Rules

1. Official Team Rosters and the Player Waiver, Release of Liability and Indemnification Agreement Form are required to match name for name and will consist of a maximum of 18 players. Both forms must be turned into league by the specified date set by the RMSA Board of Directors (The Board). This year’s deadline date is May 1, 2008.

2. A player can play 3 nights a week, but may only play on 1 team per night.

3. For a player to be eligible to play in the City Tournament, a player can only choose 1 team to play with throughout the duration of the tournament. The player must also meet the requirement of playing in 3 completed league games with that chosen team. Forfeits do not count as a completed game.

4. A team wanting to add, remove or transfer a player on or off of its official team roster is allowed to petition the Board up until their eighth game of the season. A team is allowed a maximum of two player transactions per season. All transactions, which must meet or exceed satisfactory reasons and circumstances, will be thoroughly and strictly reviewed by the Board on a per-case basis and must receive the Board's full authorization and approval.

5. Tank tops are not allowed.

6. Players may wear sport-type shorts, sweatpants or baseball pants. No jeans, dress pants or cut-off shorts allowed.

7. Hats and/or visors are optional. However, if you wear a hat or visor, only baseball type hats are allowed and must be worn bill forward.

8. No metal spikes. Sneakers or molded cleats only.

9. Any jewelry deemed dangerous by the umpires must be removed (ex: rings, earrings and watches).

10. A team starting with 9 players can add a 10th player at the top of the next inning. The 10th player will bat 10th in the lineup.

11. There is no re-entry rule.

12. A team can use an Additional Hitter (AH) or Designated Hitter (DH), but not both in a game.

13. Pitchers arc will be a minimum of 6 feet and a maximum of 12 feet from the ground.

14. Intentional walks will be given verbally. You do not have to pitch to the batter.

15. Only one player can be run for during a game. Runner will be the last batted out of the inning being played. If no outs are recorded for the inning being played, then the runner will be the last batted out from the previous inning played.

16. A runner being put out must slide, or get out of the way of the play. No bowling over fielders will be allowed.

17. Any player bleeding must, stop the bleeding, cover the wound, and cover or clean uniform prior to returning to the game. If no substitute is available, a maximum of 10 minutes will be allowed to adhere to this rule.

18. Out of play areas will be from the fence to the light poles, after the light poles out of play will be the blacktop walking track. Trees on or along side the fields will be considered out of play. (Dead Ball).

19. When the batter has 2 strikes, they are allowed 1 foul ball; the 2nd foul ball with 2 strikes will constitute and out.

20. An appeal made to an umpire during game will be done in a calm manner by the team captain only.

21. Any league protest will be submitted to the league president within 24 hours of game completion. A $25 fee must accompany the protest. If you win the protest your $25 will be returned. If you lose, the league will keep the $25 fee.

22. Five full innings or 4 and ½ innings with the home team leading will constitute a complete game in case of bad weather.

23. Any game going less than 5 innings as stated in Rule # 22, will be replayed from the beginning with the score starting at 0-0.

24. A game will be terminated by the mercy rule at the completion of four (4) full innings if the difference in score is twenty (20) runs or more or five (5) full innings if the difference in score is fifteen (15) runs or more.

25. All games must start on time. Only the first set of games scheduled on both fields #1 and #2 will be allowed a 15 minute grace period. After the 15 minute grace period has past and a team is unable to field a minimum of 9 eligible players, the game is ruled officially a forfeit. All ensuing games must start on time unless the preceding game is delayed due to unexpected circumstances (i.e. extra innings, weather, injuries, etc…). In the event of any delays, the next game is to start immediately upon the conclusion of the preceding game.

26. Only in case of an injury or personal emergency can a team finish with 9 players, if they start with 10 players. If a team starts with 10 or 11 players and a player is ejected and no substitutes are available, that team will forfeit the game.

27. Any team using an ineligible player will forfeit all games in which that player participates.

28. A team forfeiting (2) league games will be eliminated from the league for the remainder of the season with no refund.

29. The home team scheduled for each game is required to keep score using the game’s official RMSA Score Sheet. Failure to comply with any of the following procedures: Legibly writing down both team lineups using a first initial and last name, recording every detail for each At Bat for every inning played, recording runs scored in the game’s official score box for every inning played and tallying the final score of the game will result in an official forfeit.

30. Any player ejected from a game (i.e.: swearing, excessive contact, fake tags, etc…) will automatically incur a mandatory (1) game suspension that becomes effective immediately. The ejection will be carried through to the following game played for the same team in the same league. The ejected player is required to pay a $20 reinstatement fee to the league prior to their next eligible game.

31. Any player who is ejected from a game and whose behavior is deemed “unsportsmanlike” or “detrimental” to the league can be suspended by The Board beyond the mandatory (1) game suspension described above in Rule #30. The Board, who reserves both the right and ultimate authority, can impose adding additional games, including games played for other teams throughout any RMSA league, to a player’s suspension at its discretion and will do so on a per-case basis. Any player who is officially suspended from any game(s) is required to pay the $20 reinstatement fee plus (+) an additional $10 for each game added to the suspension.

Unsportsmanlike or detrimental behavior by a player includes but is not limited to the following actions:

• A player physically assaults another RMSA league member, an umpire, fan, spectator, or anyone else that is not affiliated with the RMSA during league play.
• A player uses “altered” equipment to improve their performance in a game. In addition to being suspended, any player caught using altered equipment will be reported to Amateur Softball Association (ASA) and if warranted, to the local authorities.

32. No player shall be allowed to drink alcohol during a game. Anyone caught drinking during a game will be ejected. In accordance with City of Rome regulations, alcohol and tobacco are not permitted in or around the field of play. Use of these products on city property can result in expulsion from all city facilities and events.