1. Lowry Field Sunday Softball
To All,
In attempting to straddle the fine line between having a friendly Sunday pick-up game but still having some law and order so
things don't get out of hand, the following rules are in force:
1) There is a $5 fee per person per season to cover the costs of balls, cones, bases and their upkeep. Anyone playing more than
one game per season will be responsible for paying this fee. Additional fees may be added on mid-season with need
determined by the commissioner(s). To sign-up, change your email or for questions/comments, please send an email to
shatnes551@yahoo.com
2) Each game permits a maximum of 20 players. The Evite will allow 22 "YES" responses, with #21 and #22 serving as
reserves. Please check Saturday night/Sunday morning to see if anyone backed out and you've been moved into the top 20 if
you were originally #21 or #22. Games may be cancelled Saturday night or early Sunday morning due to inclement weather.
3) Batting practice begins at 9AM and teams will be picked by informally chosen captains for a 9:15 start. If anyone in the top 20 is
not yet present by 9:10 according to a satellite-linked clock (i.e. cell phone), #21 or #22 (in that order) can move into a missing
person's place. Being present means being on the field or in the dugout -- not in traffic, not parking and not putting your
sneakers on in your car.
4) Games generally continue until 11:30AM. Please do not sign up to play unless you can stay until 11:30AM.
5) After picking teams, captains will pick their choice from the opposing team to serve as home plate umpire, as well as an
alternate to serve when said umpire is at bat or on base. If both the #1 choice and reserve are unavailable, the at-bat team may
appoint anyone they desire.
6) In the spirit of fun and fairness, there is to be absolutely no heckling or profanity.
7) The home plate umpire will serve as the undisputed referee and decision maker for any and all calls relative to home plate:
balls/strikes and all plays at home plate. He will also be responsible for all calls of foul vs. fair. In respect to all of these calls,
no one may argue and no one may contradict his position. Doing so constitutes a violation of the spirit of fairness with which we
all wish to play.
8) All plays are to be considered fair until and unless called foul by the home plate umpire. Balls that bounce on the base/cone line
are to be considered fair.

2. 9) Pinch hitters are never permitted but pinch runners are. Pinch runners must stand on the grass in foul territory behind the 3rd
base line and may run after it is obvious that the ball has been hit. The pinch runner may not run on the swing. The home plate
umpire will be responsible for ensuring compliance with these particulars.
10) In order to facilitate the degree of oversight asked of the home plate umpire, he shall stand immediately behind the catcher but
not behind the cage fence. At no time shall the catcher serve as umpire.
11) A pitched ball that lands on the plate may still be called as a strike if the pitch falls at an appropriately steep descent. That being
said, pitched balls landing on the plate are not automatically strikes and should not be called so in an excessive fashion. Home
plate umpires should endeavor to call balls and strikes in a fair and balanced manner, keeping in mind that this is not the Major
Leagues and that someone else will be calling balls and strikes for the other team.
12) In addition to the home plate umpire, the at-bat team will be responsible for two more umpires – one at 1st and one at 3rd. All
calls relative to the field (other than fair/foul) will be the responsibility and within the jurisdiction of these two umpires only. The
1st base umpire will have complete jurisdiction over 1st base, the 3rd base umpire will have complete jurisdiction over 3rd base,
and they will share responsibility for 2nd base. Calls made by these umpires for these bases will at all times take precedence
over the opinions of anyone else (including the home plate umpire) and arguing a call will constitute a violation of the spirit of
fairness. The 1st and 3rd base umpires shall stand adjacent to their respective bases and not engage in discussion with anyone
while game is in play. As this is not the Major Leagues, these umpires shall be able to serve as running coaches for their own
teammates.
13) In the event that the at-bat team does not provide for 1st and 3rd base umpires, or the 1st or 3rd base umpires were engaged in
discussion or otherwise distracted from their duties, all reasonably disputed plays shall be called in favor of the fielding team.
However, this does not mean to undermine the “tie-goes-to-the-runner” rule.
14) At any and for any call, the umpires may decide to collaborate or refrain from making a call in deference to another umpire if
they shall see fit, but in the absence of agreement, precedence shall follow the rules outlined above. Split decision calls at 2nd
base shall have the home plate umpire as the tie-breaker.
15) The home plate umpire will be the only one with authority to differentiate between a ball that is hit into foul territory (FOUL) and
a ball that hits the bat during the pitch but that is not considered a hit (FOUL TIP). FOUL balls caught by a fielder are
considered outs, while FOUL TIPS caught by a fielder are not outs. There is no height requirement for a FOUL ball to be caught
by a fielder for it to be considered an out.
16) Tagging up is only permitted from 3rd base. If a ball is overthrown on a tag up play, the runner at 3rd may not advance. It will
be the responsibility of the 3rd base umpire to ensure compliance with the tagging up rule. If there was no runner on 3rd base
at the start of the play, a caught ball is a dead ball, as stealing is not permitted.

3. 17) Leading and stealing are never permitted. Runners on base may begin to run only on the swing, no matter how many outs there
are or which base they are at. Pinch runners at home may not run on the swing – see rule #9.
18) Runners sliding into 1st base are automatically out.
19) The pitcher must begin the pitch in the vicinity of the pitcher’s mound rubber, but there is no requirement for his foot to be
touching it.
20) The pitcher must wait until the batter is ready before beginning to pitch, and it will be the responsibility of the home plate umpire
to adjudicate. A batter standing in the batter’s box does not mean that the batter is ready.
21) An overthrow by a fielder causing the ball to go past the 1st baseman and hit the fence automatically advances the runner one
base to 2nd. An overthrown ball that does not hit the fence is still in play and runners may advance at their own risk and can be
thrown out.
22) A fielder takes no risk in attempting to field a ball in foul territory. If caught, the ball is out. If not, the ball is foul, even if the
fielder touches the ball but fails to catch it for an out. Even if the fielder is wholly or partially in fair territory, if the ball is in the air
space of foul territory when a catch is attempted,but the fielder fails to make the catch, the ball is foul. If the fielder attempts a
catch when the ball is in the air space of fair territory and by attempting to make the catch, the fielder knocks the ball into foul
territory, the ball is fair.
23) Skipping someone in the batting order results in an automatic out for the skipped batter. The out take effect once even a single
pitch has been made to an out-of-order batter. This rule shall be enforced whether the skip in the batting order was deliberate
or inadvertent. A batter who has to miss his turn at bat for any reason and temporarily removes himself from the batting order is
not out but shall sit out the following turn in the field as a penalty.
24) If, for whatever reason, someone from the at-bat team is filling in for someone on the other team and playing the field, he shall
play no position other than catcher unless agreed upon by the entire team at-bat.
25) Before a play begins, fielders may be standing anywhere they wish – in fair territory, in foul territory and even behind the home
run fence.
26) Plays which involve balls bouncing over or passing and/or getting stuck under the “home run fence” will trigger a ground-rule
double. All runners on base advance two bases as well, even if this forces them home. A ball that bounces on the top of the
fence or fence post and then over is a home-run.

4. 27) Any rule not outlined here and not already understood to apply by the entire team for which it will apply as a penalty shall not be
applied mid-game. All plays for which the rules are doubtful are to be replayed as a do-over. For future plays/games, a
consensus shall be reached and the rule(s) shall be added by the commissioner(s) as soon as possible.