Kickball Rules – SJ

We are all here to have a good time so PLAY NICE. We all have to go to work tomorrow.

PLAYERS: 9 Fielders per team on the field

SUBSTITUTIONS: Free substitutions in the field. Everyone kicks.

FIELD: Regulation softball field in size, either played on grass or a diamond

EQUIPMENT: 10” red playground ball

INNINGS: A regulation game is 9 innings or 55 minutes, whichever comes first

SCORING: A tie game after 9 innings will be declared a tie unless, time permitting, both captains and the umpire agree to continue play. In the event that the game goes into overtime and the lights go out at any point during the inning, the game will be called a TIE even if the away team is ahead.

COED RULES: 9 fielders (6 min), 6 men maximum, 2 women minimum for a non-forfeited game

PLAY: This game is based on softball with some added rules a. Fielders

Must have 3 outfielders, 1 pitcher’s helper, 1 catcher, and 4 infielders

Outfielders must be at least 20 feet beyond the baseline until kicker makes contact.

Infielders (including pitcher) must be behind the 1st to 3rd diagonal until kicker makes contact

Catcher must be at least 3 feet behind the plate

No switching positions i.e. left field coming in to play 3rd base for one batter then going back into left field

Pitching

Teams pitch to their own batters in any style they choose

Each batter has 3 pitches to kick the ball in play or will be called out

Limit of 2 “over the fence” homeruns per game – subsequent “over the fence” homeruns will be outs.

Kicking

All players kick and must kick with a max of 2 men in a row i.e. guy/guy/girl/guy/guy/girl or guy/girl/guy/guy/girl etc. except at the end/beginning of the lineup you may have 3

Ball must cross the plate before it is kicked or a foul ball is called

A fair ball must cross the bunt line in fair territory before it is touched

Balls touched by any body part before the bunt-line are foul

Runners

You MAY slide head or feet first while running the bases.

Force plays are same as softball/baseball.

Runners may tag up. A player can tag up and advance after the ball is caught and ruled an out.

Runners may be thrown out by hitting them directly with the ball.

Balls may not be thrown at runners above the shoulders and if contact is made with the head or neck, except when sliding, the runner is out.

No leading off or stealing.

Runners passing the commit line between 3rd and home must advance or be called out.

It is always a force at home (even with no runners on 1st and 2nd)

If a runner is hit by the ball, the play remains live

If a runner intentionally runs into a fielder, or is out of control when running and runs into a fielder, they will be called OUT. This is completely up to the discretion of the umpire and may not be argued.

Runners MUST use the safety plate upon reaching first base except on an outfield hit, they may round the inside base.

Runners MUST always use the safety plate at home OR BE CALLED OUT.

WIN THE LEAGUE: Top teams will make the playoffs and compete in a single elimination tournament to determine the league champion.

ALCOHOL: Smoking and alcohol are forbidden. We use public youth fields for many of our leagues and it is illegal to use tobacco or alcohol on the property.

HAVE FUN!!!

1. Definitions

A foul is:

A kick landing in foul territory and touched before re-entering fair territory

A kick that lands in fair territory but travels into foul territory before passing 1st or 3rd base except when touched by a player before going into foul territory

A kick made beyond home plate

A kick that does not cross the “bunt” line

A ball that is fielded by a fielder before it crosses the bunt line NOTE: If a foul ball is caught i.e. in deep left field, a base-runner may advance at their discretion

An out is:

After 3 pitches the ball is not kicked into play

Any kicked ball that is caught in the air.  This includes a ball that is kicked in front of the plate and subsequently called foul

A ball tag on a base to which a runner is forced to run

A runner touched by a ball at any time while not on a base

A runner leading off a base

A runner that intentionally runs into a fielder, or is out of control and runs into a fielder

2. Field

The field is either a standard softball field, or a field set up like one

The bunt line is a diagonal that connects the 1st and 3rd base lines, 30 ft from the plate on either side

The Commit Line is half way between 3rd base and home plate (see Running)

By popular demand, Home runs occur if, on the fly, a ball hits any part of the trees in the outfield (inside the foul lines), a “foul pole”, or lands on, is played on the fly on, or over the concrete.

A ground rule double occurs if a ball lands before the concrete and then rolls over the concrete on any field. If a player touches the ball before it rolls over the concrete, it is considered live, but please be careful if you have cleats on.

A foul ball will be called if a ball hits the right field light pole on field 3.

3. Equipment

All players should wear their ZogSports team shirts

The official ball is an 10” playground ball fully inflated

Players may wear non-metal cleats

4. Teams

Team rosters shall consist of 13-20 members

A maximum of 9 players on the field during play

A minimum of 6 players is required to not incur a forfeit (2 female minimum)

No more than 6 males on the field

If a team cannot field the minimum by 5 minutes after game time, the game will be a forfeit unless alternate agreements are made by team captains – ie a team forfeits its first at bat

5. Game Play

All present players kick in the lineup

All players will kick with a max of 2 guys kicking in a row even when short females – a team short on females, must have one female kick a minimum of 2 times in the lineup

The kicking order cannot change unless due to injury where the player is simply removed from the lineup (but may not deviate from the max of 2 guys in a row)

Non-rostered subs are not allowed to play, but teams may recruit existing kickball players from other teams to help field a team (max of 3, but must have 6 of their own to count as a legitimate game)

Subs will never be allowed in the playoffs

6. Regulation Games

A regulation game consists of 9 innings or 55 minutes

Slaughter rule – New for Summer seasons 2017 – Any team up by 10 runs after 5 full innings or 15 runs after 7 innings shall be declared the winner. The teams may continue to play, but the score will be frozen prior to continuation of play.

If the game ends in a tie, then it is a tie

Time permitting: both team captains and the umpire may agree to play an additional inning but no inning will begin aft 50 minutes

7. Fielding

The defense consists of a Pitcher’s Helper, Catcher, 1B, 2B,3B,SS and 3 Outfielders

Outfielders must stay at least 20 feet behind the infield until the ball is kicked

No player may advance beyond the 1st/3rd base diagonal before the ball is kicked

If any player (except the catcher) advances beyond the 1st/3rd base diagonal before the ball is kicked, the pitch is considered a ball or if the ball is kicked, and the offending player makes a play on the runner, the runner is safe

Fielders must allow runners to tag a base if the ball has not beat the runner to the base

“Modified” infield Fly Rule: If the ball is popped up in the infield, the defense may not intentionally knock the ball down to get the double play. One out will be called on intentional drops and runners may not advance bases. This is up to the umpire’s discretion and may not be argued

In the event that a team is short players, they may place defenders at any position on the field they see fit. A catcher is not required if a team is short players, but an infield player must cover home plate in the event of a play

A game that ends after 5 innings is considered a regulation game

If a game is called off before 5 innings, every attempt will be made to make up the game. If the game is unable to be made up, the game will be considered a tie

There is a 7 run limit per inning except in the last inning where no limit exists, except if time does not permit

8. Pitching

All teams pitch to their own players in any style they choose

Each batter has 3 pitches to kick the ball into play or he/she will be out

The catcher must stay at least 3 feet behind and out of the way of the kicker until the ball is kicked. However, once the kicker runs up, the catcher is allowed to follow, keeping a 3 foot distance at all times

A pitcher getting in the way of a play will be grounds for an out as determined by the umpire.

9. Kicking

All kicks must be made by foot.

All kicks must be taken at or behind home plate or a foul will be called.

A ball kicked in front of home plate may still be caught for an out at which point, the play is live

Runners may not advance, be tagged out, or forced out if the foul ball is kicked on the ground

Bunting is allowed as long as it crosses the bunt line

Limit of 2 “over the fence” homeruns per team, per game. Subsequent “over the fence” homeruns will be outs

10. Bunt Line

The bunt line is located approximately 20 feet in front of home plate and extends toward the 1st and 3rd base lines (30ft from the plate on either base line)

All kicks must cross the bunt line to be considered fair

Balls not crossing the bunt line are fouls and count as 1 of 3 pitches

A ball that is touched before it crosses the bunt line is a foul

11. Ball in Play

Once the “pitcher’s helper” has control of the ball in the pitching area (10 foot radius around the mound), the play is over

If the runner is already half-way to the next base, he or she may continue.

This is COMPLETELY up to the discretion of the umpire and may not be argued

12. Running

Runners must stay in the base line. If a runner leaves the baseline to avoid the ball or being tagged, they are out

Fielders must stay out of the baseline to avoid collisions

If a fielder interferes with a runner in the baseline, the runner safely advances to the next base they were approaching – at umpire discretion

Fielders making a play on a base must lean out of the baseline when making a play on the bag otherwise the runner will be considered safe

Leading off and stealing are not allowed. A runner leading off the base before the ball is kicked is out

It is always a force play at home. Fielders may still tag or throw the ball at runners who advance past the commit line, but they must stand on the actual home plate to get a force out

Hitting the runner above the shoulders is prohibited except if they slide or duck

If the runner is hit above the shoulders the runner advances to the base they were approaching

If the runner intentionally uses the neck or head to block the ball, the runner is out

Tag ups are allowed once the ball is touched by a fielder, not necessarily when the ball is finally caught

All ties go to the runner

There are no limits on advancing bases on an over-throw unless the errant ball is touched by someone who is on the advancing team or a bystander

Pinch Running: A pinch runner may only be the same sex as the runner coming off the base; and it must be the player that was last up to bat and that is not on base at the time the pinch runner is needed – for injury only

13. Sportsmanship

Please remember we are here to have fun. Show sportsmanship toward your teammates, opponents, and officials at all times. Don’t be THAT GUY.

If you are playing short stop, 3rd base, or left field and the umpire yells “safe” on a close play at 1st base, don’t say “he was totally out.” It’s both annoying and very unlikely that your view was better than the umpire’s. If you’d like to make calls on a consistent basis, we’re hiring!

14. Tournament

The top 4-12 teams will go to the single elimination tournament based on season rankings and time available on the field. The top teams will be determined by record (3 points for a win, 1 point for a tie, 0 points for a loss).

Forfeits are considered a 7-0 loss for the forfeiting team.

In the event that there is a tie after 9 innings, standard rules for extra innings will apply.

All other playoff scenarios that occur will be treated on a case by case basis.

Tie breakers for playoffs/seedings

1. Total number of points
2. Head-to-head competition
3. If team forfeited, loses tie breaker if other tiebreaker rules don’t resolve seeding
4. Record against other teams in or tied for playoffs (winning percentage – i.e., 0-1 is same as 0-2, but 1-3 is better than 0-1)
5. Number of wins
6. Record against next best common opponent
7. Coin toss

FORFEIT NOTIFICATION

To forfeit, please fill out this form.

Forfeits ruin the experience for everyone. ZogSports exists to give you an opportunity to play and build community and forfeiting is a huge bummer. If your team absolutely needs to forfeit, you must let us know in advance so we can contact your opponent so that they don’t unnecessarily travel to the gym/field.

If you do not inform us of a forfeit your team could face penalties in your league’s standings. Once ZogSports is notified of your forfeit, it is final (you cannot change your mind) and the other team will be notified.

CODE OF CONDUCT: The Participant’s Code of Conduct applies to all ZogSports participants. You can access the ZogSports Participant’s Code of Conduct HERE.