Bears Blastoff Bash

PITCHING: All incoming pitches must be in an underhand motion. There are no arc restrictions.

BATS: All bats must be approved for ASA play. A player using a non-approved bat will be ruled out and will be ejected from the game. If you have a question about a bat, ask.

MERCY RULE: 15 runs after four or more complete innings. Home team is entitled to their at-bats if necessary.

SLIDING: Sliding is strongly encouraged in an effort to avoid a collision. If a runner creates unnecessary contact with a fielder, he will be ruled out and is subject to ejection.

COUNT: This is a one-pitch tournament. Any pitch that hits the plate or mat is considered a strikeout. All foul balls are outs.

FIELDERS: Teams can play up to 10 fielders at a given time.

BATTING ORDER: All fielding players must bat. Teams can bat as many players as they wish.

PINCH RUNNERS: Teams may use one pinch runner per inning. No player can pinch run twice in the same game.

HOME RUN LIMIT: Teams can hit as many home runs as they wish.

DEAD BALL ZONE: The dead ball area is marked by a painted white pole one fence length from the dugout area. Any ball that hits the fence or equipment in this area is considered dead. Players may invade the area for the purpose of catching a fly ball. The fence line extended down the baselines will also mark a dead ball zone. If a player carries a ball out of play, players will be awarded a bases based on the plus-one system.

PLUS-ONE: In the event of an overthrow, baserunners receive the base they were attempting to gain at the time of the throw, plus the one in front of them. If a baserunner is not attempting to gain a base, they will receive just the base immediately in front of them.

COIN FLIP: Home team for all games except the finals will be determined by two flips of the coin. The umpire will assign each team heads or tails on the first flip. The winning team will call the second flip in the air. In the finals, the winner’s bracket team is home. If the loser’s bracket teams win the first game, they are home for the second game.

OPEN FIELD: Any ball that reaches the tree line or the sand piles in the air is a home run. Any ball that hits the ground before rolling into the trees or rock pile will be a ground-rule double.