Minors

The Minors season is April - June:

Pre-Season

Regular Season

Developmental play to help build skills in game situations.  Records during the regular season will not matter so play to make your team better.

Post-Season

The post-season tournament will determine the league winner. There could be games any day of the week depending on the bracket, your seed, and winning/losing.

• 6/17 - 6/28 - Dates, Times, and Locations TBD

Key Rules to remember

1. No new inning after 1 hr 30 mins., with a hard stop at 1 hour 45 mins

2. 3 out or 5 runs retires the side

3. Max of 2 innings per game (65 pitches max)

4. Stealing is allowed no leadoffs

5. With less than 2 outs, a runner cannot advance home on a pitched ball or the throw back to the pitcher.

The Minors Division is for players in 3rd and 4th grade who want to learn the fundamentals of baseball and play in semi-competitive games. The primary goals of the Minors Division are to have fun, to teach the players the fundamentals of baseball, and to allow them to experience the value of teamwork in a semi-competitive environment. In keeping with the philosophy of learning the fundamentals of baseball, players shall play multiple positions during the season.

The Minors Division season will run from early April to the end of June. Teams will compete in 10 regular season games plus an additional 2-3 games in an end of the season tournament.

Game Procedures

1. Home/Visitor will be determined via coin flip in a pre-game coaches meeting, regardless of game location

2. A regulation game consists of 6 innings or if it meets the time limit. No new inning can begin after 90 minutes.  The new inning begins the moment the third out is made in the bottom half of the frame. Any game that is halted by the time limit will be considered a complete game regardless of the number of innings played.

3. The side is retired when three offensive players are legally put out or a team scores 5 runs during an inning. (team can score a max of 5 runs)

4. Teams need to have at least 8 players to play otherwise it is a forfeit. 

5. Call-Up Procedures - In order to avoid forfeits and ensure that all scheduled games can be played, Ames Youth Baseball has a call-up process in place:

   1. If a majors division team will have at least 7 players for a game, but not 9, then the team may call up a maximum of 2 players for that game from a Minors Division team.

   2. Called up players may not play the positions of pitcher or catcher under any circumstances.

   3. It is also strongly recommended that the called-up players play outfield positions (in fairness to the older players already in the majors division).

6. Pitching distance will be 46 feet and base paths will be 60 feet.

7. Score is to be kept and a winner is to be declared, but there is not standings

Playing Time

1. Over the course of the season, all minors division players should play infield and outfield equally and must sit out defensively equally over the season.

2. Every player on the team roster will participate in the game for a minimum of 6 defensive outs and batting orders must be continuous (i.e., all players are in the batting rotation the entire game).

3. All players shall play at least one complete inning (3 outs) in the infield (pitcher, catcher, first base, second base, shortstop, third base) every game that the player is present for the entire game.

4. A player may enter and/or re-enter defensively anytime during the game provided the mandatory play requirements are met.

Pitching

1. Any player on the team roster may pitch unless that player has played catcher for 4 or more innings on that day.

2. At the beginning of each inning, the pitcher shall be permitted to pitch no more than 8 preparatory pitches. Such preparatory pitches shall not consume more than two minutes of time. Preparatory pitches shall not count against a player’s pitch count total.

3. A player once removed as a pitcher may not pitch again the same game.

4. A pitcher who delivers 41 or more pitches in a game cannot play the position of catcher for the remainder of that day.

5. The coach must remove the pitcher when the limit is reached. However, the pitcher may finish the current batter being faced when reaching the limit.

6. Pitchers must adhere to the following rest requirements:

   1. Max of 2 innings per game (65 pitches max)

7. Any player may pitch and there is no limit to the number of pitchers that may be used in a game.

8. A pitcher once removed from the mound cannot return as pitcher in the same game.

9. The coach must remove the pitcher when the limit is reached. However, the pitcher may finish the current batter being faced when reaching the limit.

10. Remember that this is a recreational league. Develop all of your players to the best of your ability. Also, please be aware of players who may be pitching for Storm. There are no rules that limit pitch counts between our rec league and Storm, so it is your responsibility to always act in the best interests of the player.

11. Pitching will be from 46 feet.

12. Pitchers will be given warnings for a balks, no based will be awarded

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Catcher Position

1. Catchers must wear a catcher helmet (with mask and throat guard), a chest protector, shin guards and a cup at all times.

Batting

1. A continuous batting order that includes all players on the team roster present for the game shall be used. Players arriving after the start of play may be added to the bottom of the batting order. Each player is required to bat in his/her respective spot in the batting order.

Base Running

1. Runners shall not lead-off but may advance at their own risk (steal) once a pitched ball has passed home plate. When a runner tries to advance prior to the pitched ball passing home plate, the following shall apply: 

   1. If the runner advances safely, the Umpire shall call “Time” and the runner shall return to the base last legally occupied at the time of the pitch. If the runner is called out, the call shall stand, and the runner is out. If the ball is hit, the defensive team shall have the option of the result of the play or a no pitch. 

2. Runners shall not advance from third (3rd) base to home unless the runner is batted home, forced by a base on balls or a hit batsman or on passed balls, wild pitches or dropped ball by the catcher when there are 2 outs.

3. The runner stealing home must slide into home anytime there is a play at the plate.

4. Batters must step away from the plate when a runner is coming home.

5. Runners may take one base on an overthrow.

6. Whenever a tag play is evident, a runner must slide or seek to avoid contact with the fielder and / or catcher.

7. No courtesy runners

8. Balk rules shall not apply. Umpires and coaches can stop the game to teach pitcher to prevent continual balking.

9. A batter shall be automatically out on a dropped / missed third (3rd) strike by the catcher.

10. With less than 2 outs, a runner cannot advance home on a pitched ball or the throw back to the pitcher.

11. Home plate is open if the catcher throws anywhere other than the pitcher

Scorekeeping and Tracking

1. The home team’s head coach will designate someone to maintain the official scorecard. The head coach may delegate the maintenance of the scorecard to a parent, but the head coach is responsible for the scorecard’s accuracy.

2. The scorecard will detail the batting line-up of each team.

3. Starting lineups/batting order must be entered on a scorecard by each team and exchanged prior to the start of each game.