January 2001

 Letter from the Commissioner

Hank Weinstein

WOW! Can you believe it? It’s that time of the year already, with the rain delays and re-schedules of the 2000 seasons (spring and fall), it seems as if we just finished league play. Ouch, someone just thumped me on the head, oh: that’s right, we just did. Our first Fall Tournament concluded December 10^th and what a success, with congratulations going to Larry Goldstein and his team, Fall Champs and Bryan Roth’s team Runner-up Champs. Not to forget, for the first time in League history we had Co-Champs for the spring league 2000, congratulations to Mark Rubin and the Reds, Eddie Tann and the Cardinals.

What a year it was, with record amounts of rain forcing cancellations and rescheduling of games (six weeks, half the season) and then the same for post-season play. In spite of all this rain we were still able to play a 24 game schedule and complete almost all post season play (except league championship game).

This season we are going to try to shoot for 16 teams, dependant on player participation, with a 26 game regular season schedule (weather permitting). Therefore, I’m asking each of you to copy your application and get it to a friend, and then get your application in to us as quickly as possible.

As in the past several years, we will play our games at Heritage Farms Softball Complex. In addition to the original five fields, The City of Plano has just added four new fields, allowing us to play all our games back to back (no split schedules). For you long ball hitters, three of the four fields, fences are only 275 feet from home plate. Don’t start licking your chops just yet; all face to the south (wind in your face at the plate) and all the outfield fences, the height of each fence is 14 feet. Good luck to all you long-ball hitters!

The schedule for the 2001 season will play 26 games for the regular season (weather permitting) and conclude with a post-season playoff and the All-Star game. Length of all games for regular season and post-season play will be 60 minutes or 7 innings with the exception of the division championship games and League championship games which will each be 7 innings. In addition to the new fields, The City of Plano has covered the concession area and added a playground area for the kids.

All of last spring’s first-time players as well as those who have played in this league awhile would agree there’s no league like this one. It keeps getting better and stronger every year, and that’s because of players inviting new players to play with us. I say thanks and keep it up. This year we’re shooting for 16 teams so the challenge is on. I’m asking each of you to ask one friend that might like to play to join our league. And to players’s who have taken a year or two off, come back and enjoy the fun, camaraderie, and brotherhood you once experienced.

As always, a draft will be held to form our teams prior to the beginning of the season. When drafted, your captain will contact you and inform you of your team name and schedule of games. To the new players who don’t get drafted, your name will be placed on the league’s permanent sub list. Don’t be discouraged, you will get plenty of playing time and possibly could be placed with a team permanently before season ends. If you do not get placed with a team permanently, your remaining balance can be either refunded or credited to a future season. If you are not part of the final draft list, you may request a full refund and not be part of the 2001 spring season.

To all new players - at the tryouts, captains will rank you based off your performance of hitting and throwing. All players then go into the draft based on their rating to establish parity among the teams. At the end of regular season, each division will have a double-elimination tournament to decide the division champ with each division champ playing in a best two-out-of-three series for the league championship. The playoff format will be a World Series format.

I would like to say something regarding our All-Star weekend. Players are selected from each division by captains by position based on participation and performance (stats) to play in a nine-inning All-Star game. It’s a unique weekend as players are recognized for their performance during the season. Annual League awards are handed out at this time as well. There is also an Old-Timers game, and our League and Family Picnic (last game of spring season).

Our League growth continues because our main focus remains on having a fun, competitive environment, and giving players of varying age, ability, and varying talent, the chance to compete on Sunday morning. We will not lose our focus and will continue on this path into the year 2001 and beyond.

Hank Weinstein Henry Sack

Commissioner Mail List & Applications

972-390-2105 [email protected]

The Temple Shalom Brotherhood Softball League has one overriding objective -- to provide a fun place for the players and their families to congregate. This objective is the responsibility of each member of the League. This theme influences every rule adopted by the League organizers. The League will promote parity, therefore insure competitiveness between each team, and make every effort to maintain statistical information on its players to further this goal. This information will be used to determine a player's ranking and to assist the League in recognizing teams and players for outstanding achievement.

The Temple Shalom Softball League conforms to ASA and City of Plano rules. However, some rules may have been amended (altered) as outlined in this document to promote parity, safety, and brotherhood of our league. Each player is given a copy of these amended rules with the application so players will understand and abide by then and/or offer recommendations to enhance these rules.

Our League is composed of players who each enjoy playing softball but who are of varying abilities. Our different levels of play are not meant to divide, but to pull us together through the spirit of teamwork and camaraderie. This is the essence of brotherhood and this League.

A. Teams shall be named after Major League Baseball teams. There will be two divisions with 7 or 8 teams to a division (dependant on player participation), and 13 players to a team.

B. Slow pitch, arc rules will be identical to ASA or City of Plano league rules.

C. Each at bat will begin with a one ball, one strike count. Batters will be allowed one (1) third strike foul.

D. No multi-walled bats will be allowed in League play. Use of this type of bat will result as an automatic out, if the player continues to use again, the player will be ejected from the game. The ejection rule will be in effect. Use only official approved softball bat as stated on the bat.

E. Stealing, bunting, and metal spikes are prohibited in League play.

H. Ten players can field; all players (13) present must bat. At game time a team(s) must have a minimun of eight players to start play. Anytime a team roster falls below eight players prior or during a game, the game becomes a forfeit. Less than 10 players is not an automatic out in the lineup unless a player has been ejected during the game.

I. No refunds once the draft is completed and a player has been permanently placed on a team roster.

J. Game time is forfeit time. Adequate time will be given for changing fields between games in order to make out lineups.

K. Each Captain in his sole discretion sets the line-up and positions for each player.

L. Rules are subject to change prior to the start of the season. Captains are responsible to convey any rule changes to each player in detail.

M. Minimum age for participation is 21. This is a male-only league.

N. Everything will be done to ensure a 26 game regular season plus post season playoffs. However, some games may be canceled due to weather and/or schedule changes.

A. All league and playoff games will be seven (7) innings or 60 minutes except Division Championship games and League Championship games, these games will be seven (7) innings.

B. In the event of a tie at the end of regulation play, the rules for extra innings will apply.

C. If the game is tied after regulation play, seven (7) innings or 60 minutes, all innings following regulation play, batters will approach the plate with a 3 ball, 2 strike, 1 foul count (batter to receive one pitch). This rule applies throughout the regular season and playoffs.

A. If a team has 10 or more players and has batted through its line-up, and the first batter in the line-up has seen the first pitch of his second at-bat, the team's roster is frozen and no player(s) can be added to the line up for that game. (Late arrivals will need to wait until the next game).

B. If a player arrives after the start of a game, but before the first batter has seen the first pitch of his second at-bat, the player can be placed anywhere in the line-up where a player has not yet had an at bat.

C. If a team has less than 10 players, any late-arriving player(s) can be added at any time to bring the roster to 9 or 10 players. The late arriving player(s) can be placed anywhere in the line-up where a player has not yet had an at bat. If all players have batted, the late-arriving player must hit last in the line-up.

D. If a team has started a game with only 10 players and a player must leave during the game for any reason, and rule IV–A has been in effect for a late player(s) or later arriving players(s), the late arriving player(s) can not enter the game for the player who has left the game. The team must play with 9 players or less for the duration of the game.

A. Every player on a team is required to play in the field no less than one-half (rounded down) of the innings played in a game. A table of required innings is as follows:

Length of Game (in innings) Players Minimum Participation (in innings)

9 4

8 4

7 3

6 3

5 2

B. It is the responsibility of each Captain to place his players into the field for the minimum amount of innings. It is also the responsibility of each player to notify the Captain when it appears he may not meet the participation minimum.

C. Captains must notify one another during the game if a player will not return to the game due to an injury or other reason.

D. If a player is injured during a game, it is his responsibility to remove himself from the game permanently to avoid further injury.

E. A player who is removed during a game due to injury or other reason, except an ejection will not have his at bat counted as an out in the lineup. However, if a team is reduced to seven players for any reason, the game is a forfeit.

F. This league will exercise a free player substitution (alternate player’s and position) rule without penalty.

A. The Commissioner will appoint a Tryout Chairman responsible to coordinate with the new players who are trying out prior to start of league play, schedule of tryouts, notify captains of tryouts, provide a list of players and rating sheet, collect and collate the ratings, and then report the results to Commission, V. Commissioner, and all Captains prior to the draft.

B. All new players to the League must participate in a tryout and be rated in order to play in the League. They must have completed an application and submitted their participation fee (if applicable) prior to tryouts. Previous players who have not played in the last three (3) spring seasons, must also tryout to be re-evaluated. Players who played in the prior Fall season, but not the Spring season, will need to participate in the tryouts to be rated, but will have priority of joining the league over new players.

C. There must be a minimum of three (3) captains present at all tryouts to rate players.

D. During regular season league play, tryouts are to be coordinated through and conducted by the sub chairman (responsible for application) with either the Commissioner or V. Commissioner in attendance and if possible 3 captains for rating a player(s).

E. Captains will be responsible for completing the player evaluation sheets and stats at the end of the season, and forwarding these stats to the league commissioner.

B. When a pinch runner is needed, the opposing Captain may designate, in his sole discretion, the pinch runner from a list of the last three (3) batters, who are not on base and/or have not been designated as needing pinch runners for themselves. Should the injury occur prior to having three (3) batters who are eligible, the Captain of the injured player may select all additional players from his roster so long as the players are situated in the lineup so that they are incapable of needing to be pinch run for themselves. Any player who is eighth (8) or later in the lineup can then be chosen by the opposing Captain as a suitable replacement. If the selected pinch runner refuses to run, it will result in an out.

E. Due to injury or physical liabilities, a team can designate no more than 3 players who cannot serve as pinch runners.

F. If the spirit in which the pinch run rule is misused for anything other its intent, the penalty will be forfeit of game(s).

A. Only Captains are allowed to contest or protest calls by the umpires. Any players who violate this rule may be ejected from the game at the umpire’s discretion.

B. Foul language and unsportsmanlike conduct will not be tolerated (e.g., abuse of a bat, etc.)

C. If a player is ejected from the game, he will automatically serve an immediate one (1) game suspension (game suspended in plus next scheduled game). If the ejection occurred in the second game of the double header, the one game suspension will carry over to next week’s scheduled first game. Should the player be suspended in the last game of the season then his one game suspension will carry in to the first game of the playoffs. An ejected player's lineup position, in the game from which he was ejected, will be an automatic out for the remainder of that game.

D. A suspended player's field position can be replaced provided there are more than 10 players present.

E. If a teams team's roster is reduced to seven (7) players due to his ejection, the game is forfeited.

F. A committee made up by the Commissioner, Vice-Commissioner, suspended player’s team Captain, opposing Captain, and immediate past commissioner will discuss to determine if a one-game suspension is sufficient or not. The league’s Commissioner will notify the suspended player with a final decision on the suspension.

G. An umpire's authority includes, but is not limited to the right to, eject a player for unsportsmanlike conduct: abusive language,unnecessary roughness, fake tags, etc.

C. If a player is injured, or has an excused absence, and will miss more than four (4) consecutive regular season games, he must be temporarily replaced with a player from the league’s sub list of equal rating. This substitution must be made on the first week of the player’s absence. Once the player does return the substitute is put back on the sub list.

D. Any player that has been dropped from their team’s roster and replaced permanently by a sub for the balance of the season will be placed on the sub list and no refund.

A. All subs must be approved by the sub-committee chairman or in his absence, Commissioner or V. Commissioner prior to contacting a player to play.

B. Any player(s) that has been ejected from a game and is serving a one game suspension may not be subbed for or use in the average to gain any sub(s).

C. Any team that has eight (8) players or less, must find subs to bring your team up to ten (10) players. The subs selected will either be a direct replacement for the missing players based on the substitute's rating, or a Captain may choose subs based on the average ranking of the players missing, again to bring your team to ten (10) players. If a sub can not be found at equal rating, the Captain must choose a player from up to two lower ratings before going to a higher rating.

D. To be chosen as a substitute, a player must either be on the active sub list, have been rated during a new player tryout, or have played in the League in the last three (3) years, and have completed the application prior to play.

E. The sub-chairman's team must have their sub(s) approved by the League Commissioner or Vice-Commissioner prior to next scheduled game(s).

F. Captains are to contact their sub choices via phone or email, not at the fields prior to game time or during a game. No bystander at the ballpark can be used as a last minute replacement. The exception to this rule is, if prior to game time a Captain is short of ten (10) players, and new players have tried out prior to game times and officially been rated, a new player may be placed on a team short of players. Provided the sub rule criteria have been met.

G. As always to promote parity and fairness in this league, if the sub rule has been used unfairly by a Captain to gain advantage, violation of this rule will automatically, and retroactively, forfeit any game(s) in which a sub(s) has played or should have played.

H. Any sub that has been placed with a team cannot play for another team until the sub has been placed back on the sub list

I. Any sub that has been placed with a team temporarily throughout post season play, if the team that the sub is playing on has been eliminated from post season play, may then sub for another team.

J. Any player that has been drafted and is on a team’s roster permanently, can not sub at anytime for another team, including post season playoffs. This also includes subs that have replaced a player during regular season play on a permanent basis.

A. The playoffs for the 2001 season will be a World Series format. The Top 4 teams (best records) from each division advance to the playoffs. The bottom remaining teams ( #5 thru #7 or #8 , subject to change dependent on number of teams for regular season play) of each division will play a mini single elimination tournament within the division). The team with best season record is home team. The two division winners from this "mini-playoff" will advance as the fifth (5th) seed in the divisional post season playoffs. The post-season divisional playoffs will be double-elimination, the division winner going to the Championship Series. The two (2) division winners will play a Best of 3 series to determine a League Champion. Home team in the League Championship series will be determined by best regular-season record throughout championship games.

B. In the event that the league championship games can not be played to determine league champs because of poor weather conditions or schedule changes, the team with the best regular season record will be league champs .If both teams have identical regular season records, the tie breaking rule will determine league champs.

C. Seeding: their regular season records will seed the teams that advance to the post-season playoffs. The tiebreaker rules for seeding teams with identical records at season end are as follows:

1. Head to head record

2. If two (2) or more teams are tied, then division records will prevail

3. If tie is not resolved by 1 or 2, run differential in head to head games will prevail

4. If the tie is not resolved by 1, 2, or 3, then a coin flip will determine seed

D. Home Team: The home team for the post-season playoff games will be the team with the best regular season record, i.e., the higher seed. In the division championship game, the home team is the undefeated team (winners bracket) unless game two is needed then team with best regular season record is home team. In the league championship game, the team with the best regular season record will be the home team throughout the Championship Series. If the teams have identical seasonal records, the above tie-breaking rules will apply.

E. Rosters: On the Friday night prior to the beginning of the playoff games, each Captain will submit a roster of 13 players that will participate during the playoffs. Each of these players must participate in a minimum of one (1) game during the playoffs. Should a team play in the league championship game and have a player(s) on the permanent roster, not participated in post-season play, including the championship game, the game is a forfeit.

F. Playoff Subs: A Captain may substitute for the average rating of those missing to bring your team to 10 players. If a captain subs for each individual missing player with a sub of equal rating, he must field 13 players. This is at the Captain's discretion. There is no missing of multiple games’ requirement for substitution in the playoffs. The use of subs will not fulfill the requirement of E above. The Commissioner will have final approval on all subs used during the playoffs.

G. The playoff format will be approved by the Captains prior to the draft. The format is subject to change should inclement weather force a shortening or modification of the season.

A. All players will be eligible for the All-Star Game provided they have played in 75% of the team's regular season games.

B. All Captains will be required to submit their player’s nomination and stats, by position, to the Commissioner. Failure to do so will result in no player from that team being selected for the All-Star Game.

C. At least one (1) player from each team will be selected to participate in the ALL-STAR game provided the Captain and player meet the requirements as outlined in XI A and B.

D. 15 Players from each division will be chosen to compete. 10 starters and 5 substitutes.

E. Voting will be as follows: Each Captain will vote, by position, for his choice, with the top vote getter as the starter. The alternant will be the third highest vote getter of the position combination. The substitute will be the fourth highest vote getter and play only if one of the first three from the position combination cannot play. Player/Positions and combination/alternates will be voted on and chosen in the following manner:

Pitcher #2 vote getter

Catcher no substitute

1st base/3rd base chosen between the #2 vote getters from each position

2nd base/SS same as above

LF/LCF same as above

RF/RCF same as above

E. If the starter cannot play, the alternate becomes the starter, and the substitute becomes the alternate.

F. Players selected by position can only play the position combination and no other except to catch. Example: a player selected from the combination of 2^nd /SS cannot play LF.

G. Captains for the All-Star Game will be the regular season division winners of the current year.

 Location of Fields

Feb. 3rd Last day to turn in applications

Feb. 11th Tryouts, on Field #1. If you are new to the league (not played last spring or last 3 years) you must try out to be rated to be drafted. If not able to make either try-out, call the commissioner prior to tryouts.

(By last name) A-M 9:00am N-Z 10:00 am

Feb 18^th Repeat of Feb. 11^th schedule if cancelled and/or for those that could not attend first try-outs. A – Z 11:30 am

Feb. 25th Draft Day (Captains Only).

March 4 & 11 Practice Games, follow weeks 5 & 6 of schedule for practice games.

March 18^th Regular season starts.

July 15 Start of Mini-Playoffs and Post-Season Playoffs.

July or Aug. All-Star Game to be played after the conclusion of the league championship games (games are played on the same day).

Aug. or Sept. Announcement of our 2^nd Annual Fall Softball Tournament.