YYC Softball Little League

"The kids game is NOT supposed to look like the adult version"

LEVEL 1

General Game Play Rules
  1. Scoring: Scoring will be kept. 
  2. Standings: Standings will NOT be kept. The focus at this age group is on the skills learned in practice and personal performance. Standings encourage a winning mentality rather than having fun, practicing skills and being active. 
  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 as there are less batters to rotate through.
  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 will pitch: to ensure pitcher development and avoid pitcher overuse.
  2. A pitcher can only pitch 1 inning 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 3 balls per batter: to balance pitching development and increasing the pace of the game, pitchers will only pitch 3 balls per batter. A coach will stand with the pitcher with 3 balls. Since there is no stealing, the catcher does not need to return the balls back to the pitcher after each pitch. This will help increase the pace of the game
  4. Coaches will pitch 3 balls per batter: if a batter does not hit off a player pitcher, then the offensive coach will pitch 3 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 6 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. Base Stealing: No stealing allowed. This rule helps equalize offense and defense and increases defensive play opportunities.
  2. Lead-offs: Lead-offs are allowed once the ball has crossed the plate. This is to start the process of stealing and to keep players engaged with each pitch.
  3. Over throws: Runners will not advance on an over throw. This is to ensure defensive players are not discouraged if an error is made.
  4. 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.