2009 Lima Community Church Softball League

Official Rules

An event waiver form must be signed by all the players on teams whose church doesn't have liability insurance coverage.  All players playing for those teams will need to sign the waiver to relieve Lima Community Church of any liability on medical claims that occur during games.  Click here to download the Waiver to print out.

1.  All basic softball rules will be followed by the ASA standards, any variations will be listed below. 

2.  The LCCN Church League will furnish all softballs, please return the used softballs to the umps at the end of the games as we will keep all decent balls for back-ups.

3.  Entry fee for the league will be $375 due as soon as possible and no later than the first game.  Make checks out to Lima Community Church.

4.  No profane language will be tolerated.  1^st Offense:  ejection from the game, 2^nd Offense:  ejection from the league.  Team is also responsible for the actions of their fans watching the game, and if the fans break this rule it could cause the team to forfeit the game on the 1^st offense and expulsion from the league on the 2^nd offense. 

5.  No arguing with the umpires will be tolerated.  Only the coach is allowed to calmly discuss any rule issues with the umpire, judgment calls cannot be argued.  The umpires will issue a verbal warning to the entire team on the 1^st offense.  The 2^nd offense and all following offenses on the team will result in expulsion from the game by the offender.  The team is also responsible for their fans watching the game and the team will be warned on the first offense by the umpire, and forfeiture of the game will be enforced on the 2^nd offense.  Umpires need to be treated with the utmost respect as this is a Christian church league and a positive Christian attitude should be maintained through good and bad calls by the umpires.

6.  Any player who is ejected for any reason will be required to sit out the next game. 

7.  Sliding is required to avoid contact with a fielder on close plays, if contact is initiated by the non-sliding offensive player on a close play it will be an automatic out as determined by the umpire’s judgment.  If a player can reach a base or home without running over the fielder or interfering with the throw then sliding is not required.  Sliding is also required for anyone who is attempting to break up a double play attempt and must be done cleats down.  This rule does not apply to any runners going to 1st Base. 

8.  Players can only play for one team within the league, however if a team has less than 10 players they can add up to 2 players from other teams in the league as long as they are added at the bottom of the hitting line-up and at catcher first and right field second on defense.  Teams must have 8 roster players to start the game and then may add up to 2 non-roster players to get to 10.  If roster players arrive late they must be substituted immediately for the non-roster players. 

9.  All players on the teams must be male and 18 years of age or older.  The only exception to this rule will be when a team has less than 10 players able to play the field and they will have to play short or forfeit the game without the under 18 players.  Under 18 year old players must have waiver forms signed by their parents to be eligible to play. 

10.  Time limit of 1 hour 20 minutes on the first game will be enforced by the umpires, the umpire will announce that it is the last inning before the time limit will be enforced so that both teams will get 1 more time at bat.  Umpires may call the last inning in late games if darkness becomes an issue for player safety.

11.    All teams need to show up at 7:00 for the second game as the umpire will start the 2^nd game at 7:00 if the first game ends early.  There will be a 5 minute grace period extended by the umpire before each game if a team is short players.  Umpires will allow a 10 minute grace period if your team has less than 10 players due to some of your players helping out another team on a different diamond.

12.  8 players will be required to start a game and continue a game and other players can be added to the bottom of the line-up as they show up.

13.  The LCCN church league will recognize the courtesy runner rule, which allows the player who made the last out to run for the player who needs a courtesy runner.  This rule is not to be abused and needs to be reported to the opposing coach and umpire when it is implemented.

14.  Teams may bat up to two extra hitters in the lineup.

15.  Run rules will be 20 after 3, 15 after 4, 12 after 5, and 10 after 6. 

16.  Steel spikes will not be allowed in the LCCN Church League. 

17.  The LCCN Church League will allow all official slow-pitch softball bats except Miken bats.  If you have a Miken bat that has ASA certification stickers on it you will need to have it approved by the Head of the League before using it. 

18.  All batters will step to the plate with a 1-1 count and one extra foul.

19.  There is an unlimited HR rule in this league on Field 1 and players will be required to touch first base only after hitting the ball over the fence.  Field 2 will have a 5 HR over the fence limit and all balls hit over the fence after 5 will be automatic outs.  The umpire will try to keep track of this but the teams will need to keep track of this in their books in case the umpire loses track.

20.  Players will not be allowed to participate in the tournament at the end of the season unless they have played in at least 4 games during the season.

21.  The teams will meet before the game with the umpire to discuss the field boundaries and the home team will be asked to lead a prayer.