Below is the entire list of our rules. We have some differences between our Wednesday league and our Thursday league. For our Wednesday league, there are the following changes:

• Number of players: a team must field at least seven (7) and no more than ten (10) players while on defense, with a minimum of 3 females. If you do not have enough females, you still can only play 7 males. You can field more than 3 females, but you can not field more than 7 males.

  • Positions: there must be a catcher as a fielder at all times. ​The catcher must be positioned behind the horizontal plane of the kicker, parallel to the front edge of home plate. The catcher may not make contact with the kicker, nor position so closely to the kicker as to restrict the kicking motion. They must stay behind or in line with the kicker while the kicker is kicking but may run into the field to field a ball after the ball has been kicked. If the catcher interferes with the kicker's run or actual kick, the kicker will be safe at 1st base. 

• Game length: All games shall be 8 innings or 55 minutes, whichever comes first. 

  • Mercy Rule - The game is final when a team is trailing by 10 or more runs after the losing team has completed their at-kick in the 6th inning, or any inning thereafter. The maximum run differential that will be counted is 10 runs. 

• Pitching: All pitching must be flat, without any spin, and even-paced (not too fast)

• Pitch Count: All pitch counts will start at 1-1 (1 strike and 1 ball). Strikes and fouls are still counted separately. 

• Kicking: All kicks must travel past the defensive line (straight line between 1st base and 3rd base). If the ball stops on it's own before the line, the kick will be ruled a foul ball. If a ball is touched by a defensive player at or before the line, it will be considered live. 

• Pinch runners: Pinch runners may be used in case of an injury or player issue that results in them needing to leave the game. The substitute shall be the last kicker of the same gender who kicked out. If the player that was substituted is able to return after they have been replaced, they may continue playing but may not take another runner. If the injured player is unable to return, they will be removed from the line up without penalty to the team. 

• Dead ball / pitcher's circle: The ball shall become dead and all runners shall return to the last base that was legally touched when the pitcher has control of the ball on the pitching mound regardless if the runner has continued their forward motion towards the next base. This call will be at the discretion of the home plate ref only. 

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Game Overview

Game Length - All games shall be 6 innings or 55 minutes, whichever comes first. Games will start promptly at their designated game time. At the home plate refs discretion, if teams are taking longer than a few minutes to get onto the field to start the game, between innings, or teams are not getting players up to bat while the other team is waiting on the field, an out will be given as a penalty. If the team penalized is on defense, you will begin your offense with an out. 

 

Player Eligibility - Only players who have officially registered through Swamp Sports and who have a signed insurance liability waiver on file are permitted to participate. No walk-on or guest players are permitted under any circumstances. Registered players can substitute for other teams during the regular season games, but not during playoffs. 

When utilizing players from another team, teams are not permitted to use pitchers, catchers, or roamers in those respective positions but they may play another position on the field during defense.​

 

Referee Disputes - The only players permitted to appeal a call with the referees are the team captains. Play is stopped while the team captains appeal a call that had been made on the previous play. The home plate referee will then make a final ruling based on their best judgment, and play will resume. 

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Attitudes -  We are a social kickball league with the goal of encouraging friendly play while still enjoying the competitive nature of the game. We have a strict, sportsmanship policy: no yelling or arguing that results in being disrespectful towards other players or the refs. We have a zero tolerance for poor sportsmanship and any issue that the home plate ref deems to be a problem will result in that player being ejected from that game by the home plate ref. That player will be asked to leave the field and may return the following week. If the same player continues to have issues, the home plate refs and the owners will confer and that player may be asked to miss multiple weeks or the remainder of the season. 

 

Kicking Order - Team captains may be asked to provide the kicking order to the home plate referee prior to the start of the game. The kicking order may contain more than 11 players. Not all players in the kicking order are required to be fielders but all fielders must kick. Once a team has completed the kicking order one time, no new players may be added to the order. So long as the team has not yet completed the kicking order, kickers may be added to the end of the kicking order.

 

Injuries - If a player is injured at any point, including during a kick, a substitute player can continue in the injured player's place. Once they are replaced, that player shall not be allowed to return to the game. If there are no substitute players available, the injured player may be removed from the kicking order without resulting in an out in the line-up.

 

Pinch Runners – Once a player has kicked and they have safely reached their base, they may be replaced by a pinch or substitute runner. The substitute shall be the last kicker of the same gender who kicked out. Teams may only replace a runner twice during a game.

 

Substitutions - Teams are free to substitute players that are in the kicking line up between innings as they see fit when playing defense. 

 

Mercy Rule - The game is final when a team is trailing by 10 or more runs after the losing team has completed their at-kick in the 4th inning, or any inning thereafter. The maximum run differential that will be counted is 10 runs. 

 

Player Equipment - Metal spikes or metal cleats shall not be worn by players participating in game play. Athletic gloves of any kind shall not be worn by players participating in the game.

 

Weather Cancellations – Games will be canceled on account of weather if lightning strikes are currently within 10 miles of the fields or if there is too much rain/flooding resulting in dangerous fielding conditions. Play will be resumed once lightning is outside of 10 miles. If at any point, a player does not wish to continue due to the weather, they may leave the game; however, if the game has not been officially delayed or canceled and they player is the 4th girl or 11th player, an out will be issued in their spot of the kicking line up.

If the game play has started and is then called on account of weather or if there is an issue with fields and at least 3 innings have been completed, the game will not be rescheduled and the score will be final. If less than 3 innings have been completed, the game may be rescheduled or counted as a cancellation.

 

Forfeits – If a team does not have enough players to field (8), the game will result in a forfeit and count as a loss with the score being 10-0.

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Fielding

Fielders - A team must field at least eight (8) and no more than eleven (11) players while on defense, with a minimum of 4 females. If you do not have enough females, you still can only play 7 males and however many females your team has available.

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Pitching - There is a 10 ft pitchers circle that will be in the center of the field with a line through the center from 1st base to 3rd base. All pitching motions must occur behind the line (including both feet on the follow through). The circle will remain for ensuring the play is dead once the pitcher has control of the ball in the circle. 

• Quick pitching is not permitted. If the ref determines that the pitcher is taking an excessive amount of time to pitch the ball and appears to be attempting to delay the game, they will be given a warning. If it continues, the kicker will be allowed to advance to first base.

 

Gentleman’s Pitch - Female kickers will be allowed a gentleman’s pitch. This is a pitch in which the ball must be flat and even-paced (not too fast). Female kickers must ask the referee for a gentleman’s pitch should the first pitch appear too quick or intentionally bouncy.

 

Foul Ball - A foul fly ball shall be judged according to the relative position of the ball and the foul line, not as to whether the fielder is on foul or fair territory at the time the ball is touched. Any ball that first lands in foul territory past 1st or 3rd base is considered foul. As soon as the ball is foul, it will be called foul. The base is considered fair territory. If a foul ball is caught by a fielder, the kicker will be out. Other fielders may advance on a caught foul ball after first contact.​ Home plate refs have the final say on if a ball is deemed fair or foul. 

 

Dead Ball - The ball shall become dead and all runners must return to their original base when the ball first contacts an external object (fence, power line, etc.) or a foul ball hits the ground.

• If the ball hits the ground first, it will be counted as a foul in the pitch count.

• If the ball hits an external object first in the field of play (power lines), then the foul will not count towards the pitch count.

 

The ball shall become dead and all runners shall return to the last base that was legally touched when the pitcher has control of the ball on the pitching mound and the runner stops their forward motion towards the next base. If runners have continued their motion or have not retreated back towards a base, they may advance at their own risk. If the ball is in the air on the way back to the pitcher, runners may still advance.

 

Strike Zone - The strike zone is a three-dimensional irregular pentagon based on the shape of home plate and is one foot in height. The front of the zone aligns with the front of home plate. The sides of the zone extend one foot to either side of the plate. The back edges of the zone are one foot from the back sides of the plate (See Diagram 4). Any pitched ball that does not bounce at least two times before reaching home plate will be considered a ball. 

• There is no "swinging strike" in kickball. If a kicker attempts to kick and misses, the result of the pitch (ball or strike) will be the call.

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