Roster Rules & League Eligibility
Summer League Eligibility
Residency Requirement: Must live or work in Mountainside
Out of Town Players: Allowed, but must not constitute more than 20% of any team's roster
Target Roster Size: 15 players (with a 15-man roster, you can have 3 out of town players with 12 Mountainside residents)
Fall League Eligibility
Must meet ONE of the following criteria:
- Live or work in Mountainside AND be over 30 years old
- Have played in a previous Fall season ('22, '23, '24)
Transfer Portal (Summer and Fall)
At the end of every season, all players (or full teams) have the option to:
- Return to their current team
- Declare to be re-assigned and enter the transfer portal
- Contact Matt Leonardelli and/or Jeff Chrone when registering
Competitive Rebalancing
- Rosters may be combined/adjusted season to season to improve balance
- Mandatory minimum number of players on each roster will be enforced
- Final roster numbers dictated by registration totals and number of teams
General Rules
Regular Season
Summer: 20 games per team, followed by double elimination playoffs
Fall: 12 games per team, followed by double elimination playoffs
Minimum Players to Start
Summer: A team must have 8 rostered players to start a game
- Fewer than 8 = automatic forfeit (opposing team wins 7-0)
- If neither team has 8 players, the game is recorded as a Tie
Fall: A team must have 7 rostered players to start a game
- Fewer than 7 = automatic forfeit (opposing team wins 7-0)
- If neither team has 7 players, the game is recorded as a Tie
Time Limit: No new inning starts after 60 minutes of game play
- Game 1 clock begins at scheduled time (no exceptions)
- Taking the field late = lost time
- No time limit in playoffs
Official Game: 5 full innings (or 4½ if home team is leading) must be completed
- If incomplete, game restarts on makeup date
Adding Players Mid-Game: Rostered players can be added before the start of the 4th inning
- New players bat at the bottom of the order
- No players may join after the first pitch of the 4th inning
8-Player Game Special Rule: If you have only 8 rostered players, the opposing team must provide a catcher
- This catcher cannot make any plays in the field
- Other position players cover home plate
9-Player Rule: If you have 9 players, one MUST play catcher (no courtesy catcher provided - 0 exceptions)
Ejections:
- 1st ejection: Miss remainder of game + 1 game suspension
- 2nd ejection: 3-game suspension
- 3rd ejection: Suspended for remainder of season
Fighting: Any player striking another or involved in a fight will be thrown out of the League indefinitely
Equipment: No metal spikes allowed
Substitutes: There will be NO substitutes in 2025 (0 exceptions)
In-Game Rules
Pitching
Pitch Height: Slow pitch rule 6' to 12' (no lower, no higher)
Pitcher Position: Must have one foot on the rubber while throwing
- If pitching behind the rubber, must have one foot in-line with the rubber
Pitcher Equipment: Pitchers cannot wear anything on their throwing hand
Strike Zone
Strike Extension: A rubber plate extension is used for calling strikes
- If pitch lands on home plate OR the extension = strike
Base Running
Leaving the Base: Runner must wait until contact is made
- Leaving early may result in being called out by the umpire
Scoring: Runner can touch either home plate OR the extension when scoring
Non-Contact League: Must slide or avoid contact ("give yourself up") at all times
- Applies to attempted double plays
- Hard take-out slides and baseline interference = automatic double play
Phantom Tags: Not tolerated - penalty at umpire's discretion
Batting
Count: Each batter starts with a 1-1 count
- Foul ball with 2 strikes = strikeout
- No courtesy foul
Mercy Rule
Game-Ending Mercy Rules:
- 15 runs after 4 innings
- 12 runs after 5 innings
Field Boundaries
Light Poles/Boxes:
- Above fence line = home run
- Below fence line = live ball
Catch and Carry Rule
If a ball is caught in-play and the player's momentum carries them out of play:
- Ball remains live
- Runners are NOT awarded a base
Ball Thrown Out of Play
If a ball is thrown out of play, the play is blown dead and:
- If the ball is thrown from the infield, runners are awarded 1 base
- If the ball is thrown from the outfield, runners are awarded 2 bases
Rules Controversy
If a situation arises not covered by these rules:
- Rules reps from each team discuss with umpire
- Rules committee addresses after the game
- If no agreement: umpire makes the final decision
Courtesy Runners
Pre-Game Declaration: Before each game, a team can declare up to 2 players who will get a courtesy runner for the entire game
Injury During Game: Additional courtesy runners can be used for players injured during the game
- Once an injured player takes a courtesy runner, they must use one from that point forward
- No limit on courtesy runners per inning due to injury
Who Runs: Courtesy runners are the last batted out
- No outs in current inning → last batted out from previous inning
- Need for 2nd runner before another out → revert to 2nd-to-last batted out
- No recorded outs in first inning → last person in batting order
- Same runner cannot run twice consecutively
Scheduling
Schedule Lock: Entire regular season and playoff schedule set and locked before season start
Weather Rescheduling: Games only rescheduled due to weather
- Rainout dates built into schedule
- Added to days where games are already being played
Team Cannot Field 8 Players: Opposing captain can either:
- Take a forfeit win, OR
- Choose to reschedule with the other captain
Both Teams Cannot Field 8 Players: Game recorded as a Tie or rescheduled by mutual agreement
Post Season Start Date: Hard start date for playoffs
- Summer: If teams haven't completed 20 regular season games, standings determined by winning percentage
- Fall: If teams haven't completed 12 regular season games, standings determined by winning percentage
Playoff Eligibility
Minimum Games Required: To be eligible for playoffs, you must play in at least 6 of your team's regular season games
Equipment
Eligible Bats:
- Only wooden bats are allowed
Softballs Used:
- Clinchers supplied by the League