This set of Rules and Regulations are reviewed and amended each
year by the Board of Directors to serve as additional rules of the
current years Dixie Rule book.
1. All participants in the MHYBA leagues will be required to
register, submit contracts and pay required fees on the date(s)
designated by the Board of Directors. Failure to comply may result
in the participant being declared ineligible for the season. All
requests for reconsideration of eligibility will be ruled upon by
the Player Agent and President.
2. Age groups for operating leagues will be as follows:
A-League - 5, 6
AA-League - 7, 8
AAA-League - 9, 10
Youth Major League - 11, 12
Boys League - 13, 14
Pre-Major League - 15, 16
Major League - 17, 18
3. Age will be determined as "league age" defined in
the appropriate rulebook.
4. Any player discovered presenting a fraudulent date of birth
will be banned from participating in any activities of the MHYBA.
Reinstatement will be upon approval of the Board of Directors on an
individual basis.
5. All players participating in a league for the first time must
be in the draft. Draft order will be determined by the reverse order
of last year’s standings, with ties being broken by the head to
head record. If head to head record does not break ties for two or
three teams, it will be decided by coin flip, four or more will be
decided by lottery pick.
6. A player entering a new league who has a brother already on a
team will be drafted onto the same team. A player entering a new
league whose father is a manager in that league will be drafted onto
his father's team. The player agent will appoint a three-person
committee to decide what round these players will be drafted. The
committee decision will be final.
7. No player registration forms will be accepted after three (3)
days prior to the first scheduled player draft of the current year unless a player moves into the
area.
8. No manager will be allowed to pick coaches for the upcoming
season until after the draft has been held.
9. Only the manager and two other prospective coaches will be
allowed to represent a team at the draft selection. No parent of any
player in the draft will be allowed to attend the draft selection
unless that parent is a manager; exceptions can be granted by the
president or player agent.
10. If a player quits a team during the practice or regular
season, he/she will be disqualified from participation in the MHYBA
for that season.
11. Any player who is removed from a team by the manager or by
MHYBA for disciplinary reasons or in any way creates an embarrassing
situation for MHYBA while participating in any tournament play will
not be allowed to participate in any MHYBA activities the following
year. The parent of this player will have the right to appeal this
decision to the Board of Directors.
12. Players, once drafted and listed on the official roster, may
not re-enter the draft the following year unless released by the
manager of the team and approved by the League Vice-President,
Player Agent, Executive Vice-President and President. The parent(s)
should submit a written request to the player agent, prior to March
1st of the current year. The player agent, in turn, will contact the
above officers to decide the outcome of the request.
13. Players may not be traded after the date of the league draft.
Exceptions will be made on an individual basis with the approval of
the President, Executive Vice-President, Vice President of the
League and Player Agent. All trades must have prior written approval
of the Player Agent and League Vice-President. Second year players
cannot be traded without approval of the President, Executive
Vice-President, Vice President of the League and Player Agent.
14. If a player moves into the area after the draft, the player
agent shall assign him/her to a team. If two or more names come in
at the same time, names will be drawn out of a hat and assigned a
team by the Player Agent. Team in draft order shall receive the
player.
15. Rained out games will be played on the Saturday following the
rain out or the earliest day possible. Team managers will be notified of the
make-up date and time. If the following Saturday make up is
not possible the team will be subject to play three (3) games in a
week.
16. The use of tobacco in any form is prohibited within the
fences of the playing field. Violations will result in ejection from
the game and playing field.
17. The use of alcoholic beverages in any form will absolutely
not be tolerated under any circumstances at the W. Glenn Ricketts
Youth Sports Complex.
Violation will result in ejection from the premises. For managers or
coaches, a minimum two game suspension will be enforced. Managers
and Coaches shall not engage in any activity with any players while
under the influence of any alcohol or drugs. Should this occur the
guilty party will be asked to resign from their coaching position
immediately.
18. The use of profanity or harassing, riding or yelling, at
members of any team or its adult leaders is prohibited. Violation of
this rule will result in ejection from the game for managers,
coaches, and players. Violation of this rule will result in ejection
from MHYBA property for spectators.
19. All managers and coaches will be recruited by the
Vice-President of the League in question and approved by the
President. Managers and coaches must be approved each year. The
Board may dismiss any manager or coach at any time by a majority
vote of the Board of Directors.
20. All managers and coaches may wear long trousers or coach's shorts only (no cut-off shorts). No
clothing advertising alcohol, tobacco, drugs or inappropriate
slogans or language.
21. All players will wear their uniform in a proper manner. This
includes hats on straight, shirttails in. No low riding pants. There
will be one warning and then ejection from the game.
22. There will be no forfeits due to a shortage of players.
Another player will be chosen who is registered and of legal league
age and approved by both team managers. The player must play in an
outfield position and bat last in the batting order. A team must
have at least seven (7) of its own ball players. If not, the game
will be rescheduled.
23. A manager may suspend a player for not more than two games.
The manager must obtain the League Vice-President's or in his
absence the Executive Vice-Presidents approval and must report the
suspension to the player's parents at least 4 hours before the next
scheduled game.
24. The following people will be allowed in the dugout during a
game: players on the team roster, manager, and two coaches.
Substitutions may be allowed for adults, but the total number may
not exceed three, as shown. Exceptions for unusual circumstances may
be granted by the League Vice-President or the Umpire in charge,
A-League
(T-Ball) & AA- League (Coach Pitch) will be allowed four (4)
adults in the dugout.
25. Managers will be responsible to place their equipment in
their teams equipment bin at the end of regular season. The League
Vice-President will set a date to inventory the equipment with the
manager. Any manager wishing to keep his equipment during the
off-season must have it approved by the League Vice-President. All
equipment of every team must be checked by your League
Vice-President regardless if you are keeping the equipment or not.
Failing to do so will be a major factor whether he/she gets a
managers position the following year.
26. Managers will be responsible for getting in all uniforms
after the season is over, regardless if player will be back next
year. If you come up short on uniforms at the end of the season, the
manager will be asked to pay for them. Normal wear is expected, but
lost uniforms are no excuse. Managers will sign a contract with MHYBA accepting responsibility for all equipment including uniforms.
27. All gripes or complaints from parents or spectators will
first go to the coach or manager to handle, then to the
Vice-President of respective league, then to the President. If no
one is able to handle the situation, then it will go to the Board of
Directors along with the person involved. Managers or coaches are
required to go through the same channels. All gripes or complaints
above the managerial level must be in writing to be considered.
28. Time limits for games will be enforced. Only the league
Vice-President, Executive Vice-President, or President may grant
exceptions to the established time limits, and then only for
extraordinary reasons.
29. In all leagues, a base runner attempting to advance safely to
another base, including home plate must make every attempt to avoid
the tag, usually by sliding. Crashing into any defensive player,
including the catcher is prohibited, if in the umpire’s opinion
the runner is guilty of this offense, the runner will be called out
and if in the umpires opinion this act is flagrant the player can be
ejected.
30. If a player is thrown out of a game by the umpire, there will
be a one game suspension (next game). If a player is thrown out of a
game for a second time in a season there will be a two game
suspension (next two games). If a player is thrown out of a game for
the third time in one season, he/she will be suspended for the
remainder of the season. Any player thrown out of two games during
the season will be evaluated by a protest committee set by the
President to determine eligibility to participate in All-Star
competition. A manager will have the right to appeal the fate of the
player’s participation in the next game or the next 2 games
(should it be the second suspension). This appeal must be in writing
within two hours of the completion of the game and presented to the
League Vice President, Executive Vice President or President.
31. If a manager or coach is thrown out of the game by an umpire,
there will be an automatic one game suspension (next game): if a
manager or coach is thrown out of a game for a second time in a
season, there will be an automatic two game suspension (next two
games). If a manager or coach is thrown out of a third game in one
season there will be an automatic suspension for the rest of the
season. Any manager or coach who gets thrown out of two games in one
season will not be allowed to manage or coach in the All-Stars. The
League Vice-President will have the authority to suspend managers or
coaches for abusive conduct toward umpires. A manager or coach will
have the right to appeal any suspension imposed on him/her by either
the Umpire or League Vice President concerning participation in the
next game or next two (2) games (should it be the second
suspension). This appeal must be in writing within 2 hours of the
completion of the game and presented to the League Vice-President ,
Executive Vice President or President.
32. The League Vice-President will have the right to suspend
players for abusive conduct toward managers, coaches, league
officials or umpires. The player and his/her parent(s) will have the
right to appeal this decision to the Executive Board in writing
within 24 hours of notification of the suspension.
33. The protest committee will consist of four members,
President, Executive Vice-President and League Vice-Presidents from
two leagues and two members of the Executive Board that will be
appointed by the President or Executive Vice-President.
34. Should two or more teams finish the regular season tied for
the championship with the exact same won/loss record, the tie will
be broken by; first head to head competition and second by a one
game play off between teams. Should there be three teams tied; a
lottery pick will be held to determine who gets the bye. Exception:
Any league that just has 1 division and finishes tied at the end of
the regular season will have a 1 game playoff for the championship.
The dates of these games will be set by the protest committee.
35. No manager may manage more than one team during the regular
season unless approved by the League Vice-Presidents of the leagues
involved, the Executive Vice-President and the President. He/she may coach another team with his/her first priority
being the team they manage.
ALL-STAR MANAGERS, COACHES AND PLAYERS WILL BE SELECTED IN THE
FOLLOWING METHOD
36. No one may manage more than one All-Star team.
37. The All-Star managers will be appointed
by the Executive Board prior to the All-Star selection. The
manager will select coaches from his/her league. Should there
not be enough qualified coaches to choose from, another coach will
be appointed by the League Vice-President and President.
ALL–STAR PLAYERS SHALL BE SELECTED AS FOLLOWS
38. A list of all eligible players in the league will be
presented at the time of All-Star selection. From this list, the
managers will select twenty-five (25) names. The twenty (20) names
(plus or minus 2 or 3) that receive the most votes will be presented
to the managers for the All-Star selection. From this list the
managers will select the All-Stars by secret ballot. The players
with unanimous votes will be All-Stars. The remaining players (of
the 20) will once again, after discussion, be voted upon. The
players with majority votes will be All-Stars. In the event there is
a tie for the final positions, those player’s names will be
submitted for another vote. The players with the majority vote will
be All-Stars. Should the vote remain a tie after this procedure the
manager and draft director will break the tie.
39. Dixie Minors and Youth Majors All-Star teams will consist of
12 players. Dixie Junior Boys and Boys All-Star teams will consist
of up to 13 players. Dixie Pre-Majors and Majors All-Star teams will
consist of up to 16 players.
40. Any manager of any league and the league Vice-President who
feel the All-Star selection was done unfairly may request that no
All-Star players be announced and request a special meeting with the
Executive Board. The request must be verbal during the meeting and
put in writing within two (2) hours after the All-Star selection
meeting. The Executive Board will, in turn, decide if any further
steps are to be taken.
41. No manager, coach or league official shall discuss All-Stars
with players before All-Star selection. Penalty could result in
he/she not being allowed to manage/coach, etc. the All-Star team for
the following season.
42. No manager, coach, team mother or any parent of a team player
may approach a sponsor for the purpose of requesting funds for
prizes, trophies, picnics, etc.
43. The Officers and the Board of Directors from time to time may
promulgate such rules and regulations as may be necessary to the
efficient operation of the operating league of the Association.
44. In addition to the foregoing rules, all rules established by
the Dixie Youth League or other organization of which the
Association may be a franchise, are considered in force.
45. Any rules and regulations not covered by these special rules
(reference the Official Dixie Youth and Dixie Boys/Majors Rule
Book).
SPECIAL RULES: A-LEAGUE (T-BALL)
1. The length of the games will be four (4) innings with one hour
15 minutes time limit.
2. All players will be on the field for defense and all players
will bat on offense every inning.
3. No score will be kept.
4. No league standing will be kept.
5. There will be no All-Star selection.
6. No official umpires are to be used. Defensive coaches will
call 1st, 2nd, and 3rd base plays. Offensive coaches will call home
plate, foul lines and tend the batting tee.
7. The last batter will be the last child eligible to bat
(without any one child batting more than once) during the offensive
portion of the inning. The offensive portion of the inning will end
with the execution of any legal baseball out being made or the ball
coming under control of any defensive player.
8. Bases will be 45 feet.
9. Players will play a set infield position. Outfielders will be
arranged around the outfield apart from each other.
10. When a player occupying an outfield position fields the
baseball and holds it under control, all play will stop. Base
runners will be awarded the base they are attempting.
11. No games will be forfeited. Teams will play with the numbers
of players they have available or the two teams may divide up the
total number of players available to even out sides for the game.
12. There will be a maximum number of twelve (12) players per
team.
13. No more than three (3) coaches per team may be on the field
at any given time; offense or defense.
14. The coach can be on the field anytime during the game.
15. The baseball used will be a R.I.F. ball.
16. The second half of the season the coaches will pitch to the
players, delivering three pitches, should the player not hit one of
three pitches the tee will be set in place for the player to hit
from.
SPECIAL RULES: AA-LEAGUE
1. The nine (9) run batter rule will be in effect.
2. When the ninth (9) batter comes to bat, the game situation
will be declared as follows; there will be 2 outs, regardless of the
number of actual outs, and the inning will end when the third out is
made or the ninth batter scores.
3. Every player must play three CONSECUTIVE defensive innings.
This is without regard to the number of players available to either
team. No substitute will re-enter the game unless for an injury
situation. If protested by the opposing manager the violation will
result a forfeit of the game. Exception: If the game ends by the 15
run slaughter rule.
4. Every team shall list every available player for that game in
that batting order. Every player will bat in rotation. Once the line
up is turned into the official scorekeeper, any player who shows up
late will be placed at the end of the batting order.
5. Players will be pitched to all year by a pitching machine
operated by a coach or manager to his own team, from a distance of no less
than 37 feet.
6. Each batter will receive up to 5 pitches per bat. If three (3)
strikes occur before 5 pitches, the batter is out. A foul ball will
not count as strike 3 or the 5th pitch.
7. Regular games will start at 6:00 PM and 7:45 PM weekdays and
there will be games played on Saturday. No inning may start after
the game has been under way one hour and thirty minutes.
8. After 5 complete innings of play, a 15 run slaughter rule will
be in effect.
9. Under no circumstance will any team have more than four (4)
adults allowed in the dugout or on the playing field.
10. Time-outs: time out will be called by the umpire when a) the
lead runner has stopped his momentum when advancing to the next base
b) in the umpires opinion the ball is in the infield and normal
baseball play has stopped c) the ball has reached the home plate
area (when a runner advances home) the catcher does not have to have
possession of the ball. Note: a fielder holding the ball while a
runner is advancing to the next base does not constitute time out.
SPECIAL RULES: AAA-LEAGUE (MINOR)
1. A nine (9)-batter rule will be in effect.
2. When the ninth batter comes to bat, game situation will be
declared as follows; there will be two outs, regardless of the
number of actual outs, and the inning will end when the third (3rd)
out is made or the ninth (9th) batter scores.
3. Free substitution (except pitchers) will be in effect.
4. Games on weekdays will start at 6:00 PM and 8:00 PM. No inning
may start after the game has been underway one hour and forty-five
minutes (1:45). Official scorekeeper will advise the umpire when
time is up and game is officially over. Note: See general rule 30.
5. No league age 9-year-old player may pitch more than three (3)
innings per game.
6. League age 10 years old – Reference pitching rule- Official
Rule Book with the following exception; any player who pitches in
four or more innings on Saturday shall not be eligible to pitch on
the following Monday. Any player who pitches in four or more innings
on Sunday shall not be eligible to pitch on the following Monday or
Tuesday.
7. 10 run slaughter rule will be in effect. After both teams have
batted four (4) times or in the case of the home team when it is
leading, three (3) times, pitchers shall only be charged for innings
pitched.
8. The infield fly rule will not be enforced.
9. Every player must play two complete defensive innings. If
protested by the opposing manager the penalty will result in a
forfeit of the game.
10. Every team shall list every player for that game in the
batting order; every player will bat in rotation. Once the line up
is turned into the official scorekeeper, any player who shows up
late will be placed at the end of the batting order.
11. No team will consist of more than thirteen (13) players. Any
player over the amount needed to fill the team will go on a first
come, first serve list and will be placed on any team that looses a
player. The Player Agent will handle this.
12. For a pitcher to intentionally walk a batter, he must deliver
four pitches called ball to the batter while the catcher is in the
catching position.
13. When the catcher controls the ball thrown from the pitcher a
runner on 3rd base cannot advance home. Exception; should
the catcher throw to second base to try and throw out an advancing
runner the ball becomes live and all runners can advance.
Note; All base runners can advance at their own risk on a past ball
by the catcher.