Tournament Rules

Tournament officials

The tournament is administered by a director with the assistance of a volunteer board of commissioners. These and other key officials are:

Bill Reuter, tournament commissioner
Adrian Shelley, tournament commissioner
Dave Hinnenkamp, tournament commissioner
Lou Casanova, tournament commissioner, Lancaster County Youth Baseball League
Laura Thompson, sports editor, LNP

A summary of the rules and pocket copy of the rules are available below.

Section 1 Team eligibility
1. The tournament is open to teams that participate in a Lancaster County league.

2. Each league must have at least four teams. Leagues with eight or more teams that play their regular season in divisions will be permitted to send the champion of each division of four or more teams.

3. A league or group of leagues that includes all of the teams in an age division in Lancaster County may jointly request an alternate method of determining its tournament qualifiers. Such organizations may seed an 8-team tournament for any age division with 20 or more teams, or a 4-team tournament for any division with fewer than 20 teams. Such alternate plan shall be provided for approval at the commissioners’ winter meeting.

4. Independent teams are not eligible for tournament participation. All-star teams are not eligible.

5. A league that did not participate in the tournament during the previous season may be required to qualify its teams through a pre-tournament round with participating leagues. Once a league advances one or more teams to the formal tournament it will be entitled to at least one spot in the quarterfinals.

1.6 Players must meet all league requirements and roster requirements of the next three articles.

1.7 Team rosters must list each player’s name, address and date of birth plus manager’s name, phone number and e-mail address. Roster size is unlimited, but championship awards may be reduced for teams with more than 18 players. Sponsorship provisions may apply to some awards.

1.8 Rosters become final on the date set by each participating league and must be submitted to the tournament director within seven days after this date. The roster submission date must be at least 15 days before the division’s first game, which means the tournament roster deadline must be at least 22 days before the division’s first game. Any team whose roster is not submitted by the deadline will be ineligible for the tournament. Special league rules allowing roster additions after the final roster date will be honored, but such additions must be submitted through the league. Emergency players are permitted if all roster information is provided through the league to the tournament director at least 24 hours before the division’s first game. Emergency players will be ineligible for tournament awards unless they appear in a game.

1.9 Deadlines: Midget-midget and junior midget rosters are final on June 1 and must be submitted by 11:59 p.m. on June 8. Midget rosters become final on July 3 and must be submitted by 11:59 p.m. on July 10. A league will be permitted to update a team’s roster according to approved league rules after these dates.

Section 2 Divisions
1. Age eligibility
a. Midget-midget — 12 years and under as of date set by participating leagues.
b. Junior midget — 14 years and under as of date set by participating leagues.
c. Midget — 17 years and under as of date set by participating leagues.

2. Field dimensions
a. Midget-midget games will be contested on a field measuring 50 feet from home plate to the pitching rubber and 70 feet between bases.
b. Junior midget games will be contested on a field measuring 55 feet from home plate to the pitching rubber and 80 feet between bases.
c. Midget games will be contested on a field measuring 60 feet, 6 inches from home plate to the pitching rubber and 90 feet between bases.

3. Field ground rules will be the official playing rules for all levels of the tournament.

Section 3 Playing rules
All levels of the tournament shall be played under the published rules of the National Federation of State High School Associations with the following exceptions:

1-1-1 Midget-midget games will consist of six innings. This modification applies to all other sections listing game length, including 2-17-1.

1-2-1 The field shall meet the dimensions described in 2-2 above. Field ground rules will apply, and layouts that do not fully comply with the listed requirements — especially at the lower two levels — will be official.

1-2-4 Leagues may designate which dugout each team will occupy. Dugouts are limited to eligible rostered players in full uniform, team coaches and other official team personnel, such as a scorekeeper or batboy, as long as appropriate safety measures are taken.

1-3-2,3 Bats must meet the high school standards — 2 5/8-inch maximum diameter for nonwood, 2 3/4-inch maximum diameter for wood, 36-inch maximum length, with nonwood bats having a weight of no less than three ounces less than its length and labeled as meeting the BBCOR standard — with the following exceptions:

a. Midget-midget nonwood bats must be marked Little League or USABat approved.
b.Junior midget bats must be one piece of solid wood. (Illegal bats include but are not limited to composite, MetalWood, bamboo and laminated bats.)

1-4-1 Uniforms, including helmet, must represent the participating team. Midget-midget players may not wear metal spikes.

1-4-4 No restriction on logos on team uniforms as long as they are done in good taste.

1-5-12 The use of eye shade must be worn as a single, solid stroke under the eye. There shall be no numbers, words, logos, symbols or other detail located in the eye shade. The eye shade shall not extend below the cheek bone and extend no further than the width of the eye socket. Players having eye shade that does not meet the standard are to remove it or comply with the PIAA interpretation before participation in the game.

2-33-1 Courtesy runners adopted as presented under the suggested speed-up rules. In levels playing free substitution a courtesy runner may be anyone who has not been in the offensive lineup as a batter or runner. (This and all subsequent mention of the state association shall refer to the LNP Tournament Commissioners.)

3-1-3 Midget-midget and junior midget only: Free substitution will be permitted.
a. A player must always bat or run in the same spot in the batting order.
b. If a player has not batted and enters the game as a runner (other than a courtesy runner in 2-33-1), he may bat or run only in that spot in the order.
c. Any player associated with a particular spot in the batting order may bat when that turn comes up.
d. A fielder may enter or leave the game when the ball is dead and play any position at any time.
e. No fielder may re-enter until a batter completes his turn at bat or an out is recorded and as provided in Rule 3-1-2 in regard to pitchers.

3-1-4 Extra hitter is permitted at all levels.
a. Teams may bat 9 players or 10 players.
b. The lineup used to start the game must be used throughout.
c. Midget teams may play any 9 of their batters in the field.
d. Midget teams may use an extra hitter with or without a designated hitter in the lineup.

3-2-1 Coaches are not required to wear team uniforms, but they are encouraged to wear a team jersey or coach’s shirt and cap.

4-1-1 Tournament commissioners or other designated official shall determine whether the grounds are suitable for starting the game.

4-1-3 The team with the better record in the tournament will be the home team. If the teams have identical records, the higher-seeded team will be home. If seedings have not been determined, a commission representative shall toss a coin to determine the home team. Each team must provide its batting order on the official tournament lineup card.

4-2-2 A 10-run rule will apply after 5 innings for Midget and Junior Midget and after 4 innings for Midget-Midget. A 15-run rule will apply after 3 innings at all levels.

4-2-4 A game that does not meet the requirements in 4-2-3 will be suspended and resumed from the point of interruption. If a game is called while an inning beyond the fifth is in progress, the game becomes a suspended game in each of the following situations:

a. The score is tied.
b. The visiting team has scored one or more runs to take the lead and the home team has not retaken the lead.

When a game is called, all runs, pitches and other individual and team actions up to the moment the game ends will count.

4-5-1 Per NFHS rules, protests are not permitted. All rules issues must be settled on the field by the umpires.

6-1-6 PIAA pitching restrictions will apply unless a league is permitted to enforce its own limits.
76-105 pitches thrown requires 3 calendar days of rest.
51-75 pitches thrown requires 2 calendar days of rest.
26-50 pitches thrown requires 1 calendar day of rest.
1-25 pitches thrown no rest is required.
If a pitcher reaches the maximum pitch count permitted in a calendar day during an at bat, that pitcher will be permitted to continue to pitch to that batter, or any substitute for that batter, until such batter is put out or reaches first base, or until a third out has been made prior to the end of that at bat.
No pitcher may appear in more than two consecutive days of competition.
The maximum pitch limitation is 210 pitches for the tournament. If a pitcher is permitted to throw more than 105 pitches to complete an at-bat, that pitcher will be credited with 105 pitches for the appearance.
Scorekeepers are requested to frequently confer with one another to confirm pitch counts (no less than once per inning). If a discrepancy occurs between the visiting and home pitch counts that cannot be resolved, the scorebook of the home team shall be the official book.

A league may be permitted to enforce its pitching restriction with regard to pitch or inning count if it provides its rule and how it will enforce it at least 30 days before the first game of the division.

Lancaster County Youth Baseball League will enforce its pitching restrictions in the Midget-Midget and Junior Midget tournaments. LCYBL will attempt to have a volunteer to track and interpret the pitching rule at each game. If not present, teams will confirm their counts between innings, but in a discrepency, the home team count will be official. Commissioners’ only responsibility will be to order a pitcher removed if informed the pitch limit has been reached. Mandated days of rest will be monitored by the league. Any issues should be presented to the league.

Section 4 Game Management
1. Any postponed or suspended game will be rescheduled by the tournament commissioners on the first available date.

2. A player, coach or other team personnel ejected for misconduct will be ineligible to participate in the next game.

3. The league may specify rules for qualifier games.

4. Tournament commissioners shall have authority to rule on any subject not fully covered in tournament rules.