Petaluma National Little League

Spring 2019

AA League

Local Rules

The rules for the AA League will follow the Little League Green Book except as modified below (coaches and managers are expected to know the Little League Green Book):

SECTION I: FORCE AND EFFECT

A.  The Local Rules govern the play & conduct of Petaluma National Little League, also referred to as PNLL or “The League.” The Local Rules are referred to as “By-Laws,” serve in accordance with the Rules and Regulations of Little League Baseball, Inc.

B.  The Local Rules must NOT alter, supersede with any published Little League Baseball Rules, Regulations, Policies or Principles.   

C.  Any rule shall NOT remove or replace authority granted to certain persons by the Little League Baseball Rules and Regulations.

D. The League shall be governed by the Board of Directors, elected from the general      membership, consisting of volunteer personnel.

E.  The Board of Directors reserves the right to make changes and /or exceptions to the local rules by normal Board Meeting quorum and major vote.

F.  The Local Rules shall be distributed and/or be available to any party required to implement and uphold the policies or directives (i.e. managers, coaches, umpires, player agent(s), Board of Directors, etc.).

G.  The League holds its Players, Managers, Coaches, Officials, Family Members and Fans to the highest standards of good sportsmanship, fair play, civility, appropriate behavior, appropriate dress and respect for others.  

SECTION II: VOLUNTEERS

A.   As a condition of service to the League, all Managers, Coaches, Board of Directors and any other persons, volunteers, or hired workers, who provide regular service to the League and/or have repetitive access to, or contact with players or teams and must complete and submit an official “Little League Volunteer Application” to the President of the League. Annual background screenings must be completed prior to the applicant assuming his/her duties for the current season.  Refusal to annually submit a fully completed “Little League Volunteer Application” will result in immediate dismissal of the person(s) from the League.  

B.   Volunteerism: Little League is a volunteer run organization.  Each family wishing to participate in this League shall be expected to embrace this concept.  A parent or guardian for each child shall volunteer to work the required number of hours determined by the League.

1. All persons working in the concession stand must be at least 14 years of age.

2. During concession stand operating hours, the only individuals, aside from PNLL Board Members and Little League District Officials, to be in the concession stand are those individuals scheduled to fill a concession stand shift.  

     C.  Field Duties: The Managers and Coaches of the Home team will prepare the field for   play. The visiting manager will lock the storage container at the conclusion of the last game of the day, and after raking the field, and securing all League equipment in the dugouts.  The visiting manager will also ensure the field/facilities are secure before leaving the area. Each team is responsible for emptying trash from their respective dugouts.

    D. Scorekeeping: The AA Minor Division does keep score for the regular season and the playoffs, score will be kept on the electronic scoreboard.  The home team will be responsible for providing an official scorekeeper.

SECTION III: REGISTRATION AND PLAYER EVALUATIONS – WILL BE CONDUCTED BASED ON GUIDELINES FROM OPERATING MANUAL AND RULE BOOK

A.   Player registration for the PNLL season shall begin on-line in December. Check website for dates and information.      

B.  All player candidates (League Age 8 – 16) shall participate in PNLL’s sanctioned player evaluation (tryouts) activities as determined by the League.   

C.  Any player candidate who fails to attend 50% of player evaluations (tryouts) forfeits League eligibility unless an excuse is presented which is accepted by a majority of the Board of Directors.   

D.  Once a player registers with PNLL and has completed tryouts, the league reserves the right to retain all submitted fees, forms and materials.  No refunds will be issued after said player completes player evaluations.

SECTION IV: PLAYER SELECTION – WILL BE BASED ON LITTLE LEAGUE GREEN BOOK

A.  The number of teams at each level shall be determined by the Board of Directors immediately following registration dates.   

B.  Level of Play: A player candidate’s League Age and the player draft will determine a child’s level of play.  The levels of play and corresponding League Age are as follows

C.  Little League Minor Division (AA): All Players 8 – 10 years of age.  Any player 8 years of age drafted onto a team.  All players 9 and 10 years of age not drafted into Little League Minors (AAA).

SECTION V: GENERAL GAME RULES:   

1. Game Status:  Prior to game time, a presiding Board Member, Vice President of the Division, Safety Officer, or any member of the Executive Board may call games for safety and/or weather reasons.  Games shall be rescheduled to continue per Little League rules. Once the game has begun the Board Member on Duty (BMOD) will be responsible for making decisions regarding weather and safety with regards to the minor division field.

2. Missed Games: A Player in the Little League Division that misses six (6) consecutive regular season games for any reason shall be removed from the roster of his or her current team.  The Manager, through the Player Agent, shall fill that spot within three (3) days. No roster spots will be filled after two (2) weeks before the last regular season game.

3. The playing rules of Little League Baseball, Inc. and these Local Rules will govern play in all PNLL games. Particular attention shall be paid to the rules of minimum playing time (see Regulation IV (i) in the Little League Rule Book) and pitcher eligibility (see Regulation VI in the Little League Rule Book). PNLL will strictly enforce the rules of the game and any violation should be reported immediately to the Umpire-in-Chief at the game involved and the responsible Division Vice President.

4. Make-ups: Incomplete or postponed games during the regular season will be rescheduled by the Division VP prior to the end regular season play and reported to the Board.  Makeup games will be played on the first available day following postponed game. No make-up game will be played within four (4) days prior to any League Championship Playoff, unless the game is required to determine the Playoff participants. If circumstances prevent rescheduling of such a game, the Division VP may cancel the game with the approval of the Executive Committee

SECTION VI: LITTLE LEAGUE 8-10 YEAR OLD MINOR DIVISION (AA) SPECIAL RULES

A.  Goal: The primary goal of this Division is the development of baseball skills in all   Players.

B.  Playing Time: No Player will remain out of the defensive line-up for two (2) consecutive innings.  Managers and Coaches shall rotate defensive Players.

C.  Batting Order: All Players present at the start of a game shall be listed on their team’s batting order and shall bat in that order throughout the game, whether or not they are playing in the field during any particular inning. The batting order will be established at the beginning of the season, and will not be changed during the course of the year. The batter who is “on deck” for the last out of the game, will be the first batter of the following game. This will be considered a “True Continuous Batting Order”.

D.  Pitching: During the first half of the regular season a pitching machine will be used for the first three (3) innings of each game.  Players will pitch the remaining innings of the game. The pitching machine may be used for less innings in a game based on mutual agreement by participating managers prior to the start of the game.  An adult member of the coaching staff of the team on defense will run the pitching machine. Players will pitch all innings of the game during the second half of the season and in the playoffs (although the pitching machine may be used for one (1) or more innings in a game (does not apply to playoffs) based on mutual agreement by participating managers prior to the start of the game.  

E.  Scoring: During all innings of a game a team is limited to scoring five runs per inning. If an out of the park home run is hit, all runners on base, plus the batter will be allowed to score and the batting team is allowed to finish the play, but a maximum of 5 runs will be recorded. Minors divisions adheres to the (10) Run Rule.

F.  Time Limits: All games, regardless of day of the week, are subject to a “hard stop” at 1 hour 50 minutes.  A clock will be provided by PNLL and monitored by the respective Managers. No exceptions.

G.  Base Stealing: A Player may only steal one (1) base on a pitch that is fielded cleanly by the catcher.  A Player may not steal on a passed ball, wild pitch or throw from the catcher to the pitcher at any time during the game.  A Player may only steal one (1) base per attempt. A Player may never steal home. A Even though score is not kept, player shall not steal any base when their team is ahead by more than six (6) runs.