coach participating in a game from which he/she has been suspended will result in a forfeit of that game, and additional disciplinary action. 5. Any coach who removes his team from the playing field prior to the completion of a game, or who causes a game to be forfeited because of his conduct toward the umpire shall be subject to immediate suspension. 6. If for some reason it becomes necessary to consider the dismissal of a player for disciplinary reasons the coach must submit in writing a letter detailing the reasons to the league office for their review. The coaches, parents and player will be notified of the results. 7. A player may be disciplined and kept out of a game. The coach must first notify the league office of the disciplinary action as well as the umpire and opposing coach. The parents and player should also be informed in advance of game time of the disciplinary action and the reasons for the action. 8. A player may be removed from a game for misconduct. The coach must notify the umpire and the opposing team immediately at the time of the removal. The player's name and the reason for the disciplinary action should be recorded in the scorebook. 9. A coach, player, spectator or umpire is subject to review at any time for violations and/or abuse of league rules. 10. CHATTERING: A no chattering rule will be in place for all leagues. Players in the field may not chatter while a player is at bat. Cheers may done from the dugout, by the team batting, as long the cheers are positive and are not negative against the opposing team. T-BALL & COACH PITCH EQUIPMENT & UNIFORMS 1. T-shirts and baseball caps are acceptable uniforms (T-shirts provided by the Recreation Center must be worn. Teams may not buy their own jerseys). 2. No steel cleats will be allowed. 3. All offensive players batting, running, or in the batter's circle must wear a NCOSAE approved helmet.
4. Incrediballs or similar style balls will be used for all T-Ball/Coach Pitch games and practices. 5. In Coach Pitch, the catcher must wear a chest protector, face mask and catcher s helmet. In T-ball the catcher must wear a helmet (Baserunning helmet is acceptable). T-BALL RULES 1. This league is an instructional league. There will be no scoring or standings kept in this league. 2. Each team will field ten defensive players (1 pitcher, 1 catcher, 4 infielders, and 4 outfielders). 3. Players must play within the traditional positions on the field with the pitcher having one foot minimum on the pitching rubber. (Exception: the catcher may stand to one side). 4. A team must start and finish the game with at least eight players. 5. All players present at the game will be listed in the batting order and will bat even though they may not be an active defensive player (bat the entire roster). 6. Late players will be added to the batting order in the last position. 7. All players in attendance must play at least three complete defensive innings. 8. A strike will be called if: A. The ball first lands within the four foot radius batting circle. Except on an obvious practice swing. B. The ball fails to travel outside the ten foot radius arc drawn on the field. C. The ball is hit outside the first or third base foul lines. (standard foul ball). D. The sectioned part of the tee is knocked off, or the tee is knocked over on a swing. E. The ball is missed completely. F. If the bat primarily contacts the Tee. G. If the fielder touches a ground ball within the ten foot arc. 9. Unlimited strikes or foul balls will be allowed in T-Ball. 10. Each batter must take a full swing at the ball. A bunt will be considered a strike. 11. If a fielder catches a fly ball within the ten foot arc the batter is out. 12. Runners may advance only one base in the case of an overthrown ball regardless of whether the ball stays in bounds or not. 13. The play shall be termed dead once the catcher or any infield player has possession of the ball in the infield. Runners may continue to the next base if they are more than half way to the next base once the ball is called dead. 14. The infield fly rule shall be suspended for all T-ball play. 15. If a bat is thrown, the batter will be given a warning. In the event the same player throws the bat a second time in the same game, the player will be out and the runners will not be allowed to advance.
16. The time limit for T-Ball game will be 1 hour and 10 minutes. No new inning will start after one hour. 17. T-ball games shall consist of 4 innings. 18. A team will bat their entire roster each inning, even if a team makes three outs in the inning. A player who is called out shall be removed from the base. This is so that the players begin to understand the concept of getting outs and what that means. 19. The game will be complete once 4 innings have been played or the time limit is reached. 20. Players are not permitted to steal, slide or lead off bases. They must remain on base until the ball is hit. 21. The distance between bases will be 50 feet. The pitching distance will be 38 feet. COACH PITCH RULES 1. All players will be placed in the batting order and will bat even if they are not in the game defensively. 2. Each team will field ten defensive players (1 pitcher, 1 catcher, 4 infielders, and 4 outfielders). 3. All players must play a minimum of 3 defensive innings in each game. A player can not sit for consecutive innings on defense. 4. Coaches pitch to their own team. The coach or assistant coaches are the only ones allowed to pitch to the batters. 5. The coach pitcher must remain within the ten foot circle around the pitching rubber. 6. The player pitcher must take his or her position inside the ten foot circle to either side or to the rear, but not in front of the coach pitcher, and will not advance to the front of the coach pitcher until the ball has been hit. He or she may field the ball as any other fielder once it has been hit. 7. The coach pitcher may not field the ball or obstruct players from fielding the ball. If the coach pitcher does obstruct the play, the batter is out. The umpire will determine whether or not the coach pitcher has obstructed the players from fielding the ball. 8. The coach pitcher may talk to or instruct any of his or her players from the mound without calling a time out as long as the coach pitcher remains in the ten foot circle. A time out must be asked for and granted to the coach in order to talk to his or her player from outside the pitching circle. 9. If the coach pitcher is hit by a batted ball, the ball is dead and all runners will return to the base occupied prior to the pitch and the batter will hit again. The batter will resume the same count her or she had prior to the last pitch. If a batted ball hits the player pitcher it will be considered a live ball and played as normal. 10. The pitcher or coaches may call one time out (maximum 20 seconds) per batter and leave the mound or come off the bench and give instructions to the batter. 11. There will be a total of five pitches thrown per batter, unless a fair ball is hit before the fifth pitch. If there is not a fair ball hit by the fifth pitch, the batter is out. NOTE: No balls or strikes will be called, and if a foul ball is hit on the fifth pitch, the batter is also out.
12. The coach pitcher will pitch from within the pitching circle and may deliver an overhand or underhand pitch. The coach pitcher must remain within the ten foot circle after the pitch. 13. Runners may advance only one base in the case of an overthrown ball. 14. The play shall be termed dead once the catcher or any infield player has possession of the ball in the infield. Runners may continue to the next base if they are more then half way to the next base once the ball is called dead. 15. Players are not permitted to steal, slide, or lead off bases. They must remain on the base until the ball is hit. PENALTY: RUNNER IS OUT. 16. There will be no infield fly rule. 17. No bunting is allowed. 18. A line from the 3rd base foul line to the first base foul line will be marked in a six foot radius in front of home plate. A batted ball must go beyond this area before it can be fielded by any player. No player can enter this area to field the ball. PENALTY: BATTER IS SAFE AND ALL RUNNERS WILL ADVANCE ONE BASE FROM LAST BASE OCCUPIED. IF A BATTED BALL FAILS TO GO BEYOND THIS SIX FOOT AREA, IT WILL BE CONSIDERED A FOUL BALL AND COUNT AS A PITCH AGAINST THE BATTER. 19. All coach-pitch games will consist of five complete innings. If a game is called for rain or other unsafe condition's three innings constitute a complete game. 20. The time limit for all coach pitch games will be one hour and 10 minutes. No new inning will start after one hour. 21. Games ending in a tie will be declared a tie. 22. A team may only score four runs per inning with the exception of the fifth inning only. A six run limit will be in effect for the fifth inning only. The half inning is over when the fourth run crosses the plate. In the fifth inning only, all runs crossing the plate before the ball is dead will count even if it is more than six runs. 23. The distance between bases will be 50 feet. The pitching distance will be 38 feet. 24. All catchers are required to wear a catcher's helmet and face mask. A chest protector is strongly suggested.