CARROLLTON PONY BASEBALL      

6-7yo Coach Pitch

Ground Rules

This is for the kids and should be Fun!

 A.Length of Games

1. A game will be the shorter of, five innings or one hour and twenty-five minutes in length.

2. No inning shall start after one hour and fifteen minutes.

3. A game is over at one hour and twenty-five minutes regardless of whether the inning is completed.

 B. Playing Rules

1. Full Roster batting shall apply.

(a) The batter shall be declared out after failing to hit a fair ball after 4 coach pitches, and 2 placed on a tee.  Any player hitting a ball from the tee shall be restrcited to a single, regardless of the batted ball. All baserunners are allowed to advance at their own risk, as many bases as possible, after a ball is hit from the tee. A ball batted from the tee must travel at least 10 feet, to be considered a fair ball.

•   The Batter is allowed to swing and miss at all six pitches. This shall end the at bat.
•   To encourage rotation of players, no player shall remain at the same defensive position more than two consecutive innings, and no player shall remain in the infield more than four innings.
•   The ball is considered dead and all base runners must stop and return to their bases when the ball is in the possession of an infield player.
•   A player shall not remain on the bench (defensively) for more than one half inning.
•   Batters are not permitted to bunt or swing easy at the ball. Any ball that does not travel ten feet from home plate shall be considered a foul strike.
•   Ten defensive players are allowed on the playing field at a time.

2. Base runners are not permitted to steal or leadoff base and shall remain in contact with the base until the ball is hit.

3. If sufficient players from one team are not available, players from the opposing team may be assigned to that team for that game to bring the rosters of each team up to the minimum of nine players.

     4.  No team shall score more than five runs per inning. If there are less than three outs when five runs are scored, the teams shall change sides.

     5. Late arrivals to a game shall be placed at the end of the batting order.

     6.  Each player shall bat at least twice. If you reach the last inning and players have not batted twice, you can continue playing the inning even after three outs up until the point at which all players have batted twice.

C. Managers and Coaches

1. Adult coaches should be used in both the first and third base coaching boxes.

2. An adult offensive coach will be used on the field of play to feed the ball into the pitching machine.

3. The use of tobacco by the coaches in any form on the field of play and on the practice field is prohibited.

     4. Be flexible and cooperative; remember this is for the kids.

     5. An adult defensive coach can be used on the field for positioning/coaching.

D. Playing Field

   1.  Distance between bases is 50 feet with the pitching machine at approximately 42 feet from home plate.

   2.   The coach shall take a position, ALWAYS AT THE BOTTOM OF THE HILL OF THE MOUND.

   3. If a batted ball strikes the COACH and remains in fair or foul territory, the ball is in play.

   4.  The "pitcher" should wear a batting helmet and stand to the left or right behind the Coach Pitcher.  

E. Equipment

1.      An official PONY League hardball shall be used.

2.  The batter and the next batter in the on-deck batting area are required to wear batting helmets at all times.

3.   Baserunners are required to wear batting helmets at all times.

    4. "Pitchers" shall wear a batting helmet at all times.

    5. Catchers are required to wear a cup.

Home team for the first game of the day sets up bases.

Home team for the last game of the day puts the bases away. 

Home team will provide an official timekeeper (not a scorekeeper).

No scores or standings will be kept, so just have FUN!!