RULES OF PLAY 

ASA Official Softball Rules will govern the games played in the Tournament, except as modified herein:

1. No metal spikes may be worn.

2. Any ASA-approved bat may be used in the Tournament, including ASA-approved multi-walled bats. A list of ASA-approved bats is available at www.softball.org/about/certified_equipment.asp under "Bats" and "Display All"; additionally, most ASA-approved bats are stamped with an ASA-approved seal. Players are responsible for making sure that all bats they use are ASA-approved; the umpires will be able to recognize any non-conforming bats. If a batter is found to be using a non-conforming bat, the first offense will result in the batter being called out and the second offense will result in the forfeit of the game.  Bats not on this list will not be allowed!

In terms of enforcement, each team and umpire will be given an up-to-date list of the banned bats (and what the recertification mark looks like) before the tournament starts.  Each team captain will be allowed to inspect the bats of the other team at the start of the game.  Any disputes will be resolved by the umpire.  If a batter is found to be using a non-conforming bat, the first offense will result in the batter being called out and the second offense will result in the forfeit of the game. 

3. We will use the same size and type of balls throughout the tournament, no matter the gender of the batter (contrary to the ASA Rules).

4. Batting Order Rules:

a. Please see Section IV, below, for special rules regarding batting orders in the Co-Rec Tournament.

b. In order to encourage maximum participation, tournament teams may have a batting order of unlimited size.

c. A player may be in the batting order and not play in the field. In order to play in the field, however, a player must be in the batting order. While in the batting order, a player may enter, leave, or re-enter the fielding team (free substitution). 

d. However, the number of batters in the batting order must remain constant throughout the game. Therefore, a player who is not in the batting order at the start of the game may only enter the game by permanently replacing someone in the batting order by either pinch-hitting or by replacing them in the field. Once a player is replaced in the batting order, he or she may not re-enter the game except by returning to the same position in the batting order (unless there is an injury during the game and there are no other players available on the team). 

e. If a player has to leave or cannot bat for any reason during the game and there is no substitute available, his or her spot in the order counts as an automatic out. 

f. The only exception to the rule requiring a constant number of batters is if a team starts a game with 8 or 9 players and additional team members arrive after the game begins. In such a case, the late players must be added to the end of the batting order. 

g. At the request of a team captain prior to the start of a game, the opposing team must provide its batting order to the requesting team. No appeals regarding the batting order will be considered unless the batting order was exchanged prior to the start of the game.

5. An injured player may be allowed to bat with a pinch runner at the umpire's discretion. The pinch runner must be touching the center pole of the backstop (or the middle of the backstop if there isn't a center pole), and the pinch runner may not leave until the bat contacts the ball. If the runner leaves early, it is an automatic out. The pinch runner must be the last player in the batting order to make an out, and in Co-Rec play, the pinch runner must be the same gender as the batter. Pinch runners will rarely be granted and may not be used to gain tactical advantage. 

6. The arc on pitches must be a minimum of six feet and a maximum of twelve feet from the ground. A ball not within these limits shall be called an illegal pitch as soon as possible by the umpire. If the batter does not swing at an illegal pitch, it is automatically a ball. If the batter swings, the pitch will be treated as though it had been thrown within the legal limits. The umpire's call on a pitch is absolutely final.

7. The strike zone is that space over any part of home plate that is between the batter's back shoulder and front knee when the batter is lined up with the plate.

8. Each at-bat begins with a 1-1 ball-strike count. Thus, three balls constitute a walk, and two strikes constitute a strikeout. There is no limit to the number of foul balls the batter may hit. A foul ball will count as a batter's second strike, but never as his third strike. (Of course, any ball that is hit above the batter's head - fair or foul - and is caught by the defense is an out). The umpire's call on strikes and balls cannot be disputed. 

9. The Double Play Rule: If the defense is attempting to make a double play and there is a reasonable chance a double play will be completed, the runner going to the lead base must either slide or get out of the way of the throw. If the runner does not, the umpire has the discretion to call a double play. A runner need not get out of the way if there is no chance of the defense making the double play. This call will be made at the umpire's discretion and cannot be disputed.

10. The Home Plate Rule: When there is a play at home plate, it is the runner's responsibility to avoid contact if the catcher has the ball before the runner gets to the plate. However, the catcher must not unreasonably block the plate before the ball gets to home plate. The umpire has complete discretion to decide both (a) whether the runner intentionally initiated contact and should therefore be called out, and (b) whether the catcher unreasonably blocked the plate before the ball gets to home plate and the runner should therefore be called safe. 

SECTION IV. SPECIAL RULES FOR THE CO-REC TOURNAMENT

The rules that follow apply to the Co-Rec Tournament only. These rules are in addition to the rules listed in Section III.

1. Each defensive team should have ten players, but teams may play with eight or nine players. If a team has ten defensive players, at least four of the ten must be women. If a team has eight or nine defensive players, at least three must be women. 

2. A team may have a batting order of unlimited size, but no more than two men may bat in a row. A team may bat as many women in a row as it chooses. This applies across innings; thus, if the last two batters of an inning are men, the next time that team bats a woman must lead off. 
The way this is typically done is for teams to have separate batting orders for men and women. The first two men bat, followed by the first woman, then the third and fourth men, followed by the second woman. Each batting order (men's and women's) must remain the same throughout the game and no more than two men can bat in a row. Please note that if you choose to use separate men's and women's batting orders, unless your team has a perfect 2:1 ratio of men to women, the women will bat after different men each time through the order. 

3. A "Co-Rec line" should be painted on each outfield. No outfielder may step in front of this line until after the ball is hit. This means that if you are playing ten players, four of them must be behind the Co-Rec line until after the ball is hit, if you are playing nine players, at least three must be behind the line, and if you are playing eight, two must remain behind the line. This is to prevent unfair positioning of players on a field. If a line has not been painted on the field on which you are playing, the two teams and the umpire should agree to where the line should be. If an outfielder crosses the Co-Rec line before the ball is hit and that outfielder subsequently plays the ball and makes an out, the hitter will be given first base as if the hitter had walked. Again, the umpire has full discretion in making this call.

4. Co-Rec Walk Rule: If a woman is on deck when a man is walked on the consecutive pitches, the man is awarded first base. The team at bat can then elect to put the woman at first as if she had walked as well, forcing the man to second base.