1. Game Scoring: Single-point runs score all games. Games are won by a one-run advantage. The umpire prior to each inning announces scores: (example: batting team has two runs and fielding team has three runs = 2 - 3, top of the 5th.) Teams switch hitting/fielding following each three-out rotation.

Tie games will be scored as such during the regular season.

Contact your SMC rep with any game rules or fault infraction questions regarding scoring. Weekly summaries will show team standings by games and total runs scored.

2. Starting the Game: Games are to be started no later than 10 minutes into the hour. We will make every effort to start on time, so please arrive early. Use of open areas is allowed for warm-up prior to game play. Game warm-up is at the discretion of both teams and usually only includes practice pitches. Warm-ups should be done in open areas away from the field of play and both teams should be ready to play immediately.

A one-run penalty will be assessed by SMC for each +5 minutes either/both teams cannot start play when announced.

Hitting team is determined by flipping a coin with winning team determining preference of batting or fielding. In playoffs, the Higher Seed receives HOME TEAM status automatically.

3. Forfeits: All around bad news and offending teams shall be noodle-whipped the following week. A game forfeit will automatically score the offending team in the standings as -3 standing points, 0-1 game, 0-15 runs.. Although SMC does not have any monetary forfeit penalties, any team that forfeits three regular season matches for any reason shall automatically be removed from playoff contention.

Forfeited runs will be start to be declared if there are less than 6 registered players from an individual team at the following times: Two runs against offending team 10 minutes into the game, Four runs against offending team 15 minutes into the game, Six runs against the offending team lost 20 minutes into game. Full game lost 25 min. into game.

If a team does have less than 6 rostered players, your SMC umpire will get everyone playing a scrimmage starting 10-15 minutes into the hour. As late players arrive, it is up to the short-staffed team captain to let the umpire know when they have enough to play so that the game may immediately be started. In such cases, accumulated forfeited runs shall be the announced starting score and actual innings played may be less than 4 and still be considered a legal game. In addition, such games shall end exactly as originally scheduled.

If your team has 6 or more registered players but less than a full 10-person complement, a legal game can be played and will be counted in the standings. For coed leagues, it is legal for 6 men to play (and bat 7) and still have the match count in the standings.

4. Substitution Policy: Substitutes are allowed during the regular season for teams that have the minimum number of players (6) available to start the match. SMC does allow for multiple substitutes in the regular season but the number may not exceed the number of players needed to field a full team. Substitutes from other Sports Monster same day and location softball teams are allowed and preferred. Opposing team may not challenge a Sports Monster substitute. Regular season substitutes from outside Sports Monster teams are allowed as follows: Substitutes must register and sign the team’s waiver with a Sports Monster representative before the game. Failure to do so will result in a one-run penalty if noticed during an inning and a two-run penalty if noticed following the game. Opposing team may challenge suspected ineligible substitute to SMC rep at any time during a game.

PLAYOFF SUBSTITUTES: You must play with your registered players in the playoffs. Players who have signed the team’s waiver and attended at least two (2) regular season games will be considered rostered/registered players.

SMC will allow only one (1) intra-league substitutions up to the final game and ONLY if that team has the minimum number of players but not enough to field a full team. Such substitute may not continue playing once a full complement of rostered players are in attendance. Opposing team captains may challenge any suspected ineligible players at any time up to the end of the match. Once a match has been concluded, no challenges will be entertained.

5. Good Sportsmanship: Please observe the rules of good sportsmanship during your time with us. SMC understands that competition can generate strong emotions, however your emotions/actions must not affect the enjoyment/comfort/safety of any of our other participants. Foul language is not acceptable. You are playing in either Park District, private venues or various school facilities. It is imperative that your language be a reflection of civility and good sportsmanship. Taunting opponents is not acceptable. Tantrums (throwing objects, yelling) are not acceptable.

Opposing team may call time out and approach the SMC ump for consideration if they feel that bad sportsmanship is being displayed by one or more of the opposing team. At the discretion of the SMC ump, any displays of bad sportsmanship will result in the following penalties:

By Team: 1 = verbal warning 2 = final warning 3 = forfeit next scheduled at-bat By Individual: 1 = verbal warning 2 = final warning to player and a general at-bat Out assessed 3 = Ejection from game and one-game suspension

Any infractions above the three noted above shall result in possible player expulsion or a team forfeit declared by the umpire.

Any physical altercation will automatically result in league expulsion. Teams are responsible for their players’ actions and failure for any player to follow the ump’s immediate ruling may result in team penalties.

5. Umpires: Players should expect SMC umpires to clearly announce called balls and strikes as well as scores following each at bat and signal any called outs. SMC umpires are also expected to move from behind home plate to seek a better vantage point when play dictates.

SMC umpires are there to make the game run as smoothly and error-free as possible. Obviously, no one is perfect and there may be occasion to question an individual call if the umpire has not already offered an explanation.

The only person allowed to openly question an umpire’s call is that team’s captain. The key word here is "question." Question does not mean challenge, criticize or demean in any way the umpire’s call. All questions shall be civil (be aware of your tone of voice) and solely for an explanation of a call. As many games are fast paced and/or the ball is still in play when a call is made, it may not be possible for an umpire to provide a complete explanation immediately and patience must be expected. Should any other person other than the captain question the umpire during a game, a ruling of bad sportsmanship will be applied (see above).

Whether you agree or not, the umpire’s judgment is the final word during the game and an appeal may be filed with the SMC office following the game. If you have an ongoing problem with an umpire/referee, please call the SMC rep immediately at the phone number listed at the end of the rulebook.

Umpires are not on the field to be the subject of abuse and are to be treated as you would want to be treated if you were in their position. SMC views any abusive language or physical action against an umpire to be beyond the boundaries of sportsmanship and separate penalties for infractions will be enforced with the possibility of additional league sanctions to offending players or teams:

a) Any foul or abusive language directed at the umpire shall result in game ejection.

b) Any foul or abusive language expressed within earshot of the umpire regarding his/her calls will result in an automatic warning. A second offense shall result in game ejection.

c) Any physical altercation with the umpire shall result in league expulsion and possible legal action. Throwing equipment at or bumping into the umpire is included in this rule.

Pre-game, between innings and post games are all considered to be part of your scheduled league play. So keep it zipped and you won’t get zapped out of the game.

In the unlikely event an umpire is not in attendance for a regular season match and the field is set-up for play, it is expected that teams will play the match under courtesy self-calls and report the score and situation to the SMC office.

6. Playoffs: Some SMC leagues do not offer playoffs, although most do. Unless otherwise noted on your schedule, all teams make the playoffs.. Overall winning team will be determined by regular season record. The winning team will be that team with the highest total standing points. In the case of a tie, game scores will be compared via a positive run differential. If still tied at positive run differential, the tie will be broken by the team that scored the most runs in head-to-head games.

Playoff format will be single game elimination, unless otherwise noted. Playoff games will be bracketed by the first place team playing the last place team in the first round, etc.

As playoff matches must have a winner, some matches may run into overtime. Your umpires should notify you if the previous match is running late for this reason. All games shall be played to completion as outlined below in game le.

7. Equipment: SMC will provide scorebook, bases, softballs, bats and an umpire for game play. Teams may bring their own bats and practice balls.

Double and triple walled bats are prohibited for all SMC softball leagues. Upon discovery, the umpire may negate the last at bat of the player in violation. Usage of the outlawed bat later in the game shall result in the offending player’s expulsion.

8. Attire: Shoes, shirts & shorts (or sweats) required. Softball only athletic footwear is recommended. No metal cleats are allowed. SMC strongly recommends that men wear cups and women wear protective sport bras. Please coordinate a team color to be worn each week: nice, but not mandatory.

9. Protective Gear: For everyone’s protection, knee braces must be of a soft material or be covered and padded so that no hard plastic or metal is exposed. You will not be allowed to play unless your brace is ok based on the umpire’s discretion.Players may wear protective attire if playing catcher. Players may also wear batting helmets or batting gloves.Uncovered casts are prohibited in all SMC leagues. Casts covered in a soft material may be permitted based on the umpire’s discretion.

10. T-Shirts: Seasonal tee shirts may or may not be included in your SMC league. Check with your local office if they are part of your league. If so, they are normally available towards the end of the season.

11. Alcohol: It is strictly forbidden to bring alcoholic beverages onto/into any SMC league site. If spotted with any cans or bottles of alcoholic beverages, you will be asked to remove your stash. Failure to do so will subject you to league sanctions and possible police involvement if you are playing in public areas.

If a player, in the judgment of the SMC ump, is intoxicated, they will be removed from the game and receive a sportsmanship warning. Any argument with the umpire’s ruling on the field shall result in an automatic one game suspension for the player(s) involved. A second offense will result in league expulsion.

12. Prizes: There will be prizes for the winning team. Don’t pester us as to what they are-ok, it’s a gussied up broken bat we found in a dumpster.

13. Challenges: SMC will not consider challenges if they are based solely on a decision involving the accuracy or judgment on the part of an umpire pertaining to called plays. SMC does offer a two level challenge format available following a match regarding strong disagreement regarding an umpire’s ruling resulting in specific sanction(s) or player eligibility:

1) Contact your local SMC office's manager for your Sport to address your challenge. In some cases, this person may be the local market manager. Any verbal challenge must be accompanied with a written challenge outlining the team/player’s position and circumstances to be formally considered. This written challenge may be sent via e-mail for expediency. Please allow for 2-3 business days for information from all parties to be processed and a ruling to be determined.

2) If you are not satisfied with the challenged ruling, you may contact that office’s general manager and re-submit your challenge. You will again need to allow 2-3 business days for information from all parties to be processed and a ruling to be determined.

As it is possible that a sanction may be reduced, it is also possible that a sanction may be increased upon review of the challenged situation. Upon issuing any challenge, it is understood that the challenging party will abide by the final league ruling.

Because many sanctions are time sensitive, it is important that any challenges involving suspension be officially recorded in writing within 48 hours of the initial on-site ruling. Failure to do so can impact the ability of a final ruling being issued before the sanction occurs. Once a time sensitive sanction has already been enforced (example: one week suspension ruling and next week’s game has already occurred with player sitting out), there may be no recourse for overturning the original ruling except for general clarification.

In cases where a general ruling is challenged solely for clarification, there is no deadline for submission.

SAMPLE OF GAME RULES TO LIVE BY

The following is an outline of many of the major softball rules that SMC follows for league play. If you have questions regarding further explanation of these rules or those not listed, please contact your local SMC office.

1. Called Balls/Strikes: Each player at bat starts with a 1-1 (one ball, one strike) count. This is done to speed up play. Players will strike out on their third strike. Foul balls are considered strikes. You may strike out on a foul ball.

Umpire will call strikes on any cleanly pitched ball (see #2 below) that lands past home plate and within the pitching parameters. The ball hitting the back of home plate will count as a strike (as long as the ball crosses within the player’s strike zone).

2. Pitching: Must be thrown underhand (slow pitch) and have an arc of not less than six (6) feet and not more than twelve (12) feet from the ground. Umpires shall call any pitches that are too low or high as "illegal." Players may opt to swing at called illegal pitches but the result of their swing shall stand. Players who do not swing at a called illegal pitch shall automatically receive a called Ball.

Any pitch landing on/or before home plate will be called a Ball, unless the batter swings. The strike zone is from the shoulders to the knees for any cleanly pitched ball. Pitcher must be in contact with the pitching rubber at time of ball release.

Please note that each umpire’s called strike zone may vary somewhat due to his/her subjective opinion. If this an ongoing concern, please contact the SMC office.

As SMC leagues always promote the spirit of good sportsmanship, the league frowns upon teams actively seeking walk after walk after walk after walk off of a struggling pitcher. At the umpire’s discretion, he/she may offer a sportsmanship suggestion to swing at close pitches. In cases where this suggestion is ignored, the umpire may increase the strike zone to include an area that encourages batting action. Clearly, if pitches are unplayable, the umpire will continue to call Balls.

3. Hitting Rotation: Rotation must be established and recorded in softball line-up book. Each team may bat up to eleven (11) players. Please notify the umpire of your decision to utilize this rule. Your extra player may be male or female. For coed teams, there is no set male/female rotation. However, if there are two outs and a male player is walked with bases loaded prior to a female at bat, the female may opt to take an automatic walk. If the female player decides to bat, the outcome of her at-bat shall stand.

Also for coed teams, for each missing female player in the batting rotation, an out is automatically assigned for that player-call her Ghost Girl or Maude on your line-up and it will be easy to keep track of. Teams must announce their Ghost Girl(s) to the umpire during the rotation. Failure to do so will result in an extra Out being assessed to the offending team.

4. Batting: SMC slow pitch softball leagues are designed to have fun and we expect batters to take swings to hit the ball, not attempt to repeatedly walk. When up to bat in any SMC league, all batters are expected to remain in the batting box ready for the next pitch. Players who mosey around following pitches will receive a courtesy warning from the umpire and then receive a called Strike.

Batters may not step over the plate to swing at a pitched ball. An automatic Out shall be called in such instances.

Batters may not step outside/beyond the batter’s box towards the pitching mound to swing at a pitched ball. If the batter’s box is not clearly marked, the batter should inquire with the umpire for instruction prior to the first pitch.

Upon making contact with a pitched ball, batters are NOT to throw their bats as this may cause injury to the catcher and/or umpire. The umpire will issue a warning in the instance where a bat is thrown but doesn’t make contact with him/her or the catcher. In the instance where a thrown bat makes contact with another player or umpire and/or following an umpire’s warning to that player, that player shall be automatically called Out. A second infraction where the player is called Out in that game shall result in ejection of that player.

5. Method of Scoring: Runs are scored when a player has contacted first base, second base third base and home plate prior to three outs in a hitting rotation. All runs will be called at the umpire’s discretion. Remember to touch home plate, not the strike mat to score!

6. Game Length: Please check your location for scheduled game duration. Game duration may be either 7 innings or the time allowed for play, whichever comes first. The umpire shall announce the final inning to be played on/around ten minutes remaining in the match. Please note that this announcement may be made during what turns out to be the final inning of play if it is running long.

As inclement weather and/or other factors may limit normal scheduled game duration, SMC will count as official a 4-inning game played. A minimum of 4 innings at bat by the visiting team must be played to constitute a completed match. The home team shall always be given a last at bat unless they are leading following at least 4 innings at bat by the visiting team. Failure to complete 4 innings shall result in an Incomplete listing in the standings and SMC shall make every effort to finish the match through at least 4 innings at another time. Otherwise, a tie shall be officially recorded in the final standings.

7. Slaughter rule: 12-run slaughter rule will be called following the completion of 4 at-bats by losing team-teams may still opt to play for fun if time remains and should expect umpires to continue calling through the end of the time.

SMC always encourages good sportsmanship and we hope that teams will not deliberately score ridiculous amounts of runs against any opponent. However, the final score shall be the resulting score at the time of the slaughter rule being enforced.

8. Sliding: Safe sliding required for force plays or close plays. Only players running from home plate to first base are exempt from this rule as they may run past first base and not be tagged out by turning to the right.

Umpire will call Out players who do not slide for any close play. Aggressive sliding is not permitted. Do not make contact with the defensive player, period! Safety of all players is a main concern.

9. Playing Area: The entire marked field area is considered within play. Lines are considered in play through 1st & 3rd base and extended to the outfield. Foul balls may be played in the air for outs. If a foul ball goes beyond the marked or understood playable distance, the umpire shall declare the ball "Out of Play" and that ball is dead. Please be careful of balls going out onto the street area.

Players running from home plate to first bases utilizing a double base are to use the orange portion of the base and the defensive player is to tag the white portion of the base. When running past first base, players must turn to the right to indicate that they are out of the play. Players who turn to the left may be tagged and called out as they are indicating that they are still in the play.

Thrown defensive balls over the head or past the base defenders shall be called "Out of Play" by the umpire upon passing the outside marker. Runners shall automatically be advanced one base from where they were at the time of the call.

9. Time-Outs: None allowed, except for injury.

10. Gender Ratio: SMC coed softball leagues are set up for 6 men and 4 women on the field for each team at all times. If male players are missing, a team may opt to field more than 4 women. If female players are missing, it is up to the discretion of the opposing team whether more than seven men will be allowed. Once agreed upon, the decision is binding for the remainder of the game.

If both teams are playing short the same number of female player(s), late arriving female players shall only have to enter the line-up if BOTH teams have similar new male/female ratios. Once both teams have the proper male/female ratio, the umpire shall dictate a return to the regular format.

For every missing female player, that team loses an out in the 11 person batting rotation, to be placed where they wish. Missing male players do not result in an automatic out. All teams may legally play with a minimum of six players, for coed this means that six male players only will count towards a completed match. Please note that SMC male/female ratios are strictly enforced in the playoffs and there are no deviations regardless of either team’s request.

10. Bunting: Deliberate bunting is not allowed and will be called as a Strike.

11. Fouls & Misconduct: Here is a ton of stuff you need to know, otherwise known as Big Trouble: a) Kicking or attempting to kick an opponent b) Tripping an opponent c) Jumping at an opponent d) Charging an opponent in a violent/dangerous manner e) Charging an opponent from behind f) Striking or attempting to strike an opponent or spitting at him/her g) Holding an opponent h) Pushing an opponent i) Deliberate handling of the ball All of the above offenses will result in an unsportsmanlike warning and applicable sanctions by the umpire.

12. Foul Language: Foul Language: Not allowed, learn new words. Zero Tolerance policy here. Team warning, final warning and batting Out penalties will be assessed. We’re not kidding. Learn new words or your team will be assessed batting Outs and players may be removed from the game.

13. Stealing Bases: Not allowed. Base runners must keep one foot in contact with the base until the ball is swung upon by the batter. Any player who takes a lead off of any base will be called Out by the umpire.

14. Base Coaches: Permitted outside of playing area by 1st and 3rd bases. Base coaches are NOT allowed to come in contact with base runners for any reason (unless an injury time-out has been called by the umpire). Yes, this means no High-Fives or congratulatory pats are included. Mutual consent fondling may occur in the team’s dugout only. Vocal encouragement is certainly allowed and often entertaining. Violations shall result in the base runner being called Out by the umpire.

15. Substitutions: Each team is allowed unlimited substitutions between at bats. All substitutes must be recorded in the softball line up book. For game day substitutions, please refer to the top of the rules section.

16. Weather: What? Are you kidding? Its softball-get some guts. SMC plays in almost all weather conditions aside from driving rain or temps below 40 degrees prior to the first match.. We do not play in electrical storms or if the field is ice covered. If you do have questions as to whether the game is to be played, call SMCs weather hotline (314) 645-6323 ext. 3 for an update.

17. Other Rules: SMC generally follows the rules outlined by USSSA Softball for all other calls that are not listed in this information guide. Further clarification may be obtained from your local SMC office.

19. Have Fun! Hey, this is your leisure time, enjoy it! Besides, youre not playing for money-at least you better not be! Youre simply playing for the pride and prestige a SportsMonster championship brings and the adoration of thousands of St. Louis residents wishing they were you, a St. Louis SportsMonster.

Thank you for choosing Chicago Sports Monster! We appreciate your business very much. Please let us know what we are doing well that you like and what we can do to improve next season.

As a fellow Sports Monster, this is your sports league and we want to see a lot more of you in the future. Enjoy your season with us!

Please call us with any questions, comments or suggestions (773) 866-2955. Check out our web site for more info www.sportsmonster.net Enjoy your season with us!