2025 Coordinator:
Mark Brienza
Rules:
BATTING:
All players in attendance must be in the batting order
If a player has to leave the game early, their spot in the
order may be skipped without penalty. Late players will be added
to the end of the batting order.
A team can start the game with as few as seven players.
If a team plays with less than 9, it will NOT be penalized with automatic out(s).
All bats must be USA Baseball certified. USSSA bats of any kind
are not permitted. Making sure bats are compliant is the
responsibility of the coach. If a player steps into the box with
an illegal bat, he will be automatically called out.
Base runners can advance on a stolen bases, passed ball, or wild pitch once the pitch has crossed the plate. Only four of these types of advancements are allowed per inning.
Double steals/double WP and PB advancements are allowed, but they count as two stolen bases
on the team’s allotment.
If a runner leaves before the pitch has crossed the plate, his team will be issued a warning. If another runner from that team leaves early again in the same game, the runner will be declared out.
If a stolen base is attempted after a team has reached its
limit, the defensive team has the option to re-do the pitch and
the runner will automatically return to the base he began, or
can take the result of pitch/batted ball in play.
No delayed steals. No stealing of home.
Runners cannot advance on an overthrow after a steal
attempt.
On over-throw errors by any infielder (including pitcher/catcher), no advancement of bases is allowed.
Five-run maximum for the first five innings. Sixth inning does
not have a run limit. If a player hits a home run over the fence only, all runs will count towards the score.
Mercy rule is 12 after four AND the leading team has met their
age-related pitching requirements. If the team that is set to win by mercy has not met their pitching requirements, it will be an automatic loss.
PITCHING:
Pitchers are limited to 60 pitches or three innings (whichever
comes first). If a pitcher reaches the 60-pitch mark during a
batter, they can exceed 60 pitches to finish that batter
A pitcher can only pitch once per week. The lone exception to this is Championship Saturday. However, pitchers must meet the rest requirements to be eligible to throw in the title game
For each Minors game, 9-year-old pitchers must either:
For each Minors game, 10-year-old pitchers must either:
These requirements MUST be met within the first four innings of
the game.
If these minimums are not met, the team not meeting the
requirements will lose the game, regardless of the on-field
result.
No re-entry for pitchers
Track pitch counts and submit them to your division coordinator
after each game. These reports are mandatory. Failure to submit
a report will result in forfeiture of the game.
Travel coaches must report pitch counts to the appropriate division coordinator. These workloads will count toward in-house eligibility. If a player does not meet the rest requirement after his travel outing, he is not eligible to pitch in an in-house game, regardless of when his last in-house pitching appearance was.
Rest requirements:
| Pitches Thrown |
Days of Rest |
| 1 - 20 |
0 days |
| 21 - 35 |
1 day |
| 36 - 50 |
2 days |
| 51 - 60 |
3 days |
DEFENSE:
10 fielders
No player shall sit two consecutive innings, unless
injured
No more than four infielders can be positioned on the infield
(excluding the pitcher). Four outfielders must be positioned in
the outfield grass.
No shifts. Two infielders will have to be positioned on either
side of second base.
Mandatory speed-up rule is in effect. If the catcher is on base
with two outs, the last batted out will run for the
catcher
No coaches on the field
A player can not exceed three innings at the catcher’s position
per game.If a catcher catches three innings, that player cannot
pitch in the same game.
PLAYOFFS:
All teams make the playoffs
Playoffs will be seeded according to regular season
standings
3 points are awarded for a win, 2 points for a tie, and 1 for a
loss
First tiebreaker for playoff seeding is games played, then
wins, ties, losses. If still tied, a coin flip will be done by a
neutral party from those teams.
Regular season pitching rules are in effect. SJSLL will provide
coaches with their players’ Little League ages prior to the
season AND once again prior to the playoffs to ensure
pitching-age requirements are met
Teams MUST play the minimum number of games determined by the Board of Directors.
If a team does not play a minimum games, it will receive
the worst seeding in the playoff bracket. If multiple teams do
not meet the requirement, games played will be the first
tiebreaker, then points, wins, ties, losses. If still tied, a
coin flip will be done by a neutral party from those
teams.
In the event of a six-team or 10-team playoff, the bottom three seeds will play two "mini" three-inning games to determine the final seed in the tournament.
For example: 10-team playoff
10 plays 9 in a three-inning game.
The winner plays 8 immediately after the 10/9 game in another three inning game.
The winner will be awarded the 8 seed.