ZERO ABUSE POLICY
No player or coach may ever question the call of an umpire that involves a matter of judgement (e.g., fair/foul; ball/strike; tag/no tag). The umpire’s call is considered final. Any questioning or challenging of such calls will result in a warning from the umpire; persistence will result in ejection from the game.

Players and coaches may, however, question the interpretation of a rule and how it is applied (e.g., how many bases are awarded a runner, and from what point, if a live ball thrown by a fielder goes out of the playing area; the consequences of a foul tip on the second vs third strike; the consequences of a coach nudging his/her base runner to get running; etc.). While coaches and players are strongly encouraged to do their homework by reading and learning the rules, such inquiries are generally welcomed, provided they are civil and short, because they help build a better understanding of how the rules apply.

The routine for an inquiry of an umpire is as follows:

   - Wait for play to stop.
   - The coach requests “time” from the Umpire (often called “Blue”).
   - When the umpire calls time and invites the coach or player to come onto the field, enter the field. (Note that the coach “requests” time; the umpire “calls” it.)
   - The coach can go directly to the umpire and keep the conversation quiet and civil – i.e., no big public scene.
   - The coach can ask the umpire what the rule was, how it applied, what he/she saw and why he/she thinks it applies.
   - If the coach has a different interpretation/understanding, point that out and ask if the umpire agrees if it applies, and if not, why not.
   - If the response does not seem adequate, the coach may ask if the umpire minds checking with his/her partner. (He/she may not always agree to do this, but often will, for maximum certainty.)
   - Accept the umpire’s final decision.

Coaches or players are never to go onto the field without umpire’s permission

WEATHER RELATED CANCELLED GAMES
Canceling a game is at the discretion of the Coaches/Umpires with the safety of the players being paramount (umpires must weigh in if the game is in progress and there is a reason to cancel or suspend the game). When deciding to cancel a game consider things like temperature, diamond conditions, weather, and safety. If it has rained enough that the diamond is mushy or if there is standing water stay off the diamond. However, we encourage all teams to try and play their games as best they can as the season is short and rebooking can be difficult. See SAFETY tab for more details on our weather policy.

Coaches: If you wish to cancel a game and you are the home team you MUST call the umpires and let them know that the game has been canceled at least 1.5 hours prior to the game. Email the Coordinator and Umpire Scheduler to let them know that the game has been canceled. If you wish to reschedule your game you will need to work with the opposing team and division coordinator to find a diamond time for the rescheduled game.

Coordinators: Never delete a game. If the game is to be rescheduled please create a new game note the original game number and date of the old game in the details. Then let the ump scheduler know so that they can arrange for umpires.

SPARE RULE
Manager/Coach contacts our divisional Coordinator to request a spare from the pool. Coaches can only request a spare if their team has less than nine rostered players for that game.

The Division Coordinator will send out an email to all coaches/players in their division asking if they wish to be placed on the spare list. Once the spare list is created the Coordinator will email the player on the top of the list and if that player is available to spare will send game information and that player will spare for that team. Once the player has spared he/she will be placed on the bottom of the list and the list will be rotated through. 

In the case where there is no player available from the respective division then the coordinator can call up from the division below. 

You are only allowed to bring enough spares to form a team of 9.