Umpires & Coaches Rules Interpretation Meeting 2011 BASEBALL

NSAA Dates  First Day of Practice – February 28  Umpire On-Line Tests Due – March 11  Supervised Tests – March 23 & 28  Umpire District/State Applications – On-Line  Enter Schedule on NSAA Site  First Contest – March 17  District Seeding Dates – Games through April 26 will count; April 27 assignments made & hosts sites secured; April 28 brackets posted on NSAA web site.)  District Tournament Dates – May 6-7, 9-10  State Tournament – May 14, 16-20

 Season Begins - First Day of Practice (Organized Practice Rule – 4 players Prior to Feb. 28)  Athletes CANNOT participate on other teams (including tryouts) until the end of the state tournament.  Athletes can attend Camps/Clinics, but cannot physically participate.  Summer Legion Teams Begin May 15 (Week 46) Baseball Reminders

 Schedule = 24 dates during regular season, 4 tournament limit (not including districts and state)  Single Games & Doubleheaders  Double-Dual - four schools playing two pre- determined contests or two of the other schools in one day  Triangular - three schools playing two pre-determined contests in one day.  Tournament – 4 or more teams where winners continue to advance or compete until a champion is determined (straight bracket or pool play with championship criteria). Contest Limits & Permissible Contests

 Schools must call in all scores.  Omaha World-Herald: or  Lincoln Journal Star: or  to  District Seeding – April 28; All games through Tuesday, April 26 shall count. Reporting Scores

Take Part. Get Set For Life.™ National Federation of State High School Associations 2011 NFHS BASEBALL RULE CHANGES B. ELLIOT HOPKINS, MLD, CAA BASEBALL RULES EDITOR

Take Part. Get Set For Life.™ National Federation of State High School Associations

Rule Lineup Cards  Head coaches of both teams are required by rule to submit a team’s lineup card which shall include: Player’s name; Jersey number; Player’s position; Team’s batting order of each starting player Name and jersey number of each eligible substitute;  The umpire shall not accept the lineup card until all known substitutes are listed.

Take Part. Get Set For Life.™ National Federation of State High School Associations

Rule Definition of a Baseball Bat  Legal wood, aluminum or composite bats shall: Be one piece, multi-pieces, permanently assembled or two pieces with interchangeable barrel construction; Not have exposed rivets, pins, rough or sharp edges or any form of external fastener that would present a hazard; Be free of rattles, dents, burrs, cracks, sharp edges; Bats that are broken, cracked, dented, altered or deface the ball are illegal.

Take Part. Get Set For Life.™ National Federation of State High School Associations

Take Part. Get Set For Life.™ National Federation of State High School Associations

Take Part. Get Set For Life.™ National Federation of State High School Associations Axe and V-shaped style handles are permitted.

Take Part. Get Set For Life.™ National Federation of State High School Associations

Take Part. Get Set For Life.™ National Federation of State High School Associations Tapers are no longer required to be smooth or round. The taper is now permitted to have holes and be a designed in geometric shapes.

Take Part. Get Set For Life.™ National Federation of State High School Associations

Rule 1-3-2b Definition of a Baseball Bat  Barrel The area intended on the bat for contact with the ball. The barrel shall be round, cylindrically symmetric and smooth. The barrel may be wood, aluminum or composite (made of two or more materials used together – including wood). The type of bat (wood, aluminum, composite) shall be determined by the composition of the bat’s barrel.

Take Part. Get Set For Life.™ National Federation of State High School Associations

Take Part. Get Set For Life.™ National Federation of State High School Associations

Legal Bats for the 2011 Season  Solid wood bats;  Aluminum bats that meet the Ball Exit Speed Ratio (BESR) performance standard; That includes aluminum barrel bats with composite handles  Composite bats that meet the Ball Exit Speed Ratio (BESR) performance standard and have been re-tested and granted a waiver from the NFHS (see list on the NFHS Website

Take Part. Get Set For Life.™ National Federation of State High School Associations

Legal Bats for the 2011 Season  Note: Only baseball bat manufacturers can apply for and receive a waiver from the NFHS.  Any aluminum or composite bat that meets the January 1, 2012 BBCOR specifications found in Rule 1-3-2e are legal for  List of legal bats appears on Washington State University Sports Science Lab and NFHS web sites.  Coaches must verify bats by their players are legal in order to be used for 2011.

Legal Bats for the 2011 Season  The Washington State University Lab – link located on baseball page of NSAA web site under 2011 Compliant Bat Information For bats that meet NFHS high school playing rules until December 31, 2011, go to: NFHS BESR Certified Baseball Bats link which lists only legal BESR Bats from the 2010 NCAA Season. The site is searchable by make and model of the bats.

Take Part. Get Set For Life.™ National Federation of State High School Associations

7-4-1 Review – Illegal Bat  Illegal Bat Penalty: Batter enters batter’s box with and illegal Or a batter is discovered to have used an illegal bat before the next pitch to the following batter The batter is out or the defense may take the result of the play. The bat shall be immediately removed from the game.

Take Part. Get Set For Life.™ National Federation of State High School Associations

Take Part. Get Set For Life.™ National Federation of State High School Associations Baseball now matches other NFHS rules codes. Requiring padding of casts, splints and altered braces worn by players.

Rule 1-5-8

Rule Padded Casts/Braces for Pitchers  The rule (1-4-2) still applies for the pitcher.  A pitcher cannot wear any item on his hands, wrists or arms which may be distracting to the batter.  That includes a cast, guard, brace, splint, etc. that is white, gray or distracting on the pitcher’s arms.

Rule Definition of a Foul Tip  Foul Tip: Struck ball must go directly from the bat to the catcher’s hand or mitt. Can only be caught by the catcher. A strike is added to the batter’s count. Ball remains in play. Eliminated the language that a foul tip can be caught by any infielder.

Take Part. Get Set For Life.™ National Federation of State High School Associations

Take Part. Get Set For Life.™ National Federation of State High School Associations

Rule Definition of a Foul Tip  A bunt that does not go directly to the catcher’s glove, does not meet the definition of a foul tip.  The ball was caught before it hit the ground and is a foul pop-up.  Any defensive player can catch the ball and it will be registered as an out.

Take Part. Get Set For Life.™ National Federation of State High School Associations

Rule Concussions  Possible signs and symptoms: Loss of consciousness, Headache, Dizziness, Confusion, Balance problems, Staggering around  “When in doubt, sit him out!”

Rule Concussions  Only health-care professionals can determine if a player has experienced a concussion.  Officials are asked to observe players to see if they exhibit the signs or symptoms of a concussion, and immediately remove him from the game.  The player shall not return to play until cleared by an appropriate health-care professional.

Take Part. Get Set For Life.™ National Federation of State High School Associations

Concussion Management  While a player may or may not be unconscious, he only has to show the signs or symptoms of a concussion to be removed from the contest.  When allowing the player to return to competition on the same day (i.e., double-header or tournament play), the health-care professional, who releases the player, and the coach bear responsibility for the player.  Officials are asked to observe players to see if they exhibit the signs or symptoms of a concussion, and immediately remove him from the game.

Rule 8-2-6L Last Time By  If a runner correctly touches a base that was missed (either advancing or returning), the last time he was by the base, that last touch corrects any previous base running infraction.  Cannot be called out on an appeal.  Clarifies the appeal procedure, allowing the runner to correct his base running error.

Take Part. Get Set For Life.™ National Federation of State High School Associations

Rule Runner May Not Return  Remember a runner may NOT return to touch a missed base or one left to soon on a caught fly ball if: 1. He has reached a base beyond the base missed or left too soon and the ball becomes dead. 2. He has left the field of play, or 3. A following runner has scored.

Take Part. Get Set For Life.™ National Federation of State High School Associations POINTS OF EMPHASIS

Take Part. Get Set For Life.™ National Federation of State High School Associations

Take Part. Get Set For Life.™ National Federation of State High School Associations

Pregame Equipment Check  Each umpire must inspect the available equipment prior to the contest.  Bat inspection is critical due to the new bat rules.  Batting and catcher helmet inspection must also take place with the new emphasis on concussion management.  Cracked helmets or helmets without proper padding provide little to no protective assurances.

Take Part. Get Set For Life.™ National Federation of State High School Associations

Take Part. Get Set For Life.™ National Federation of State High School Associations

The End Thanks & Have a Great Season! Questions? Contact Jim Angele