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ISSAQUAH LITTLE LEAGUE

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BASEBALL RULES SUMMARY

	T-Ball	A	AA	AAA	Coast	Majors
# of Innings	4	5	5	5	6	6
End of Inning	Each player bats once.	3 outs or 5 runs scored*	3 outs or 5 runs scored*	3 outs or 5 runs scored*	3 outs or 5 runs scored*	3 outs
# of Fielders	All players (max 6 infielders)	10 players (4 true outfielders; no rover)	10 players (4 true outfielders; no rover)	10 players (4 true outfielders; no rover) May Start Game with (8) Players	10 players (4 true outfielders; no rover) May Start Game with (8) Players	9 players - May start game with (8) Players
Minimum Play	Every player shall play the entire game.	Equal playing time for all players. Two (2) defensive innings must be played at an infield position.	Equal playing time for all players. Two (2) defensive innings must be played at an infield position.	Equal playing time for all players. Two (2) defensive innings must be played at an infield position.	3 full innings of defense.	3 full innings of defense.
Pitcher	Batter hits off a tee	Coach pitches to own team. Limit of 7 pitches/batter. No walks or hit-by-pitch. Swinging strike outs apply.	*The entire season will be machine-pitch games using official Little League baseballs.* Limit of 5 pitches/batter. No walks or hit-by-pitch. Swinging strike outs apply.	Hitting Team Coach pitches for first 3 games to own team. Players will get 5 pitches to hit the ball. No walks. Regular Season games will be Player live pitch with hitting team coach pitch after 4 balls. Hitting Team's coach throws no more than 3 pitches unless foul ball on 3rd pitch. Pool Play/Post season games will be Kid pitches to opposing team. Standard balls and strikes including walks, hit-by-pitch, and strike-outs.	Kid pitches to opposing team. Standard balls and strikes including walks, hit-by-pitch, and strike-outs.	Kid pitches to opposing team. Standard balls and strikes including walks, hit-by-pitch, and strike-outs.
Pitch Count	NA	NA	NA	Pitch count rules apply.	Pitch count rules apply.	Pitch count rules apply.
Baserunning	No steals. Runners stop once the ball has been returned to the infield. Runners may circle the bases on last batter.	No steals. Runners stop once the ball has been returned to the infield.	No steals. Runners stop once the ball has been returned to the infield.	Steals allowed with hard stop at 3rd base. No Steals when the Coach is pitching.	Steals allowed. Defense is responsible for stopping baserunners progress.	Steals allowed. Defense is responsible for stopping baserunners progress.
Advanced Baserunning	No bases may be taken on an overthrow.	One base is awarded on any overthrow.	One base is awarded on any overthrow.	No lead-offs. Runner advances at own risk once the ball reaches the batter.	No lead-offs. Runner advances at own risk once the ball reaches the batter.	No lead-offs. Runner advances at own risk once the ball reaches the batter.
Batting	Bunting is not allowed	Bunting is not allowed	Bunting is not allowed	Bunting is allowed. NO Slash Bunting	Bunting is allowed. NO Slash Bunting	Bunting is allowed. No Slash Bunting
Scoring	Scores will not be kept	5 run limit per inning*.	5 run limit per inning*.	5 run limit per inning, except for the last inning of the game. 10 run mercy rule after the 4^th Inning. (3-1/2 if Home Team is Ahead)	5 run limit per inning, except for the last inning of the game.10-run mercy rule after the 4^th Inning. (3-1/2 if Home Team is Ahead)	No run limit per inning. 10-run mercy rule after the 4^th Inning. (3-1/2 if Home Team is Ahead.)
Time Limit	4 innings or 90 minutes, whichever comes first.	5 innings or 90 minutes, whichever comes first.	5 innings or 90 minutes, whichever comes first.	Regular Season: 5 innings. No new inning after 1:40. No pitch after 1:55. Stop.	No Time Limit unless following game scheduled: No new inning after 2:00. No pitch after 2:20.	No Time Limit unless following game scheduled: No new inning after 2:00. No pitch after 2:20.

Baseball Rules

Know the rules!

Find the links on the right for all Issaquah and National Rules documents. Rules for the upcoming season are updated around the end of February. Little League International Rules are copyrighted and available on the Little League Rulebook App (iOS and Android)

LOCAL RULES

Issaquah Little League Local Rules - In general, Little League rules govern play, except where specifically modified by Issaquah Little League in our local rules.

Read the general section which applies to all divisions, then read the specific modifications to Little League Rules for your division.

A summary of the local rules differences per division can be found above

Illegal Bat - a batter is out for illegal action when the batter enter's the batters box with an illegal bat or is discovered having used an illegal bat prior to the next batter entering the batter's box.
Minimum Playing Time - manager's not meeting minimum playing time rules will be penalized up to and including suspension.
Uncaught/Dropped Third Strike Rule (MAJORS ONLY) - If the catcher drops or misses strike three, the batter can run to first, unless occupied with less than two (2) out, and must be thrown or tagged out

PITCHING RULES

Here are some important highlights of the pitch count rules:

Pitch counts do NOT include warm-up tosses, practice pitches or throws to any base.
Pitch counts DO include pitches that hit the batter, are fouled off, or hit into field of play.
Any pitcher with 40 or fewer pitches in the game may play catcher after pitching. With 41 or more pitches, the player may NOT play catcher.

Any player who plays catcher in more than 3 innings is not eligible to pitch for that day.
Pitch counts must be tracked by each team and verified after each inning. Have a parent track each pitch for all pitchers of both teams and compare with opposing team pitch counter between innings - every inning. Home team is always the official book.
You can use the Issaquah Local Pitch Count Log to track pitches by player.
Pitch counts by player must be reported within 12 hours after each game. Contact your Division VP for further information.
Once the game starts, pitch counts from shortened or delayed games due to weather or darkness must be reported.
Baseball scorekeeping is a short-hand record for each at bat in the game.
More questions - see the Pitching Rules from Little League.

Little League has some clarifications of rules on the web site.

PRE-GAME BATTING POLICY

This rule is in effect for the entire game site which includes the common areas and beyond the outfield fence.

On game days, the only batting practice allowed (unless you are in a batting cage) is with whiffle or pickle balls. A whiffle ball or pickle ball has many holes in it to limit it's flight and momentum. Use of any balls without holes in them (even plastic ones) are not allowed. The use of pop up nets or any other device to hit hard balls, dimple balls, jug balls, etc. are not allowed.

Everyone hitting whiffle or pickle balls must be wearing a helmet. The use of hitting sticks or any other stationary hitting device is allowed but must be supervised by a coach or parent and the player must wear a helmet.

During the game, the only person allowed to hold a bat in their hands is the hitter. There is no on-deck swinging and the on-deck batter cannot hold a bat in their hands until they have become "the batter".

Resources

Bat Information

New bat rules applied to Baseball only as of the 2018 season. Softball bat standards did not change. Any non-wood bat used prior to the 2018 season is no longer permitted for use in Little League baseball games or practices.

All bats used in Little League baseball games or practices must have the USA Baseball mark. One-piece wooden bats without a mark are permitted.

Visit the Little League Baseball Bat Information page for more detail on the new standards and the rationale behind.