coaching 10u team

The basics:

* Nine man batting order
* DH for any one position
* A starter may be substituted for and returned once, second substitution he's done
* A sub is out of the game when substituted for
* Courtesy runners allowed for pitchers and catchers

NFHS rules for 10u?..........hunh...


RJM gave you a good start on the basics...........

To your examples...

1. No, you cant bat everyone. There is no continuous batter order allowed in Fed...bat 9, dh for one position.

2, Yes, you can start nine and sit 4....then sub in the 4... the starters can re-enter once...subs when pulled are done.

if you dont mind me asking who suggested NFHS rules for kiddie ball? Not the rules most youth teams play with and arent the most participation friendly......

Don't know the precise NFHS rules...but in California, no courtesy runners for pitcher or catcher.

But piaa_ump hints at a good question. Why would you subject 10U players to HS rules? If its a travel/tournament team...probably all good players. Accentuate participation and lots of playing time, not HS rules. You have no idea (in many cases) who will end up being the best HS players. Let them all play about the same amount. Period.

Agreed. 10U is for developing skills and fundamentals. The kids need every at bat. The kids also need as much field time as possible. That means rotating kids around to different positions during the game, bringing kids in and out and allowing the kids to play as many different spots as possible.

You gotta remember these are kids, many of them are just as interested in the base race after the game and the cookies and juice boxes that go with it as they are in playing the game. They need to learn the proper way to field, throw and hit, not learn things like substitutions and they sure as hell shouldn't be assigned to perminant positions at the 10U level. I can't even imagine trying to incorporate such rules with a bunch of learners.

I know some 10U tournaments used to use NFHS rules as a starting point. They played with a 46' mound and 65' base paths with leads, dropped 3rd strike, etc. Even those that used closed bases at 10U typically used some modified version of the NFHS rules. Most allowed an Extra Player as well so that among the "10 starters" there was free substitution...I think they also would allow any player to re-enter in the event no subs were available and an injury occurred, but the injured player could not return at that point.

I even saw a couple of travel leagues where they modified the rule to allow teams to bat their full line up, but those games were not tourney games...

I'd suggest getting a copy of the NFHS Rule Book and make sure to look at the rules for each of the tourneys as there can be quite a difference in the rules between tourneys...

connor,

My experience is exactly what TurnTwoNet describes. It is modified NFHS rules with EH, EH & DH, DH or bat the lineup for this age group. The rules get progressively more restrictive as the kids get older.

Also as TTN points out the rules can change by organization type. USSSA, AAU, Triple Crown, Nations Baseball all have their own versions of modified NFHS.

Enjoy the 10U experience and take a lot of pictures. I really, really miss those days!

I would almost be willing to bet the rules are "modified" for the 10 U Age Level.

Such as you have several options:

- Bat the entire lineup with free defensive substitutions

- Bat 9 with normal sub rules

- Bat 10 w/ EH (EXtra Hitter) EH acts just like another defensive position.

quote:

Originally posted by fenwaysouth:
connor,

My experience is exactly what TurnTwoNet describes. It is modified NFHS rules with EH, EH & DH, DH or bat the lineup for this age group. The rules get progressively more restrictive as the kids get older.

Also as TTN points out the rules can change by organization type. USSSA, AAU, Triple Crown, Nations Baseball all have their own versions of modified NFHS.

Enjoy the 10U experience and take a lot of pictures. I really, really miss those days!

Most youth organization use modified OBR rules and not NFHS rules.....I do believe that AAU and triple Crown do use NFHS rules, but most dont.....and to be honest with all the modifications, they dont resemble NFHS rules much.....

Other examples such as USSSA, PONY, Nations Baseball all refer to the Official Rules of Major League Baseball (OBR) for any items not specifically addressed in the leagues specified baseball Rules.

In Eastern PA USSSA uses OBR with many exceptions. It would probably better to say after the USSSA rules OBR is the default.