7th Inning Official Publication of Kansas Babe Ruth Leagues, Inc. BOB WILLIS—STATE COMMISSIONER PAUL UNRAU-CAL RIPKEN STATE COMMISSIONER Gearing up for 2021 Season Vol u me , I s s ue 2020 was a very tough year in many regards and we all suffered immensely on multiple levels throughout the April 7, 2021 year. Now we are excited to begin a new season and return as much as possible to our normal routines and activi- ties. 2021 marks the 70th anniversary of Babe Ruth League and we encourage you to work that theme into your events this year. We would like to thank all leagues for their continued support the past year and urge you to take care of the business of chartering through Babe Ruth Headquarters in a timely manner for this year. If you have any problems or hardships getting started this year, please reach out to your District Commissioner for help. WE ARE HERE TO MAKE YOUR 2021 SEASON A SUCCESS! Inside this issue: When you charter your league, league officers will receive important mailings from Headquarters such as rule books, score books, insurance information, supply catalogs, and other information. The 2021 Chartering and Insurance Guide was sent out to League Presidents in early January. Contact us if you did not receive this PDF Rule Changes for 2 document. If you run into any problems getting chartered, contact your District Commissioner. 2021 When the State Commissioner has been informed that Headquarters has finalized your charter, he will send you a welcoming letter and include the form for paying your state dues. These dues are $10.00 per team and should Cal Zone 3 be sent to the state treasurer, Gregg Dick, at PO Box 295, North Newton, 67117 . Before the State Commissioner will send your “State Tournament Letter of Eligibility” for your tournament teams, all of your league teams must be rostered and the national and state dues paid. When you are ready to submit your rosters, they are rostered 2021 Tournament 4 through SportsEngine. SportsEngine also supports SportsSignup Play which is a useful tool in complete manage- Dates ment of your league including sign-ups, scheduling and communication with players, parents, coaches and other interested parties in your league. Instructions are on the Babe Ruth website. If you have questions or help setting Kansas Babe Ruth 4 up this tool, you can contact Pete Eichner at (518)245-6936 or [email protected] Baseball on the web The Rule Book requires that your rosters be submitted before your first league game. The ten game require- Kansas Babe Ruth 5 ment for leagues has been eliminated. Any coach listed on your post season tournament team roster must be on a Board of Directors regular season roster, and he/she must have completed the coach’s certification program, passed the background check and completed the Abuse Awareness Program provided by Babe Ruth League SAFE (Safety Awareness for Everyone) PROGRAM. The background check is required every two years and must be administered through Babe Ruth League. If you need to change a roster after the season has begun, you are permitted to do so until July 1 online with the add/drop option. You can have more than 15 players (18 in Senior Babe Ruth age division) by requesting a waiver. This is preferred to cutting players. The waiver process will be done online also, and your District Commissioner can help you if you require a waiver for anything in your league. The deadline for chartering is May 15, but if you haven’t already done so, you should charter as soon as possible to avoid last mi- nute problems. Links to Babe Ruth Programs Babe Ruth League has several new programs this year that will benefit your local league and your players. Be- low are links to programs: Babe Ruth Network (local league game streaming) with GODOG GameStream for streaming games to those who cannot attend in person—www.baberuthleague.org/BRN Babe Ruth rule books in digital format (cost is $8.00) - https://us.humankinetics.com/products/brl-2021-baseball- rules-and-regulations-pdf. For softball substitute softball for baseball. Heart of the Babe—This is a program to recognize one special player per team who embodies the values and qualities of Babe Ruth and the Babe Ruth League Organization. This is not a popularity contest nor a platform to showcase the best athlete on a team—it is for player who shows determination and never giving up— www.baberuthleague.org/HOTB Binovi Vision Training for Athletes—https://binovi.com/sports-athletes/ Personal Swing Coach—an app to analyze your swing—https://www.baberuthleagueapp.com/ Babe Ruth League’s Official Communications Platform (BAND) to notify, inform team communications, share schedules, times, locations, game video, photos, and chat in real-time from one place—www.baberuthleague.org/ BAND Volume X11, Issue 1 P a g e 2 Rule Changes for 2021 The Babe Ruth League, Inc. International Board of Directors has approved the following rule chang- es beginning with the 2021 season. These changes will be reflected in the 2021 Babe Ruth League, Inc. Rules and Regulations for the baseball and softball divisions. Rule Changes/Clarifications for the 2021 Season We value the opinion of our membership and base our future actions and any rule/policy changes on a group consensus. Our goal has always been, and will continue to be, to keep as many players as possible in the great games of baseball and softball, and to make it a fun and memorable experience for all. The phe- nomenal success we enjoy today is a direct reflection of our volunteers’ dedication and enthusiasm. In clos- ing, we again thank you for the time you invest for the benefit of our young athletes. 1. Rule 0.01; Number 7 - BACKGROUND CHECKS: Babe Ruth League requires all managers, coaches, and volunteers with consistent active engagement with players to register with our National Ath- letic Safety Program for Background Checks and Abuse Prevention Training. Babe Ruth League, Inc. chartered leagues are required to conduct a nationwide background check on all managers, coaches, Board of Directors, and any other persons, volunteers, or hired workers, who provide regular service to the league and/or have repetitive access to, or contact with, players. Once a volunteer has successfully completed the background check, it is valid for a two (2) year period from the date of completion. (Cal Ripken Baseball, Babe Ruth Baseball, Babe Ruth Softball) Kansas 2. Rule 0.02; Number 2 - Babe Ruth Baseball 16-18 Division – Any player born prior to May 1, 2005 and on or after January 1, 2002 will be eligible for Babe Ruth 16-18 League competition. Any player eligi- Babe Ruth ble to participate in high school athletics will be eligible to participate in the Babe Ruth League 16-18 Division. Any player born in 2002, 2003 and 2004 is eligible for the Babe Ruth Baseball 16-18 Division. Players born in January, February, March, and April of 2005 must play in the 16-18 Division. Baseball is 3. Rule 6.10 and Rule 11.05 - Number 12 - Babe Ruth Baseball 16-18 Division - Designated Hitter (DH) (Local League Option and Tournament Play) – Any Babe Ruth 16-18 League may elect to use the the premier Designated Hitter Rule option for the pitcher only. The rule provides as follows: a. The hitter may be designated to bat for the starting pitcher and all subsequent pitchers in a game with- out otherwise affecting the status of the pitcher(s) in the game. A Designated Hitter for the pitcher must be youth pro- selected prior to the game and must be included in the lineup cards presented to the Umpire-in-Chief. b. The Designated Hitter named in the starting lineup must bat at least one time unless the opposing team gram in changes pitchers. It is not mandatory that a team designate a hitter for the pitcher, but failure to do so prior to the game precludes the use of a Designated Hitter for that game. c. Pinch hitters for a Designated Hitter may be used. Any substitute hitter for a Designated Hitter be- Kansas. comes the Designated Hitter. d. A runner may be substituted for the Designated Hitter and the runner assumes the role of Designated Come grow Hitter. A Designated Hitter may not pinch run or be used as a courtesy runner. e. A Designated Hitter is locked into the batting order. No multiple substitutions may be made that will with us. alter the batting rotation of the Designated Hitter. f. Once the game pitcher is switched from the mound to a defensive position, then this move shall termi- nate the Designated Hitter role for the remainder of the game. g. Once the game pitcher bats for the Designated Hitter, then this move shall terminate the Designated Hitter role for the remainder of the game. (The game pitcher may only pinch- hit for the Designated Hitter.) h. Once a Designated Hitter assumes a defensive position, then this move shall terminate the Designated Scan the code below to Hitter role for the remainder of the game. A substitute for the Designated Hitter need not be announced until it is the Designated Hitter’s turn to bat. access the Babe Ruth i. A 16-18 League may use both the Extra Player (EP) and the Designated Hitter (DH) in a game. If one League website to or both start the game, the team must finish the game in accordance with the Extra Player and Designated begin your chartering Hitter rules.