As a Board, we wanted to address the accusations that are being posted on social media about the PALL Board’s decisions in regards to replacing players that are lost for the season.
As you have likely heard, a Majors team lost a player to a broken bone that has him out for the rest of the season. Along with the trauma to the player and the loss of his season, it puts this Majors team in an unfortunate situation. It’s not the first time that this has happened and it likely won’t be the last.
Pacifica American Little League is governed by Little League International and from those guidelines we develop our Local League Rules. These rules include the rule of play that Coaches follow during games as well as what we, as a PALL Board, follow when making decisions that affect every player in the league.
In our local rules, Section 5, gives guidance and direction about players. The sub-section 5.16 to 5.16.5 which are listed below explain the steps the league must follow.
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5.16 If a team loses a player (# of players per team is determined at the conclusion of the draft) for the remainder of the season, the Manager must select a replacement player through the Player Agent from the CAL(Minor) Division or the Player's Agent's list of waiting players within ten (10) days.
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5.16.1 The Manager will identify several possible replacement players from the CAL(Minor) Division and provide the names and order of preference of the players to the Player Agent.
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5.16.2 The Player Agent will approach the identified players and their parents for approval.
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5.16.3 If a replacement player has not been selected within this time period, the Player Agent will select a player for the team (if there is still a player willing to move up to the Majors Division).
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5.16.4 If a player refuses to be brought up to the Majors Division, that player forfeits the opportunity to move up to the division for the remainder of the season.
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5.15.5 Players will not be moved up during the last two (2) weeks of the regular season.
When this Majors Team had a player leave at the start of the season, the Player Agent reached out to all CAL(Minor) Division players on the call-up list to find a permanent replacement player for the season. A Minors player who had requested Majors placement initially was willing to go up permanently and was placed on the team. With the second Majors player getting injured with only two weeks left in the regular season, the PALL Board voted to allow the Player Agent to call up players off the CAL(Minor) Division list for the remaining two weeks of the season and playoffs so that the team would have a 9th player and not be forced to have an automatic out at each at 9th position at-bat, in accordance to Little League rules and regulations.
The Coach of this Majors team asked President Tim Barry if the Board would allow a non-registered, non-waitlisted player to be added to the team. On Monday, May 10th there was a special Board meeting held to discuss this request. The Board unanimously voted that adding an unregistered player this late in the season did not follow the guidelines of the local rule book and that we should move forward to support the team in accordance with the guidelines already in place. Not only would overturning this rule potentially set a precedent for the future (the ability to late-register players to ‘stack’ a team before playoffs) but several board members cited previous situations, including in the current year, when players were lost for the season or individual games and substitute players were called-up from the lower division.
Additionally, the Board did not feel that it was fair to make an exception to the rules that have already been agreed upon by both HMB and PNLL leagues who the Majors teams are currently competing against, given that they did not have a voice in the discussion. There have already been complaints in regards to the playing of 8 players without the automatic 9th out in regular season games by this Majors team and the Board felt that it was not fair to allow preferential treatment to a PALL team that was not in accordance with the rules.
Subsequently, the PALL Board reached out to PNLL and HMB Board of Directors and were given support in our decision to not allow a late-registered player and to move forward with allowing CAL(Minors) call-up players at each game, whom we have readily available.
Upon further discussion at a second meeting on May 14th, the Board found that Little League International rule updates for 2021 has made an addendum to not force the 9th out when a team plays with 8 players.
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6.05 - A batter is out when –(m) Softball/(n) Baseball: Local League Option: When a league permits teams to start and play games with eight (8) players, an out is called for the ninth (9th) position in the batting line-up each turn at bat. NOTE: The Board of Directors may determine if teams may skip over the ninth (9th) position without penalty;
In an effort to rectify the growing agitation within this Majors team, the PALL Board voted to allow this Majors team to not be forced a 9th out for subsequent games, should their 9th player not be in attendance and allowing them the ability to turn down a CAL (Minors) call-up player replacement without penalty.
The Board feels that we have found and provided a reasonable solution to an unideal situation, while staying within the parameters of the Little League Rules and Regulations, under guidance and support from District 52 and keeping all League players at the forefront of our minds.
Our hope is that the information provided can answer some of the questions you may have in regards to the social media posts and remind you all that we are truly working with the best interest of all of our players in mind. Given that we adhered to the league rules, at no point did we expect that one decision would cause a storm of such epic proportions to lay a cloud over our season. We hope that we can all move forward and enjoy the few games that are left in the season without further slander or accusations.
Lastly, the Board will have multiple open positions in the coming years. Should you find yourself interested in becoming a Board Member and having a voice in decisions like these, we invite you to reach out to learn more about opportunities available.
Questions and comments may be directed to President Tim Barry: president@pallball.org
PLAY BALL!
