Sackville Minor Baseball

1) There should be equal innings for all players. At various times during the season and at the end of the year the total innings every player plays should be very close. This is meant to be innings available to play (minus not being able to play due to injury/away/discipline/etc).

2) Batting order should be varied so all players get to bat first, second etc. 

3) There should be equal opportunity to try various positions (pitcher/catcher/infield/etc). There are of course safety issues here and a coach must feel the player can try a position without getting hurt but if a player would like to try pitching, let them try. We realize new players may struggle with new positions but that's how they learn and we do have the five run rule plus the "no walk" rule in Rookie and Mosquito. The whole idea is to develop players and let them have fun. In the older age groups - mainly Bantam and Midget - players usually have at least two positions they play. These positions should be rotated between players.

4) In recreational ball all players in the line-up bat and there is free substitution at the start of each inning.

5) Baseball Nova Scotia has recognized the need for fair play and made a special category for House teams to play in Provincials. The rules are basically the same as in our House leagues (free substitution/everyone bats/5 run rule/etc). Entries for provincials usually must be made by July 1st through Baseball Nova Scotia.

The concept of fair play reduces the emphasis on winning "at all cost" and focuses more on letting the players have fun and having them develop their skills. THIS GOAL SHOULD ALSO INCLUDE UMPIRES. While we have made great progress in this area in the past, WE STILL AREN'T THERE YET. We continue to have some coaches, parents and players verbally abuse our young umpires and ONE IS TOO MANY. Please remember, just as our young players make mistakes in learning the game so will our young umpires. Be patient, be encouraging and BE HELPFUL.

We ask every team to have a coach or manager keep a chart sheet of every game showing which players were available to play a game, the positions players played, how many innings each player played and the number of pitches each pitcher pitched. This should be available to parents/players/Home Association if they ask.