2025 Northwoods Baseball Classic Rules – 12U Division

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Eligibility

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No player will be 13 years old or older before May 1st, 2025. Team rosters are limited to 15 players. Teams must provide birth certificates to the tournament director upon request. Failure to do so will result in disqualification with no refund.

 

Players are allowed to play on only one team per division; players are not to be shared. 

 

Tournament Rules

 

This tournament is 46’ (pitching distance), 60’ (bases) 

All 2025 Little League International rules apply with the following exceptions and clarifications:

 

Safety

 

1.    Tournament sponsors are not liable for injuries occurring during the tournament.  

2.    Coaches may warm up a pitcher between innings.

3.    Runners must avoid contact with defensive players at home plate. Failure to do so will result in the runner being called out.

4.    Players may not slide head first except when returning to a base. Players sliding head first when advancing to the next base will be called out.

5.    Metal spikes are not allowed.

6.    On-deck batters are allowed. Players coaching bases must wear a batting helmet.

7.    Defensive coaches must remain in the dugout or adjacent to the dugout door.

8.    Only team coaches and players are allowed in the bench area.

9.    Use of bat doughnuts is not allowed.

 

Game Preliminaries

 

1. Bats rules: 

*All bats must be marked with the USA or BBCOR stamp

• No longer than 32 inches
• No specific weight/length ratio limit
• Wood, metal, or composite is allowed
• Non-wood and multi-piece wood bats must be USA or BBCOR bat-certified
• Barrel diameter for any bat may be no larger than 2 -5/8"

 

COACHES ARE RESPONSIBLE FOR VERIFYING THAT BATS MEET THESE STANDARDS. 

*Procedure if the team is discovered using an illegal bat:

*Before the batter steps into the box: If detected, the umpire can direct the player to switch to a legal bat. There is no penalty and the bat is removed from the dugout. 

*After the batter is in the box: The batter is considered to have used the illegal bat as soon as he steps into the box.
 

Penalty: The batter is out and all runners return to the base occupied at the start of the at-bat. Any runner advance that did not come as a result of the plate appearance (balk, stolen base, etc.) is permitted. The illegal bat must be discovered before the first pitch to the next batter. 

*The first offense for an illegal bat results in a bench ejection (restricted to the bench) for the head coach. A second infraction by the same team results in the ejection of the head coach. 

2.    Players’ shirts must be tucked in at all times.

3.    Pitchers may not wear wristbands or white long-sleeve undershirts.

4.    Players must remove all jewelry.

5.    A coin flip will decide the home team.

6.    Prior to the beginning of each game, each team must decide to bat their entire lineup with free substitution or bat nine and substitute per Little League rules.

7.    A pitcher removed from the game may not return as a pitcher in that game.

8.    There are no minimum playing time regulations for this tournament.

9. The time between games is for the maintenance of fields, not infield practice. No infield practice will be allowed before any game during the tournament.

 

Starting and Ending the Game

 

1.    Game length is 6 innings or 1 hour 30 minutes, therefore, games may end with a tied score during pool play.  During the seeded round the following applies:  For ties after 6 innings or at the 1 hour 30 minute time limit, the offense will start with a runner on second base (the last batter of the previous inning).  There is a 2-hour dead stop. At 2 hours, the score will revert to the score of the last complete inning unless that score was also a tie.  If this occurs, a runner will be placed at third base with both teams given their chance to bat until a winning score is achieved.  

 

*There is no time limit for the Championship game.  California Rule will still be in effect if the game remains ties after 6 innings.  Coaches will be reminded of this by the umpires before the Championship game is played.*

 

2.    Run rules will be in effect for all games as follows: 15 runs after 3 complete innings (2 ½ if the home team is ahead), 10 runs after 4 complete innings (3 ½ if the home team is ahead), and 8 runs after 5 complete innings (4 ½ if the home team is ahead).  

3.    A team must have 9 players to start a game and 7 players to finish once the game has started. No new players may be added during a game. If you choose to bat 9 and finish with less than 9, outs will be taken for empty spots in the batting order.

4.    A game shortened by rain is a complete game if 4 complete innings have been played, 3 ½ innings if the home team is ahead. A game called prior to this point will be a suspended game and will continue from the point the game was suspended when play can resume.

5.    The score of a game called after 4 complete innings will be the score at the time the game is called if the home team is ahead or the score at the end of the last complete inning if the away team is leading at the time the game is called.  

6.    In the event a game is called due to rain after 4 complete innings and there is a tie at the time the game is called, the game will be a suspended game and will continue from the point that play was suspended when play can resume.

 

Batters & Runners

​1. Runners can steal a base once the pitch crosses home plate.
2. Runners may advance all bases including home (passed ball, wild pitch or dropped third strike).
3. The batter may advance to 1st base on a dropped 3rd strike unless the base is occupied and less than 2 outs.
4. A courtesy runner must be used for the next inning’s catcher when there are two outs. Courtesy runners are not allowed prior to there being two outs. The courtesy runner is the player who made the last out. No other courtesy runners are allowed.
5. One offensive time-out for a coach/batter conference is allowed per inning. 

 

Pitchers 

1. A player may pitch 2 innings per game. There are no pitch count limits. Throwing one pitch in an inning constitutes an inning pitched. A pitcher may not return once removed from a game.     

2. There are no restrictions on playing the catcher position after pitching or pitching after catching. 

3. A pitcher is allowed up to 8 warm-ups when entering a game and 5 pitches between innings for an existing pitcher.                                                                                                                     

4. A pitcher must be removed on the second mound visit made by a coach in an inning. A coach may not make more than one mound visit during the same batter. 

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Umpires 

1. Umpires are to be treated with respect at all times. Umpire abuse will not be tolerated. Ejection from the game or team disqualification from the tournament may result. Managers are responsible for themselves, their coaches, players, and fans. 

2. There are no protests and the decision of the field umpires is final. 

3. Any umpire’s decision that involves judgment, such as, but not limited to whether a batted ball is fair or foul, whether a pitch is a strike or a ball, or whether a runner is safe or out, is final. No player, manager, coach, or substitute shall object to any such judgment decisions.

4. If there is reasonable doubt that any umpire’s decision may be in conflict with the rules, the manager may appeal the decision and ask that a correct ruling be made. Such appeal shall be made only to the umpire who made the protested decision. 

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*THE TOURNAMENT DIRECTOR MAY MODIFY THE RULES AND FORMAT OF GAMES IN THE BEST INTEREST OF COMPLETING THE TOURNAMENT (I.E. WEATHER/TIME CONSTRAINTS).  THESE CHANGES WILL BE COMMUNICATED TO COACHES IN ADVANCE OF ANY ALTERED CONTESTS*.