Wetaskiwin Slo-Pitch
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2024 WETASKIWIN MIXED SLO-PITCH LEAGUE - Spring


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League Organizers: Courtney Aitchison, Kris Goodison, Tanya Vanderberg (Billingham)


**Fast Response Needed call or text Tanya Vanderberg (Billingham) 778-835-3709


All other questions can be emailed to slopitchwetaskiwin@gmail.com


**SO THERE IS NO CONFUSION BETWEEN TEAMS, PLEASE BE SURE TO READ THE RULES CAREFULLY AND GO OVER THEM WITH YOUR TEAM.**


Rules and Regulations for the 2024 Season:


  1. SPN Canada Slo-Pitch rules will apply, except for the league's special rules (outlined in this document). When there is a discrepancy, this document supersedes SPN rules.


  1.  The league cost per team is $750. This includes a box of balls, a scorebook, diamond fees, and SPN Insurance. The regular season will be 10 weeks from May to July. Once the regular season is complete there will be a Double Elimination Tournament on a July weekend.


  1. Online waivers MUST be signed before playing! Team rosters must be submitted online on the SPN website (https://www.slo-pitch.com) by the end of the second week of play in May, and the same information must be given to the appointed League Organizer by email or text. Your minimum rosters must be in place for insurance purposes. 


  1. Regular Roster changes, except for subs, cannot be made after May 12. Failure to have your roster finalized will result in games being forfeited.


  1. Teams can have a maximum of 20 players on their roster. Due to the increasing issue with finding players, for the remainder of the 2024 season teams are permitted to use 5 subs per game. All other players must be listed on your 20 person roster. 


  1. Teams caught playing with ineligible players will forfeit any game played with that ineligible player.


  1. ALL ROSTERED PLAYERS, INCLUDING SUBS, MUST PLAY A MINIMUM OF 8 GAMES (DOUBLE HEADERS COUNT AS 2 GAMES) THROUGH THE REGULAR SEASON TO QUALIFY TO PLAY IN PLAYOFFS.


  1.  All subs must be covered by SPN insurance.


  1. Games will start at 6:30 PM sharp. Late teams will be penalized 5 runs and 1 inning completed for every 5 minutes they are late, plus they will lose Home advantage if they were the home team for the first game. After 25 minutes, the late team will forfeit that game, resulting in a 25-0 loss. If the late team shows up, the second game may be played, but if they fail to show up at all, they forfeit that game as well.


  1. ​​​​Teams who forfeit both games in an evening (with no reasonable explanation) will be fined a $50 league fine and be responsible for the diamond cost for the evening. If a team forfeits three evenings in a season, they will forfeit their league membership.


  1. If a team knows it cannot attend a scheduled game, it must give at least 72 hours' notice to its opponents, the league organizers.


  1. Teams will play doubleheaders. For all games played in May, the second game will start with a count of 1 ball and 1 strike. 


  1. The home team will be listed on the schedule. The visitor team in game 1 will be the home team for game 2.


  1. Bases will be left on the diamond before game time;
  1. The home team, listed for Game 1, is responsible for setting them up.
  2. Bases MUST be put back in the box at the end of your game


  1. Home plates are to be provided by the home team listed in Game 1. Home plate boards need to be made from plywood measuring 22 inches by 40 inches — thickness to be ½ inch. The front edge of the board will line up with the front edge of the home plate, covering the home plate entirely.


  1. The HOME team is responsible for bringing balls for the game.


  1.  Each team will ump their own batting team.


  1.  Each team is responsible for keeping the score, which both teams should confirm throughout the game.


  1.  ** Both teams are responsible for emailing the score sheets to the League Organizers at slopitchwetaskiwin@gmail.com, uploading them to Teamlinkt app, or texting them to 778-835-3709 by the end of Saturday of the playing week. Failure to report the scores and photos by the Saturday of the playing week will result in a split being awarded for those games. Sheets must clearly list players and show the final score circled so it's clear who won and who lost. Sheets from both teams must be sent to be compared, so each team will submit 4 photos for each doubleheader, clearly listing Game 1 or 2.


  1. If it is raining or snowing heavily during the day, the City reserves the right to close the diamonds that day with notification to the league before 4 PM.


  1. The games will be split if a scheduled game is cancelled due to poor weather and cannot be rescheduled.


  1. Both teams are responsible for communicating available time for rescheduling based on the diamond times provided by league organizers.


  1. We play a 6/4 format. A minimum of 4 females and a maximum of 6 females, defensively, and a maximum of 6 males and a minimum of 4 males, defensively must be maintained in a coed game. You must have 10 players in total to start the game.


  1. No more than 3 males can bat in a row.


  1. If a player or players are removed for any reason during the game, if no substitution is available, the player removed shall be scored as an out when his/her turn comes up in the batting order. 


  1. Extra Hitter - 2 options;
    1. One extra Hitter, which must be a girl. They do not need to bat an 11th
    2. Allowed two extra hitters, one must be a girl. They do not need to bat 11th and 12th.


  1. The pitcher's plate will be 50 feet away from home plate. The pitcher may pitch from 5 feet in front of or behind the pitcher's plate. The arch of the pitch shall be a minimum of 6 feet and a maximum of 12 feet. If not within the 6’-12' zone, the pitched ball shall be called a ball unless the ball is hit or the batter swings at it, which makes it a legal pitch.


  1. If the pitcher throws 4 straight balls to a male batter, the male batter goes to 2nd base. If a female batter follows the male batter in the batting order, she has the choice of batting or automatically going to first base.


  1. The 20-foot commitment line shall be in effect between 3rd base and home plate. If the runner passes that line while running, the play becomes a force at home, and they may not run back to 3rd base. There is no tagging base runner out between the commitment line and the scoring line. See rule 29.


  1. While making a play at home the catcher can be touching any part of the wood plate to make an out. Runners must run behind the wooden plate to score. This is the only way to get a base runner out after the commitment line. 


  1. The scoring/safety line will be used at home. Runners must cross this line to be safe at home; if they touch the plate or board, they are out.


  1. Runners are to use the orange bag while running to first base; the white part of the bag is for the first base player.


  1. There is a maximum of 5 home runs per team per game. Additional home runs after the 5th one are considered automatic outs. 


  1. There is a seven (7) run maximum allowed in any one inning except the 7th inning, which is an open inning. A tied score at the end of the 7th inning is a tie game. A game can not be played longer than 7 innings.


  1. There will be a 15-run rule in effect. If, after a complete 5 innings, one team is ahead of the other by at least 15 runs, the game is called. If not, the game plays a full 7 inning.  If, after 7 innings, the game is a tie, it remains a tie.


  1. The infield fly rule is in effect when there are runners on 1st and 2nd or 1st, 2nd and 3rd, there are 0 or 1 out, and an infielder is able to easily catch the fly ball. In those cases the batter is automatically out, even if the ump does not declare it an infield fly before being caught or not.


  1. Players may enter the game anytime; just let the opposing team and umpire know. There is no limit to the number of substitutions a team can make as long as they are registered with SPN for insurance purposes and listed on the team's roster.


  1. No bunting or chopping at the ball while batting.


  1. There is no leading off or stealing bases. If the batter makes an attempt to hit the ball then the base runner will be allowed one step off the base in anticipation. If a baserunner leads off, steals, or takes more than 1 anticipation step, they will be called out.


  1. ​If a ball is inadvertently hit onto the property of the homeowners on 52nd Avenue, please retrieve your ball without incident. Should an incident arise between the property owner and ball players, please inform the league organizers.


  1. Pinch runners can start running from home plate, provided the batter has a pre-existing injury or condition or was injured during gameplay.
    1. Teams may use unlimited pinch runners when the pinch runner starts at 1st, 2nd, or 3rd base.


  1. The following bats are BANNED from Wetaskiwin Mixed Slo pitch: 
  1. Crankinstein


  1. Nemesys-Jak'd

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  1. Demarini – Juice

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  1. No alcoholic beverages are to be consumed during play or on the diamonds. Save the drinking for after the games, and please drink responsibly. Any fines given to the league by the City will be applied to your team and must be paid before your team is eligible for playoffs.


  1. All players and teams are expected to conduct themselves in a manner that promotes the respect of others, fair play and sportsmanship. Abuse of verbal, physical or otherwise Wetaskiwin Mixed Slo-Pitch players or patrons will not be tolerated. After a League investigation of the incident that may or may not require meetings or interviews with all involved parties, the following disciplinary actions for persons or teams found in violation of this mandate may include:
    1. Game suspension(s) of player or team.
    2. Player or team expulsion from the league.
    3. There is no compensation for persons or teams suspended or expelled from league play.


  1. Teams must park at the Manluk Centre or Civic Centre parking lot to access the diamonds, including Al Arner Diamond #4 (the new diamond). Parking is not permitted in the residential area or school field by Diamond #4.


  1. Any complaint shall be made in writing and submitted to the league president with a $50 fee. Failure to submit this fee will result in your complaint going unanswered.


If you have any further questions or problems, please contact the appointed league organizer listed at the top of the rules.