Diamond Baseball League: D.B.L. BYLAWS

Diamond Baseball League by-laws

Article I:Name & Purpose

 Section A: This organization shall be known as the Amateur Baseball Association of Massachusetts D/B/A/ Diamond Baseball League, and shall be on an amateur standing. The league is incorporated under the laws of the Commonwealth of Massachusetts.

Section B: The purpose of the league shall be to protect and stimulate competition among amateur baseball teams in Southeastern Massachusetts.

Section C: All franchises and team members agree to abide by the by-laws of the Amateur Baseball Association of Massachusetts D/B/A/ Diamond Baseball League.

Article II:Memberhsip

Section A: The membership of this league shall consist of duly elected and accepted baseball teams, each one of which shall hold a franchise in the league. Any team holding a franchise in this league shall retain and exercise its franchise without need for re-acceptance to membership, providing that it has fulfilled all of its obligations to the league.

Section B: Applications for new franchises will be reviewed by the league officials; the league officials will report its findings and recommendations with the current franchises. A new franchise may be elected to membership by achieving a favorable majority of the league officials and a majority voting at a league meeting. Each application for membership will be acted upon individually. New franchises will be acted upon no later than the Febuary meeting of the membership.

Section C: Membership status may be revoked by a  majority of the franchises present and voting at a league meeting. Any franchise whose membership is in jeopardy shall be notified, in writing, by the Commissioner of the charges against them and be given the opportunity to respond to the charges at a league meeting conducted no earlier than seven days from the date of written notification from the commissioner.

 Article III: Officers

Section A: President He/she is the chief executive officer of the league and is responsible for its overall functioning and security. He/she is the chief operating officer of the league and is responsible for calling meetings, issuing an agenda for all meetings, and presiding over same. He/she shall appoint committees deemed necessary for the proper operation of the league. He/she is responsible for ensuring that all league games are conducted in accordance with league rules. He/she shall administer the schedule of all league games. He/she shall supervise the conduct of all playoff games. He/she shall reschedule any postponed, suspended, or tied games in the regular season as well as in the playoffs. The president shall appoint annually no fewer than two (2) persons to a Board of Appeals to rule on all protests and act as chairman of the Board of Appeals. Associate Commissioner

Section B: The Secretary shall perform the league duties as delegated by the commissioner.

Section E: The Treasurer shall be appointed by the commissioner and shall be responsible for keeping an account of all league revenue and expenditures. He/she shall submit a report of same at each meeting of the league.

Section F: Umpire-In-Chief,the role of the Umpire-In-Chief will be to assign umpires to league games and to assure the appropriate level of quality officiating in league games.

Section G: The Board of Appeals shall rule on all game protests and team player suspensions. The board will consist of a minimum of two (2) league officers, chaired by the commissioner. All rulings by the Board of Appeals shall be final and binding.

Article IV: Voting Privileges and Procedures Member Club Section

Section A: Each member club is entitled to one vote on all matters brought to a vote at any league meeting at which it is represented.

Section B: The Commissioner, or in his absence his/her designee, is entitled to vote if there is a tie vote among member clubs at a league meeting.

Section C: Presence of Majority of the league's club representatives shall be sufficient for conducting business at a league meeting. 

Section D: All matters brought to a vote at league meetings shall be decided by a simple majority of club representatives present and voting unless otherwise specified in these bylaws.

Article V: Dues

Section A: Annual dues of member franchises shall be established by the league president prior to March 1 of each year.

Section B: Each member franchise shall submit its league dues in full to the commissioner before May 1. Failure to do so will result in forfeiture of membership. A new member must submit the sum of $500.00 to the commissioner at the time of being accepted as a league member. This sum will be in addition to its annual dues and is non-refundable. Upon payment, the money will become the property of the Diamond League Baseball League.

Article VI: Schedule Schedule Deadline Section

Section A: The regular season schedule of league games shall be submitted by the commissioner at a league meeting prior to March 15 of each year. Prior to March 15, member franchises must indicate to the commissioner the dates on which their home field is available, and their desire to schedule home doubleheaders. After the schedule is approved, no changes may be made without the approval of the commissioner.

Section B: The starting time of weekday regular season games shall be set by the commissioner. Starting times for night, holiday, Saturday, and Sunday games shall be set by the commissioner. A team unable to field nine players at the scheduled time may have an additional 15 minutes before a forfeiture is awarded and an additional 15 minutes before the second game of a doubleheader is forfeited.

Article VII: Team Rosters and Player Eligibility Player Eligibility

Section A: No player shall be paid for his playing services by any team in the league. If said player is found guilty, he will be suspended for the rest of the season. The team will forfeit every game that the player was compensated for and participated in.

Article VIII: Post-Season Format

Section A: Prior to the opening of the regular season, the executive committee, with the approval of the league exectutives, will design a playoff format.

Section B : The team with the highest league standing for the year shall be the home team for the first and deciding games, unless otherwise directed by the commissioner.

Article IX: League Standings

Section A: Standings shall be determined by club wins and losses. The commissioner shall establish a procedure for the reporting of game scores.

Section B: All regular season games must be played. The commissioner shall directly supervise the re-scheduling of any postponements during the final ten days of the regular season. Teams which tie for post-season playoff positions shall determine their playoff seeding using the tie-breakers as outlined in Appendix A.

Article X: The Diamond Baseball League Rules

Section A: The American League rulebook shall govern the playing of all league games except rules that are specific to the Diamond Baseball League as contained herein.

Section C: No league-sanctioned games may start with less than one league assigned umpire present. Only league-assigned umpires may be used for scheduled games. League umpire assessments may not be used for nonscheduled league games.

Section D: Postponements for any other reason may be made only with the approval of the commissioner. Failure to obtain approval will result in a forfeit by the team. The commissioner may grant a waiver in the case of extenuating circumstances.

Section E: All Saturday, Sunday, and holiday double headers shall be scheduled for seven innings. Weekday games and doubleheaders shall consist of seven innings. An 10-Run Mercy Rule shall be in effect in both games of a doubleheader and all games played under lights. Under the mercy rule, the game will end and a win will be awarded when the home team is ahead by at least 10 runs after 4 1/2 innings or behind by at least 10 runs after 5 complete innings. Teams should attempt to play beyond seven innings in the event of a tie unless halted by darkness, curfew, or inclement weather. Playoff games shall be played the prescribed number of innings. If interrupted by weather or darkness, they shall be completed from the point of interruption on the next scheduled playoff date, if so directed by the commissioner. The team trailing in score at the time of suspension may elect to waive this provision and accept the score as it stands.

Section F: A team which forfeits a game shall pay to the commissioner a fine of  all umpire fees for both teams and any additional expenses incurred by the Diamond Baseball League (lights, field) in full for games that are forfeited. Payment must be made before the team's next scheduled game or within 48 hours of originally scheduled game. Fines must be in the hands of the commissioner at that time; failure to do so will result in successive forfeits until all fines are paid.

Section G: A team will be suspended from further league play if it has forfeited games on two separate dates during a season. Its remaining scheduled games shall be recorded as forfeits and its membership in the league shall be revoked upon reveiw. The balance of fees and umpire assessment, if any, shall become the property of the Diamond Baseball League. Said team may re-apply for membership the following year and if accepted must pay a $500.00 fee.

Section H: The commissioner shall award a forfeit for the use of ineligible players.

Section K:  Code of conduct

Inappropriate or foul language directed at another player, umpire, or spectator or within the hearing range of spectators or newspaper reporters. (action upon review)        

 Physical threats made to an umpire, player, or spectator. (Minimum Three Game Suspension, plus further review) 

 Physical Contact - Such as bumping/pushing. (Minimum One Game Suspension, plus further review) 

Intimidating any player or Umpire (Minimum One Game Suspension, plus further review)

Unsportsmanlike Conduct - such as throwing equipment, or directing negative comments towards the opposition.  Trash talking is also not allowed.

Constant or re-occurring complaining about calls or umpire performance.  Respectfully questioning a call is acceptable, but any grievances with umpires cannot be directed at the umpire in question or the umpire in chief. 

Those issues must be communicated with the League Director of Umpires. •1)     The league president has the right to suspend or ban any team member who abuses league rules or who does not exhibit a sense of sportsmanship or who plays without regard to the safety of the umpires or other players. •2)     If a player not involved in a play, leaves the dugout or coaches box to argue a play, he will be automatically ejected and suspend for one game.  Managers are the only team members allowed to come out of the dugout or coaches box to argue, all players must remain in the dugout.  Shouting at the umpire from the dugout is also not allowed and is cause for immediate ejection. 3)    Fighting among players, or aggressive physical contact with an umpire will not be tolerated.  Players ejected from a game for either violation will be subject to suspension from the league president. 4)    Verbal Abuse of umpires will not be tolerated.  Yelling, threatening, or intimidation is prohibited    Players who exhibit this type of behavior will be subject to disciplinary actions from the league president. 5)     Beer or any type of alcohol is not allowed at any city field.  If a player or team is caught drinking on city grounds, before, during or after a game they will be automatically suspended and possibly removed from their team's active roster.  This policy must also be followed by any player attending an DBL game that he is not involved in. •6)     Any team that does not live up to the code of conduct will not be allowed to continue their membership in the league.  The president will make the final decision on the membership status of any offending team or player.  Membership can be revoked at any time.

All ejections and fines can be appealed. The appeal will be heard by the Commissioner, President, Team Representativef. All fines can be rescinded or reduced at their discretion. 

Section L:  If players or coaches leave their positions to participate in a fight, they shall be ejected and suspended from the team's next three games, beginning with the 2nd game of a doubleheader if appropriate. (A player who remains in his position and is judged to be defending himself or a player who is attempting to prevent a fight shall not be ejected or suspended). A batter or runner who initiates a fight by charging the pitcher or a pitcher who leaves the mound to initiate a fight will be ejected and receive a three game suspension. The second offense is suspension for the season. All other ejection rules will be enforced.

Section M:  If a pitcher is ejected for intentionally throwing at a batter, he shall be suspended for the team's next game, beginning with the 2nd game of a doubleheader if appropriate. If a warning to the teams had been previously given, then the manager shall be ejected as well and be suspended for one game, beginning with the 2nd game of a doubleheader if appropriate. All other ejection rules will be enforced.

Section N:  Game personnel will not use language that reflects negatively on opposing players, coaches, umpires or spectators. The umpire will issue one warning and if the abuse continues, will eject the offending personnel. If the abuse does not subside or if it cannot be ascertained who the offending individual is, the manager shall be ejected. All other ejection rules will be enforced. 

Section O: Games are to be protested in accordance with Official Rule 4.19. No later than 24 hours following the game, the manager of the protesting team must submit in writing to the commissioner the reason for the protest.  The commissioner shall respond to the protest within 72 hours of its receipt.

Section P: A designated hitter may be used in accordance with Official Rule 6.10.

Section Q: Visiting teams may have use of the field 15 minutes before the start of  games. All practice on the field shall end five minutes before scheduled start of a game. There shall be no practice time allotted between games of a doubleheader. Teams shall be ready to present lineup cards to the umpires and to review ground rule five minutes before the scheduled start of each game.

Article XI: Equipment

Section A: All players and base coaches shall be in proper, complete team uniform.

Section B: The home team is responsible for supplying all balls necessary to complete a game. Only one brand of ball will be used during the course of the season.

Section C: All batters, base runners, and catchers must wear protective helmets. The batter's helmet shall have an ear flap on the side facing the pitcher.

Section D: Wooden bats (including bamboo and composite) that meet the specifications of the American League Rules will be used. The use of aluminum bats is prohibited.

Article XII: Adoption of By-Laws

Section A: These by-laws will be effective upon reveiw and approval by league heads at a league meeting.

Section B: These by-laws may not be amended at any point unless otherwise designated by the president and commissioner.

Appendix A: Tie Breakers

In the event of a tie for a position in the standings, tiebreakers will be:

1. Most Wins,

2. Record vs. Tied Teams

3. Most Runs Scored vs. Tied Teams

4. Least Runs Allowed vs. Tied Teams

5. Most Runs Scored vs. All Teams

6. Least Runs Scored vs. All Teams

7. Coin Flip