ROOKIE LEAGUE

Overview
This is an instructional level of baseball. For many of your players, this is their first time playing or possibly interacting with the game on any level. Some of your players may be more advanced. The most important thing for the kids to learn is that playing baseball is fun. It is up to the coaches to decide how the game should be played. The level of game play should be addressed by the coaches before the start of the game. These rules may be modified at any time during the season to accommodate the learning of the players.

Practices

• Practices are scheduled by the coaches. School diamonds tend to be best choices, as the park diamonds are usually being used by Little League Majors and Minors. Rookie League plays games on Tuesdays and Thursdays, so those nights should be avoided if possible. Most of the school diamonds will be in use on Monday throughThursday evenings. It is suggested 2 practices prior to the season to get to know the
   kids and parents. Since this is an instructional league, there is no need to practice during the season, but you are certainly welcome to do that. One suggestion is to arrive one hour prior to the game to work in a practice.
• Practices may be reserved and secured on the wausaubaseball.com website via the Team Wall. You may reference the master schedule on the home page. Please note, the website will allow conflicting schedules, please be sure there are no conflicts announced while reserving your diamond. Field Preparation
• Coaches for both the home team and visiting team will be responsible for dressing the diamond before and after the game. All games will have chalked batter’s box for left and right handed batters. Chalk lines will be placed on both first and third base lines and run to the grass. After the game, the field must be raked by filling in all holes and ruts.
• The pitching mound will present a 10 feet wide circle around the rubber to represent the pitcher’s mound. The player playing the pitcher will stay within the circle and receive the ball by the players to stop base runner advancement.
• Please be sure to rake the base areas, the plate area and the pitcher’s mound area after your games. A parent should be able to help with that task. It only takes a minute or two and keeps the field safer for play.

Offense

• Coaches will form a batting line-up.
• The batters will maintain a presence in the batter’s box unless instructed by the coach.
• The batter will receive 5 pitches; three pitches with swinging, no-contact, strikes. A foul ball on the third strike will be treated as a foul ball and the batter will get another pitch.
• Coaches will call balls and strikes.
• Helmets must be worn by all base runners, hitters and the ‘on deck’ hitter. Having a parent get the next hitter ready for you will speed the game.

Defense

• The provided Blue Flame pitching machine will be used. Coach pitch may be substituted if the machine is not working. No tee’s will be used.
• All players take field on defense; however, if the team roster exceeds 10 players coaches may elect to hold one player on the bench. It is important that each benched player be cycled into the defensive lineup after 1 inning. It is recommend keeping a lineup where you move each player one position each inning to familiarize the players with the different positions on the field. For example, player at top of order hits first and plays position 1 (pitcher) for first inning. Second inning he/she plays position 2 (catcher). Third inning he/she plays position 3 (1st base), etc. Start the next game by continuing to move the players around the field (the player who was in position 3 at the end of the last game starts in position 4 in the next game).
• The catcher must wear the provided catchers gear with a nut cup. The catcher will wear the provided catcher’s mitt (highly suggested). Catchers are positioned in the normal catcher’s box and will attempt to catch all pitched balls. The catcher will throw the ball back to the player at the pitcher’s mound or the coach.
• Infielders will play at their respective positions. Outfielders will play about 30 feet behind the infielders. Pitcher will be positioned near the pitcher’s plate (rubber).
• As stated in Field Preparation, the pitching mound will present a 10 feet wide circle around the rubber to represent the pitcher’s mound. The player playing the pitcher will stay within the circle and receive the ball by the players to stop base runner advancement.
• Fielders should be encouraged to attempt to throw runners out at first base, or other base being played by the runner. The goal is to teach the fielders to not throw the ball around allowing runners to advance to additional bases; this is commonly called a “circus show”.
• Once a ball is hit into play, the fielders may throw the ball to the pitcher to stop all base progress. If a runner is past the half way point of base progress, it is up to the coaches to decide if the runner advances or is sent back to the start base once the pitcher receives the ball.
• DO NOT MOVE FIELDERS CLOSER TO HITTER FOR SAFETY REASONS!!! Game Make-up
• There are no ‘forfeits’. If a team has too few players to field a complete team, play with however many players are present.
• Make up games are not required, however, rainout or re-scheduled games should be scheduled through the player agent or Vice President of Baseball. Scheduling through the player agent and VP avoids multiple games being scheduled at the same time on the same field and website constraints do not allow coaches to reschedule already scheduled games.

General Rules, Suggestions, and Information

• No inning may start after 75 minutes of playing time has elapsed. If there is no game after your game, you may play one more inning. Children of this age typically have short attention spans, and after an hour or so start to tune out. It’s best not to get to that point.
• Post-game snacks are common, but not mandatory. If you’d like to have a snack for the players after the game, you can make a schedule or better yet, find a parent to coordinate that for you. A snack schedule is available on your website Team Wall.
• You’ll maybe get a player that doesn’t want to take the field or hit in an inning. Try to encourage them, but don’t force them. Players at this age get tired, feel sick, whatever. I don’t see any reason to push them too hard.
• There should be a porta-pottie at the field. If there is vandalism or the porta-pottie is missing, please inform the league.
• If there is any equipment missing from the sheds, please inform the league
• Your schedules and rosters should be available on the website.
• Please properly stow equipment and lock the shed after the game. Equipment may be stolen as a result of not locking the shed.