YYC Girls Softball

LEVEL 2

General Game Play Rules

1. Scoring: Scoring will be kept.
2. Standings: Standings will be kept. The focus at this age group is on the skills learned in practice and personal performance, however, many players at this age understand the competitive side of sports. Therefore, a modified standings system will be used to track wins/losses as well as other game stats such as teams with the most outs or the team with the most hits off a player pitcher.
3. 6 players on the field: This rule is to keep kids engaged in the game. By only having 6 players in defensive position you are increasing the opportunities for these 6 players to touch the ball. This also increase the pace of the game
4. A player cannot play the same position in consecutive innings: This encourages softball players to try all positions before specialization.
5. All players bat every inning: The goal of this rule is to provide more batting opportunities for each player throughout the season. More opportunities to hit = more successes. PLUS….kids love hitting. The coach will declare the last batter. When the last batter hits the ball, the ball must be returned to the catcher or other defensive player, who must be touching home plate. At that time, play is suspended. All previous runs are counted.
6. No infield fly rule
7. No 3rd dropped strike rule

Pitching

1. All players wanting to pitch will pitch: It is still important that players try pitching at this age and should be encouraged to try pitching. However, we recognize some players at this age already know they don’t want to be a pitcher.
2. A pitcher can only pitch 2 innings per game: to ensure a game is not dominated by 1 player and to ensure winning is not the focus of the game.
3. Pitchers will only pitch 4 balls per batter: to balance pitching development and increasing the speed of the game, pitchers will only pitch 5 balls per batter.
4. Coaches will pitch 2 balls per batter: if a batter does not hit off a player pitcher, then the offensive coach will pitch 2 balls to each batter to increase hitting opportunities.

Batting

1. The batting order will be shuffled every inning. with a rotation of batters to begin the inning, each player will have increase opportunities at bat and experience what it is like to be in a different part of the batting order.
2. Last batter starts on first base: this rule provides immediate defensive opportunities and provides an opportunity for the last batter to run bases.
3. Bunting: is not permitted. It is very important to learn how to swing properly first. Bunting is a more complex skill that should be implemented at a later stage.
4. No strike outs or walks. When the batter does not hit the ball after 7 total pitches, a coach will throw a ball into play. The play will continue as if the ball was hit. This is to keep players engaged and develop base running skills and provides more defensive plays for defensive development.

Base Running

1. Stealing bases: Runners can steal 3rd base only. Runners can take up to 3 steps off the base once the ball has let the pitchers hand.
2. Over throws: Runners will not advance on an over throw. This is to ensure defensive players are not discouraged if an error is made.
3. Home Runs: There will be NO automatic Home Runs. All fair balls are live, an infielder will be responsible for running to grab the ball. The play will stop once a player in the infield has control of the ball. This mimics proper base running decisions and encourages defensive movement and hustle.