spring Lake Recreation CODE OF CONDUCT/ETHICS &

little League RUlES AMENDMENDMENTS

Code of Conduct/Ethics

Spring Lake Department of Recreation & Parks

Spring Lake Recreation activities are made available to youth and adults to enjoy fun and wholesome recreational programming that teaches character and sportsmanship.  We support the belief that all recreational programming and experiences should be positive and safe with sportsmanship and enjoyment the primary goal.  To achieve this goal, we strive to provide a safe environment for participants of these programs and to protect them from harm to the best of our ability.  To that end, all participants and spectators must be held accountable for their behavior and zero tolerance given for intentional violation of the code of conduct/ethics.

EXPECTATIONS

•  Treat all parties involved with dignity and respect.
• Use appropriate language, tones, and volume when communicating.  When in doubt, remain silent.
• Become knowledgeable, understanding and supportive of all established guidelines, rules, policies, and procedures applicable to related programming.
• Recognize/acknowledge Spring Lake Recreation Department programming as a privilege that can be rescinded for the greater good.

Unfortunately, aggressive behavior is on the rise in recreational programming.  Negative attitudes, verbal abuse of officials, poor sportsmanship, profanity, child predators and violence are casting a negative light in our area.  It is for that reason penalties have been assessed and will be enforced for acts perceived by Spring Lake Recreation as intentional violations.

PROCEDURES

•  When an incident occurs at any Spring Lake Recreation activity/event, Spring Lake officials have the authority to institute immediate suspensions.  Spring Lake will offer to escort the offending individual(s) from the facility.  If the offending individual(s) refuse to leave the premises, local authorities will be contacted immediately and asked to enforce the ruling.
• Individual(s) removed from the facility in this manner will be sent a registered letter stating the violation of policy and the penalty in effect.  The individual(s) will then have forty eight (48) hours from receipt of the letter to respond to Spring Lake Recreation Department with a written appeal.
• After the written appeal is received, an investigation will be conducted and SLRD will render a final decision within ten (10) working days from receipt of the appeal.
• A panel consisting of the facility supervisor, program supervisor, immediate supervisory staff, and a department superintendent will conduct the investigation.  During the investigation, the individual(s) will be suspended from all SLRD activities/events/facilities.  Individual(s) requesting the appeal may be asked to appear before an appeal review committee led by the SLRD Director.  This decision will be final.
• Suspensions of less than ten (10) days cannot be appealed.

 It is the SLRD’s sincere desire that situations never warrant the removal of an individual from any activity, event, or facility.  However, it is the department’s obligation to maintain a controlled, safe and healthy atmosphere for everyone.  Recreational activities are designed to foster qualities such as character building, social interaction, enjoyment, and relaxation while educating the general public and promoting healthy lifestyles.  These activities are not designed to be overly competitive and SLRD does not promote this contention.

 OFFENSE & PENALITY (to include but not limited to :)

LEVEL 1 – Standard

 * Offense               

Failure to follow departmental guidelines, rules, policies and procedures as applicable to related programming.  Failure to comply with an SLRD official’s decision; taunting/mocking/harassment of players; disgruntled expressions such as rude gestures or comments, screaming and loudly disagreeing with others or obscene/profane/vulgar language; throwing/kicking/striking of bats, balls and other miscellaneous equipment; unnecessary roughness among participants.

*Penalty                

Not necessarily proceeded by a warning…immediate ejection and removal from the premises and a minimum ten (10) day suspension

LEVEL 2 – Verbal

 *Offense                

Malicious obsence/profane.vulgar verbal abuse directed towards another individual; verbal epithets related to race, color, religion, creed, gender or sexual orientation; verbal communications of threats, physical violence or acts of insulting another with intention to offend defame or embarrass.

*Penalty                

Not necessarily proceeded by a warning…immediate ejection and removal from the premises and a minimum thirty (30) ay suspension.

LEVEL 3 – Physical

 *Offense                

Physical aggression towards another; pushing, shoving striking or touching another individual with the perceived intent to incite, inflict or to cause harm; invading another individual’s personal space during a dispute.

*Penalty                

Not necessarily proceeded by a warning…immediate ejection and removal from the premises and a minimum of one hundred and eighty (180) day suspension.

LEVEL 4 – Unlawful

 *Offense                

Any violation of North Carolina law; possession of fire arms, knives, explosive devises weapons or under the influence of alcohol, narcotics, controlled substances, chemical or drug paraphernalia; assault with or without weapon.

*Penalty                

Not necessarily proceeded by a warning…immediate ejection and removal from the premises and a minimum of one (1) year suspension

***PLEASE NOTE:                             

Suspensions will be tracked and monitored.  Individuals who have been suspended will be immediately placed in a probationary status for a period of one (1) year from the date of the offense.  A second offense by the same individual within one (1) year, regardless of nature, will result in the term of the penalty and an extension of probationary period from the date of the second offense.  A third violation by the same individual within one (1) year regardless of nature will void all SLRD privileges indefinably.  Failure to comply with these guidelines will result in legal action. ***

Spring Lake Little League

Local League Rules Amendments

The current issue of the Little League Baseball Rule Book will prevail other than local league rules amendments that are listed and approved by Little League Baseball

Roster Maximum

15 players ages 13 and up

13 players ages 5-12 (may go to 15 players upon approval of parks and recreation director)

13 players (All tournament teams)

Pitching Rules

Little League Baseball and Softball rules will be followed without exception (see attached pitch count sheet)

Ages 9-12

A player may not pitch in more than one game in a day

Ages 9 and up

Any player, who has played the position of catcher in four (4) or more innings in a game, is not eligible to pitch on that calendar day

No on deck batter circle ages 4 thru 12

The on deck batter will remain in his/her team’s dugout until it’s their turn to bat, on deck batter can not leave the dugout to warn-up outside the fenced area of the playing field

Head First Slide Ages 4-12

No headfirst slides, a player sliding headfirst is OUT. 

A player caught in a run down cannot slide head first going back to base.

Exception: A player over running a base and diving back to the base can dive headfirst. 

Thrown Bat Ages 4 and up

When a player throws his/her bat their team will receive a warning. The next time a player on the team that has received a warning throws a bat, the ball is dead, the player throwing the bat is OUT, and no runners can advance. If in the umpire’s judgment a player intentionally throws a bat, the player will be out without warning and he/she will be ejected from the game

Cleats

Only molded cleats or tennis shoes will be allowed for ages for all ages group in games played in Spring Lake

Continuous Batting Order Ages 4-12

Ages 4-12 continuous batting order, meaning all players present at a game will be put in the batting order

Player(s) arriving late for a game Ages 7-12

Ages 7-12 if a player arrives to a game after his/her team has batted through the line-up the player cannot play in the game.

Tee-Ball players arriving after his/her team have batted through the line-up can be added to the end of the line-up

Player(s) unable to bat Ages 7-12

 When a player is due up to bat and cannot bat due to being injured, illness or other reason, that player will be OUT, if the player is able to bat when their next turn at bat comes they can do so

Alternating Defense Player Rule Ages 7-12

Players on a team that did not play defensive during a ½ inning must play defensive the next ½ inning; this rule is in effect throughout the game

5 Run Rule Ages 7-8 and 9-10

The maximum number of runs a team can score in a ½ inning is 5 

The 5 run rule will be suspended at the top of the 4th inning, meaning the is no maximum number or runs a team can score in their ½ inning beginning in the top of the 4th inning

10 Run Rule ages 7 and up

10 run rule will be effect for ages 7 and above (3 ½ innings or 4 innings in ages 7 to 12, 4 ½ or 5 innings ages 13 and above.

Machine Pitch Ages 7-8

An umpire will run the pitching machine and the speed will be set at 38mph

Batter will receive 5 pitches or 3 strikes which ever comes first, the batter will receive an additional pitch if he/she fouls the 5th pitch

No pitch can be determined by the umpire if the machine throws a pitch that is

 Un-hittable, this is the umpire’s judgment and cannot be argued, if a coach argues this rule with an umpire the coach will be automatically ejected from the game

Machine Pitch Ages 7-8 Coaches on offense and defense

1st and 3rd Base coach on offense, on defense two coaches are allowed (1-outside the foul line on 3rd base and 1-outside the foul line on 1st base, and at least 30 feet from the base

Batted ball hitting the pitching machine or umpire operating the pitching machine Ages 7-8

IF A BATTED BALL HITS THE MACHINE OR UMPIRE OPERATING THE MACHINE THE BALL WILL BE DEAD, THE BATTER WILL BE AWARDED 1ST BASE AND RUNNERS WILL ADVANCE ONE BASE IF FORCED

No time out circle Machine Pitch Ages 7-8

NO TIME OUT CIRCLE WILL BE USED.  THE LEAD RUNNER ADVANCEMENT MUST BE STOPPED BY THE DEFENSE AND THEN IT WILL BE THE UMPIRES DISCRISION TO STOP PLAY

Intentional Walks Ages 9-10

In the 9-10 years old there are no intentional walks until to the top of the 4th inning since the 5 run rule is in effect until the top of the 4th inning

A pitcher must deliver four pitches to a batter during an intentional walk

Warming up the pitcher Ages 9-12

Only players in uniform may warm up a pitcher (No adults).  The player warming up the pitcher must wear a catcher’s mask with helmet and protective cup (this includes any area used as a warm-up area.  A batting helmet with facemask cannot be used as a catcher’s mask with helmet,

Speed up rules Ages 7-12

In addition to the special runner, a team must put in a runner for their catcher, if the catcher is on base with two

Age’s 7-12 play continuous batting order, which means every player, is in the line-up (the special runner must be the player that has made the last out of the inning, if there are no outs in the inning revert back to the previous inning

When a runner is put in for the catcher, the player being run for must return to the catcher position during his team’s ½ half inning on defensive (he/she can be substituted for after they have caught one batter)

T-Ball Ages 4-6

Games will be 2 innings or 1-hour which ever comes first

All players present at the game will be put in the batter order (if a player arrives after his/her team has batted, he /she will be put at the end of the batting order

Visiting team will bat all players in their batting order and when the last batter completes their turn then the home team will bat

Batter can receive three pitches from a coach, if the batter does not hit the ball in three pitches the ball will be placed on the tee

A batted ball must go beyond the 15-foot arch from home plate, if the ball does not go beyond the 15-foot arch, the batter will hit again

Batter runner and base runners can advance as many bases as they can get on a hit ball

Batter runner and base runner can only advance one (1) base on an overthrow.  An overthrow is consider a throw by an infielder or outfielder to a base and the throw gets past the person covering or near the base the throw is going to

 If a player is put out they will come off the base

All players on a team will take a defensive position (The team on defense will have a player playing 3rd Base, Short-Stop, 2nd Base, 1st Base and Pitcher, all the remaining players will take a position in the outfield (at least 70 feet from home plate)

The player playing the pitching position will be at least 38 feet from home plate 

NO PLAYER WILL PLAY THE CATCHERS POSITION IN T-BALL

Starting time of game first game of the day all Ages

Monday thru Friday (6pm)

Saturday (9am)

Sunday (2pm)

Time Limits

Ages 5-6 (1 hour)

Ages 7-8 (1 hour and 30 minutes)

Ages 9-12 (1 hour and 30 minutes)

Ages 13 and up (2 hours)

Game Time Starts

After the first pitch is thrown the scorekeeper will start the time, game time will be kept of a countdown timer by the scorekeeper

When the 3rd out is made in the bottom of an inning a new inning begins.  If the time limit has not expired the game will continue

School night games

Once the time limit has expired during the game on a school night the game will be stopped at that point.  If both teams have had the same number of bat, the team ahead will be the winner (meaning the bottom of the inning has been completed.  If both teams have not had the same number of times at bat or the score is tied 15 minutes will be allotted to complete the game.  If after 15-minutes there is no winning team, (the game will be resumed at the point at which it was stopped at a later date.)

Protest ages 7 and up

Protest on the possible misapplication of a playing rule must be submitted on protest form to the Parks and Recreation Director prior to 6pm the following business day or before the teams next game whichever is sooner.  Official scorekeeper will have protest forms.  If protested game is on a Friday or Saturday the writing protest must be submitted to the Parks and Recreation Director no later than 10:00am on Monday.  Protest will only be accepted when submitted by the head coach or assistant coach if the head coach is not present at the game.  The protesting head coach must notify the umpire in chief and official scorekeeper of the protest.  The official scorekeeper will denote in the official Parks and Recreation Department scorebook at which point the game is being protested.  Failure to log protest before the next pitch will nullify and void any protest.  For an ineligible player, the protest must be made at the point where the player enters the game.

There are no protest in T-Ball

Protest on an umpire’s judgment will not be accepted.

Forfeits Ages 7and up

The game will be forfeited if a team does not have 8 players present within 10 minutes after the scheduled game time for the first game of the day.  If a team starts the game with 8 players they must have their 9thplayer must present by the top of the 2nd inning or the game will be a forfeit. 

Finishing the game will 8 players ages 7 and up

A team can finish the game with 8 players provided they started the game with 9 players.

There is NO grace period for second, third or fourth games of the day. 

 There are no forfeits in T-Ball.  A game will be played with whatever number of players is present.

Sportsmanship

The Spring Lake Parks and Recreation Department, Advisory Board and Little League Board of Directors are emphasizing only the highest level of sportsmanship.  Please refer to the Code of Conduct and Ethics.

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