The following rules are effective for the 2021 Memorial Day Classic held at and by Hamilton Baseball.  If you have any questions, please contact us directly at [email protected].

RULES

 

Tournament Check-in:

A representative from each team must report to the Tournament Check-In at the Hamilton Clubhouse to verify your team information before proceeding to your first game

. 

If you haven’t provided your Certificate of Insurance prior to check-in, your team will not be able to participate in the Tournament.

 

Format and Seeding

The tournament will consist of Pool Play games on Saturday from which seeding will be determined for a single elimination bracket play on Sunday. In the event of a Saturday rain out or partial rainout, then it will be at the tournament director’s discretion to seed teams for Sunday based on their registration date and payment date for that specific tournament. Seeding will be based on:

1. Record

2. Runs allowed

3. Head-to-head record

4. Runs scored

5. Least number of runs allowed in one game

6. Coin toss

 

All games will be seven innings, with the exception of 8U which will play six innings.

 

In all rounds of Pool Play & Seed Play games, except the championship game, no new inning will begin after 1 Hour 45 minutes. An inning is considered complete when the final out is recorded.  A game is considered complete after 3 innings.

 

A championship game will have no time limit. Game will play until maximum innings. If tied after innings (see chart below for age divisions) game will continue in extra innings until a winner. Umpire may call game for dark. If called for dark, scorer will use last completed inning. Game will not be resumed.

 

General: 

All teams are required to carry with them a copy of their official roster and a copy of their insurance.

The cutoff date for determining player ages is April 30th of the given season.

In the event of a player’s age challenge, play will halt and the manager of that player must present proof of age to the umpire. If a player is found to be ineligible, the player will be removed from the tournament and the team would forfeit all games that the ineligible player played in. In the event of an age challenge, the tournament director will be notified immediately. If a coach/manager questions the eligibility of a player or players, he may do so privately with a tournament representative. He/she will investigate and resolve eligibility questions as quickly as possible. Player eligibility protests must be addressed during the game or within 15 minutes following the game.

 

If there is an issue over an age of a player - please stop your game/and the time and ask that the tournament director be brought to your field to gain resolution. That is not an issue for the umpires to decide.


Participation includes B/C level teams; no tournament-only teams.

 

Rules

If not specified herein, all games will follow Hamilton Baseball Rules, but the Rules chart below will always supersede any Hamilton Rule. 14U will play by modified MLB rules.

Home/Visitor: 

Home team will be determined by coin flip for all seeding games where the umpire will determine which team has traveled the furthest and they will get to call the coin flip. Whichever team wins the coin flip will be able to choose to be Home or Away. Higher seeds will have choice for seed play games and championship games.

 

Bats: 
The 14U age division will use BBCOR (-3) standard bats only.
Bat rules for 8U, 10U, and 12U allow USA bats and/or USSSA 1.15 BPF bats.

A defensive coach may challenge the eligibility of a bat used in a play, after that play is finished and before the next pitch, by protest to the umpire. In the event of a bat challenge, play will halt and the manager of the offensive team must present the bat to the umpire.  If the bat is found to be ineligible, the bat will be removed from tournament play, and the previous play forfeited -- if the play ended before the defense made an out, the batter will receive an out, any base runners return to previous bases, and any runs scored forfeited. If the defense makes a double or triple play during the contested at bat, the defense will preserve any outs.

 

Rosters: 

Rosters will be limited to 15 players for 10U, 12U and 14U. The cutoff date for determining player ages is April 30th of the given season. 

 

Players could be asked to not participate at the discretion of the Tournament Director.

 

Lineups: 

Once the number of batters is determined, it must remain for the entire game.

 

An injury will result in an automatic out on the next at bat only (if a substitute is not available). A substitute is anyone not placed in the batting order. Once a substitution bats or runs for a player, the sub and the original starter are locked into that batting position and either one may bat or run in that position ONLY.

 

An ejection will result in an automatic out every at bat following the incident.

 

Defensive

Any player on the roster may play in any defensive position at any time, regardless of being in the batting order. This rule is made to allow all players to play. However, no one player in a game can assume more than one offensive position.

 

No limitations on substitutions.

 

A team may start with 8 defensive players.

 

Time delays: 

The umpire and tournament director reserve the right to eject any player, coach or fan for intentionally delaying a game and a forfeit may be enforced at the tournament director’s discretion. 

 

Umpires will be told to only allow 8 Pitches for New pitchers and 5 Pitches for returning pitchers to get warm between innings. 

 

Courtesy Runner:

Coaches are asked to use courtesy runners for Pitchers/Catchers with any number of outs to keep the time between innings to a minimum. Any courtesy runners must be a player that is not in the lineup if the team is not batting their entire lineup. If a team is batting their entire lineup, then the courtesy runner must be the last batted out.

 

Protests:

No protests on any judgment calls! Judgment calls are final. A coach may politely ask the umpire who made the call to clarify a rules interpretation. The umpires on the field will make a final decision on the field. The tournament director can clarify rules but the final decision will rest with the umpire.  All protests will require a $100 fee (cash only). If any protest is won, then the $100 will be returned to the protesting teams manager.

 

Scorebooks: 

The home team will be the official scorebook. The visiting team is strongly encouraged to maintain a scorebook as well.

 

Both teams are responsible for signing the score card.  It is the responsibility of the winning team to report the score to the Tournament Director within 15 minutes of the game’s conclusion.

 

Mercy Rule: 

15 runs after 3 Innings (2 1⁄2 if the Home team is ahead); 8 Runs after 4 innings (3 1⁄2 if home

team is ahead)

 

Pitching: 

No limitations (8U pitchers not more than two innings per game)

 

Second visit to the mound per inning will result in removal of pitcher (All Age Divisions). Once a pitcher is removed from the mound, they may re-enter and pitch after one batter (an inherited batter is considered one batter) is pitched to regardless of whether they left the field or not. We leave this discretion to the coach. Please keep in mind the health and career of the player and no game is as important as the player remaining healthy.

 

Collision Rule: 

All runners in all age divisions must slide or otherwise attempt to avoid a fielder who has possession of (or about to receive and not running to receive the ball) the ball and is waiting to make a tag. If the runner fails to do so and a collision (not just contact) occurs, the runner is out, the ball is dead and trailing runners may not advance. If in the judgment of the umpire the collision is intentional or flagrant, the offending player will be ejected from the game. If a runner does not slide and there is no collision and the umpire rules the runner safe, the runner is safe. However, a base runner may not leave his feet and hurdle or dive over a defensive player (unless the defensive player is lying down on the ground in which case the play is legal).

 

Head first slides are allowed back to a base (any age group) and when advancing to a base (14U only).

 

Ejections: 

Coaches and fans ejected from a game must exit the park immediately and not return for the rest of the tournament. 

 

Players ejected from a game may stay with their respective teams in the bleacher area (not bench) but may not participate in the rest of the game plus the next game. In the event this rule is not followed; the associate team will forfeit the rest of the tournament.

 

Start of Game: 

All teams are expected to be at the fields ready to play 30 Minutes before game time. Please be

prepared to start games early if the field and umpire are ready to play. Teams may start the game with 8 players, but an out will be taken in the 9th spot. Players arriving late may be added to the bottom of the lineup, but only if that team has not batted all the way through their lineup yet.

 

Additional Notes

1. The champion & runner-up will each receive a team trophy.

2. Baseballs will be provided for each game but must be returned to the umpire and Game Marshal at the conclusion of the game. We will provide up to 3 new balls for each game, and it is the responsibility of the teams to retrieve the foul balls or provide additional balls once the three have been provided. Home Run Balls may be kept if the player replaces the ball with an equal equivalent approved game ball, at the discretion of the Game Marshal. 

3. Hamilton Baseball assumes the publication rights to photographs or videos of any player, coach, volunteer, or fan participating in or attending the tournament, without compensation.

4. In the event of weather we may have to modify the tournament games times, lengths, and 

schedule. We will try to announce weather delays at least 1 hours before official game start times. E-Mails will be sent to the Head Coaches and alternate emails that were provided at Registration.

 

Cancellation Policy

1. A team may withdraw by 5 p.m. Fri 05/07/21; a $100 processing fee will be deducted from the team's refund. If a team withdraws after that date and time, no refund will be issued. 2. If the entire tournament is canceled ahead of Friday, 05/28/21, a full refund will be issued. (If Hamilton Baseball cancels the tournament altogether, the decision will be announced by noon, Friday, 05/28/21.) 3. If games are canceled Saturday and/or Sunday due to weather, partial refunds may be issued as follows: If one game is played, 50% refund; if two games are played, no refund will be issued. A game is "played" if the game begins; the rule for number of innings completed to record a score does not apply under this Cancellation Policy. (Game cancellation announcements due to weather will be issued two hours prior to the start time of each game, at the discretion of Hamilton Baseball.)

 

RULES SUMMARY