Rules review...Out of play and award of bases

Coaches,

The question comes up every weekend, what is out of play?... and the answers often differ. Unless your Umpire has a strong desire to do something different, if you extend the front fence of the dugout out to the outfield, any ball that crosses that imaginary, or if you take the time to paint it, actual line is out of play. If at all possible I recommend taking the time to paint it. Do your best to keep fans behind that line as well.

This will vary at every field you play at and should be covered in the pre-game conference with the umpire(s).

So what does that mean? Ball is thrown out of play, how many bases are awarded? That depends.

For the vast majority of plays at first base that will mean the batter/runner goes to second. To simplify, if it is the first throw by the infield then the runners get two bases from the time of the pitch. If it is not the first throw, then they get two bases from the time of the throw. There are other scenarios involving pick-offs but that is not pertinent for Little League since we have no leads.

To be clear - By far the most common occurrence is the overthrow on a play at first. In this case the runner gets two bases from the time of the pitch, which means they go to second base.

Some examples to illustrate the many other occasions;

Scenario #1:* 

Runner on 1^st on a hit and run, batter hits a fly ball that is caught by the right fielder (batter/runner is out), as the base runner is almost at 2^nd ,right fielder throws wildly out of play in trying to double the runner off of 1^st base. Where does the runner end up?  

Answer - The runner is awarded 3^rd base.  But in going to 3^rd on this dead ball, he must first re-tag 1^st base (since a fly ball was caught), and then touch 2^nd on the way to 3^rd.

Scenario #2:*

Runner on 1^st:  Ground ball to SS, throws to 2^nd base for 1 out and relay throw to 1^st goes out of play.Where does the batter/runner end up? 

  

Answer - Since it’s not the first throw by an infielder, it’s 2 bases from time of throw.  If the batter was already on 1^st by the time the 2^nd baseman threw the ball (not likely), he would be awarded 3^rd base, otherwise he gets 2^nd base as at the time of the throw he had not legally occupied 1^st base yet.

Scenario #3:*

Runner on 1^st: Bunt slowly to the 3^rd baseman and he throws the ball wildly past 1^st base.  The runner on 1^st had already rounded 2^nd and was on the way to 3^rd base by the time the throw was made. Where does the runner end up?  

Answer - 3^rd base only.  2 bases from time of pitch, which had the runner at 1st base.

Many umpires operate under the mistaken impression that this is a judgement call - it is not. However, in the case of the 2nd throw by the defense, if the ump does not for sure know where the runner(common in single ump games) was at the time of the throw - some judgement does enter in, so be patient.

Umpire Judgement on award of bases is involved in interference calls - but that will be for another day.

Lastly, the Umpire is always right and teach your kids to back up all throws.

*Scenarios and examples borrowed liberally from various sources on the interweb.

Getting the word out - Coaches letter to the parents

Some teams are already practicing but the bulk of our coaches will receive their rosters and begin to practice in the next week or so. The following are just a few things I have learned in the last few years about communicating with your team and your parents.

You will receive email addresses for all parents and this is by far the easiest method of communicating. Couple of important points however:

• If you are provided with an email address for each parent - send all messages to both parents until they tell you otherwise.
• Especially when announcing your first practice, asks the parent’s to confirm they have received your message and will be attending practice. If you have families that do not confirm receipt - please call them. You must establish your line of communication and confirm that all players remain committed to playing and can still practice on your given night. Players that decide not to play must be replaced.

Once you have the lines of communication established take the opportunity to communicate fully with your parents to start the season. This communication should include everything you might want to know as a parent, including; 

• ...the schedule for practices and games
• ...your practice plans
• ...your coaching philosophy
• ...what is important to you as a coach? 

Something I took from Coach Pat O'Rourke was to put this season starting message into an attachment to an email that parents can print and keep and I also print a few to bring to practice to handout.

What should definitely be in this message:

Expectations, such as;

• Be on time - talk about the importance of the structure of practice and warm-ups
• Come dressed to play baseball...baseball pants, hat and a cup.
• Behave like you are at school....respect coaches, teammates and umpires.
• Players should at least play catch between games and practices- Parents must encourage that.

Coaching Philosophy -  

• Will you strive to win or will you not emphasize winning at all - Be Honest 
• Will practices be very drill oriented or will you run a lot of scrimmages?
• Do you yell? Parents may want to know that.
• How do you want parents to support the team? Depending on your level of play that could include; 
• Snack/Drink Duty
• Helping with stations during practice
• Cheering, but not coaching, during games (Batting is hard enough without a half dozen different voices yelling "Elbows up") 

This might seem like a lot but I think over communicating is certainly preferable to under communicating. Get to know your parents and kids, let them get to know you and go from there.

Here is an example of the letter I used this year: http://bit.ly/YyFXYx

Good luck with your drafts!

-Paul Legere

Tryouts! Drafts! ....First Practice!

AA Workout Day 2011

The Spring season is coming up very quickly. These past two weekends we held Majors tryouts indoors in what will seem like relatively small groups of 20 or less players in four separate sessions. Beginning THIS weekend, we will hold outdoor tryouts with much larger groups..Are you ready?


In each of the next two weekends, we will conduct workout days for AA, AAA, and Tee Ball. All these kids will be placed on a team - nobody is left out. Each workout day players will be assessed by Managers & Coaches from other divisions in five categories; running, infield, outfield, throwing and hitting. Each players is rated 1-5 in  each category. In AAA, you will be provided with those assessments prior to team selections. In AA, these ratings will be used to assist the Player Agent and Commissioner in forming the teams. The Tee Ball players will observed and those teams will also be formed by the Player Agent and Commissioner.

As I said, AAA teams will be formed through a draft - just like Major League Baseball...sort of. 

Keep in mind, so many kids can only practice on certain nights that the draft is more an exercise in honoring all reasonable requests while creating parity amongst the teams. This is no easy task and your patience throughout the process is appreciated. 

You will have a few opportunities to actually select players so be prepared. Pitchers, Catchers, and First Basemen...make sure you have at least one of each of those! They are often interchangeable but can't play more than one position at a time so plan accordingly. As a coach, your goal should be that every kid can play every position but that will not be the case on day one. So make sure you have those critical parts to start off with.

Reminder: All League Rules, Policies and approved draft procedures are listed on the League website under the Boundaries/Rules Link.

AA Workout Day 2012

Next Post...okay, you have your roster, now what? How to connect with your families, communicate your practice schedule and plans and get them involved.