INTERNET BASEBALL LEAGUE CONSTITUTION 1 LEAGUE STRUCTURE 1.1 League Definition The Internet Baseball League (IBL) is a play-by-electronic mail baseball league. The IBL is a continuous ownership league using updated IBL Game (TIG) card sets each year. 1.2 Constitution The IBL is governed by this Constitution. 1.2.1 Amendments Members may submit proposals for changes to any league document to the league Commissioner. The Commissioner then distributes the proposed changes to the franchises for a vote. Amendment votes may only be called once during the IBL season and once during the off-season. Owners may vote for or against a proposal, or they may abstain. Any changes to league documents must be approved by a two-thirds vote of the non-abstaining franchises, and by at least a majority of the total franchises. When voting on contradicting amendments, a vote may also be cast for preference of amendment, should more than one amendment pass. Such amendments will be clearly marked in the ballot. Failure to vote on a proposal will result in a -5 Incentive Point penalty and will be counted as an abstention. 1.2.2 Commissioner's Edit The Commissioner shall edit the IBL Constitution for spelling, grammar, and overall consistency after each vote. The Commissioner shall distribute the proposed edits to the League. If any League owner disputes the need for an edit, that edit will be tabled until it can be brought to a vote. 1.3 League Membership The IBL allows for owners/co-owners, associate members, and caretakers. 1.3.1 Franchises There will be 24 franchises in the IBL. Each franchise will be allowed one vote on any item brought to a vote of the membership. 1.3.2 Franchise Fees Each team will be responsible for a $5 fee (US) to be paid to the league offices. The bulk of this fee will be used for the annual registration of the IBL.ORG internet domain name. Any excess amount will be kept for future use as needed for the design of TIG or research into other simulations. Expenditures by the design team for TIG must be approved by the Commissioner and Vice-Commissioner while expenditures amounting to research into other simulations must be approved by a majority of the leagues owners. When the needs of the league require it, the Commissioner may levy a league fee above and beyond the $5. Additional fees imposed by the Commissioner above and beyond $5 per year may be reversed by a 2/3 vote of the membership. 1.3.3 Associate Members The IBL will allow for an unlimited number of associate members. Associate members will not be allowed to vote but will receive the league mailings. In the event of an owner leaving the league before a new member is chosen, an associate member will be selected to be the interim owner of that team until a full member is chosen. An associate member will also be selected to play games for a member should a member be unavailable to play his team's games for an extended period of time. Associate members may receive Incentive Points for service to the league. 1.3.4 Co-ownership Active associates that become co-owners of a team will retain IP earned from the time as an active associate. If a co-owner ceases to be a co-owner then that person would retain previously accumulated IP and may become an active associate again as long as he is in good standing in the league. The co-owner will not be able to accumulate any IP while being a co-owner. The co-owner will have the opportunity to obtain a team if the following criteria are met: a. The co-owner is in good standing with the league. b. No associate with an equal or greater amount of Incentive Points wants that team. c. A co-owner may not assume ownership of a team during the season unless there are no active associates available for the team and the co-owner receives a release from the other owner. 1.3.5 Selecting New Owners New owners will be selected from the list of associate members with non-negative Incentive Points (see section 5) based on high to low Incentive Points. The Commissioner shall ask the selected associate if the associate would like to change to full member status. If the associate does desire full membership, the associate will become a full member and assume ownership of the available team. If the selected associate does not desire full membership at this time, the next associate member will be selected, until the associate membership list is exhausted. If no associate members desire to become full members, the Recruiter shall advertise for new members. 1.3.6 Caretakers When a team is without an owner, the Commissioner shall be empowered to appoint an individual as that team's caretaker. The caretaker is empowered to make transactions for the benefit of the team. However, if a caretaker's decision is viewed as an abuse of discretion or grossly detrimental to the team, the decision may be reversed within 7 days by the joint decision of both the Commissioner and the Vice-Commissioner, or by the review board. When an owner is found for the team, the caretaker shall be discharged. 1.3.7 Leaving the League in Good Standing Members who leave the league in good standing may return as associate members and retain their seniority from previous time in the league. Returning members must be associate members for at least six months before being considered for full membership. Owners may leave the league in good standing provided that they provide adequate time for the league to find a new member to take ownership of their team. 1.3.8 Removal A member shall be removed by resignation, for violations of the Incentive Point procedures, or, in extraordinary situations, by league vote upon motion of the Commissioner. The Commissioner may, in his discretion, seek the removal of an owner, associate, or co-owner. If the Commissioner decides to seek such removal he shall so notify the league and shall appoint another owner to supervise the secret balloting process. The owner will be removed if two-thirds of the teams vote for such removal. The actuall tally of such a vote will not be publicized, only the outcome. 1.4 League Officers The IBL will have the following positions: Commissioner, Vice-Commissioner, Registrar, Statistician, Recruiter, and a three-member Review Board. 1.4.1 Commissioner The IBL Commissioner shall serve a life term. The Commissioner can be removed from office by a two-thirds vote of the league membership. A new Commissioner must then be elected by the league membership. The duties of the Commissioner include: * Responsibility for the IBL schedule. This includes producing and distributing the IBL schedule, as well as decisions regarding making up postponed games. * Overseeing the annual free agent draft in February. * Producing a list of legal starting positions for all players and the number of games each player may start at each position. * Producing and distributing the weekly IBL newsletter. * Distributing proposed constitutional changes to the league members and overseeing voting. * Change game-play-related Constitutional provisions to reflect changes to TIG made by the design team. * Serving on the review board as necessary. * Taking steps which are in the best interest of the league Decisions and rulings by the Commissioner are subject to a protest procedure outlined in section 7. 1.4.2 Vice-Commissioner The Vice-Commissioner is appointed by the IBL Commissioner and serves a one-year term of office. Duties of the Vice-Commissioner include: * Responsibility for all duties of the Commissioner in the event of the Commissioner's absence. * Serving on the review board as necessary. * Overseeing voting to remove the Commissioner from office. 1.4.3 Review Board The Review Board consists of three members appointed by the IBL Commissioner. The Review Board members serve a one-year term of office. The Review Board rules on all protests submitted by league members. No league member may rule on a protest involving his own team. If a Review Board member is involved in a protest, he shall be replaced first by the Vice-Commissioner and finally by the Commissioner. The Review Board shall issue a ruling on a protest within two weeks from the date the protest was filed. The Review board is governed by the procedures detailed in section 7. 1.4.4 Registrar The Registrar is appointed by the IBL Commissioner and serves until removed from said position by the IBL Commissioner. Duties of the Registrar include: * Keeping track of current IBL rosters. * Maintaining the free agent list and distributing the list to the league. * Maintaining the IBL membership and officers lists. 1.4.5 Statistician The Statistician is appointed by the IBL Commissioner and serves until removed from said position by the IBL Commissioner. Duties of the Statistician include: * Maintaining the IBL statistics database. * Reporting any illegal usage or appearances by players to the Commissioner and Review Board, as well as to the owners of the teams involved in the illegal event. 1.4.6 Recruiter The Recruiter is appointed by the IBL Commissioner and serves until removed from said position by the IBL Commissioner. Duties of the Recruiter include: * No less than monthly postings in a public forum about joining the IBL. * Serving as a focal point for new members to ask questions about the IBL and The IBL Game. 1.5 Teams 1.5.1 League Organization The IBL consists of two twelve-team conferences. The conferences are divided into three four-team divisions. 1.5.2 Team Abbreviation Each owner chooses a city in which to locate his team and a team nickname. The Commisioner is responsible for assigning the team a unique three letter team abbreviation which reflects the team name and location, which will be used when submitting Game Report Sheets (see section 6). 1.5.3 Location, Stadiums, and Nicknames Each team plays their home games in a stadium based on an actual Major League stadium. Weather effects will be determined by the geographic location of the chosen city rather than the actual MLB stadium.IBL teams may not change cities, stadiums, or nicknames without prior approval of the Commissioner and the Vice-Commissioner and may only change cities, stadiums, and/or nicknames once every three years. Teams may not change cities, stadiums, or nicknames during the season, and may only change stadiums during the Winter Stadium Draft. No stadium may be used as the home park for more than one team. A team which has its Major League stadium replaced by the Major League team which plays in it automatically inherits the new stadium without any penalty. 1.5.4 Realignment Teams may switch Conferences and/or Divisions by petitioning the Commissioner. The Commissioner will recommend to the League which teams will switch. Any realignment must be agreed upon by two-thirds of the existing teams, and unanimously by all teams actually being realigned. 2 SCHEDULE 2.1 Regular Season 2.1.1 Schedule The IBL will play a 162 game regular season schedule. There will be at least 1 real-time off week during the regular season where no games are scheduled. The schedule will be imbalanced in favor of intra-divisional games. The trade deadline shall be no later than four weeks prior to the end of the regular season. The Commissioner is responsible for providing the schedule. A schedule that has been modified from the previous season can be rejected by a majority vote of league owners. 2.1.2 Opening Day Opening day will be no sooner than 1 week after the the Commissioner has declared the card set final. 2.1.3 Weekly Deadlines The IBL week will be as follows: Each team will play their 3 home games Wednesday through Monday. Management instruction sheets (MIS) will be sent no later than 4:00pm PST Thursday (5:00pm PDT). Game reports (GRS) will be sent to the Commissioner, Vice-Commissioner, and the team's opponent by 10:59pm PST (11:59pm PDT) on Monday. The newsletter will then be prepared and sent out on Tuesday. 2.1.4 Newsletter Each week the Commissioner will distribute a newsletter to all league members and associate members. The newsletter will give the current standings, the scores from the past week, the next week's schedule, details of any injuries, and team transactions. 2.1.5 Game Play Responsibilities Each team will be responsible for playing three home games each week and providing instructions for three road games. Teams may be asked to play four home games in a week in order to make-up postponed games. Games played via Management Instruction Sheets must be played with channel logging on the IBL IRC server. Exceptions may be granted by permission of the road owner. In the event that a team will not be able to play their home games for a given week, they must notify the Commissioner, Vice-Commissioner, and their opponent on Wednesday one week before the management instruction sheets are to be sent for the week in question. The team owner will be allowed to select from the associate members an alternate manager to play the team's home games for that week. 2.1.6 Pitcher Rest Home and road schedules will be played in parallel. Pitchers rest requirements will be based on past home usage for home games and past road usage for road games. If one or both teams are missing results from the previous week, the team(s) with missing results will play the series as if the previous week's starting pitchers are unavailable for the 4 days following their scheduled starts. Relievers on the team(s) with missing results will carry over rest requirements from the most recently completed series (home or road as appropriate). 2.1.7 Injuries and Suspensions Injuries and suspensions will be assessed from: 1. The remainder of the home or road series. 2. The series at same location (home/road) the following week 3. The series at the alternate location the following week 4. Continuing the alternating pattern for subsequent weeks Off days on both the home and road schedule count as one day missed in relation to injuries. A player may only receive credit for both off days if injured for the entire preceding week, otherwise he receives credit for only the off-day immediately following the series in which he was injured. Injuries do carry over into the post season. Injuries do not carry over into the following season. 2.1.8 Weather The month for weather of IBL games is determined by the IBL schedule provided by the Commisioner. Post-season games are played in October weather. 2.1.9 Game Times Teams will play a day game on the final scheduled day of a series, with all other games in the series being played at night. For a series played at Wrigley Field this is reversed, the game scheduled for the final day being played at night and all others being day games. A make up game played on the off day following a series is a day game. 2.1.10 Rainouts If there is an off day following the series then a make-up game should be played on the off day. Otherwise, if there are days remaining in the series then a make-up game should be scheduled as a doubleheader on the final day of the series. If a rainout occurs on the final day of a series, or if multiple rainouts cannot be made up using the remaining days available, report the unplayed games to the Commissioner for rescheduling. When hosting a team for the last time during the season, if a rainout is rolled prior to the game becoming official and the rainout would lead to the impossibility to make up the game via game played on off-day or double-header, reroll to see if the game is rained out. Field will be wet for the remainder of the game. The visiting manager should give specific instructions concerning the pitching rotation and postponements in his MIS. Should he fail to do so, push the rotation back one day. If pushing the rotation back is not possible and the originally scheduled pitcher can no longer appear, use the next pitcher from the general pitching rotation section for the makeup game. 2.1.11 Doubleheaders The first game of a doubleheader will be a routine day game. The second game of a doubleheader will be a night game, but consider innings 1-4 as being played in twilight. 2.1.12 Pitcher's Rest Requirements for Doubleheaders For the second game of a doubleheader, treat innings pitched in the first game of the doubleheader as a separate day. The first game of a doubleheader does not count as a rest day. For days after the doubleheader, add the innings pitched in the doubleheader and count the total as the day's innings pitched. 2.1.13 Weather in Doubleheaders Unless a wild play front passes through during game 1, new weather will be rolled for the second game of the DH. If a front did pass through during game 1, the weather that resulted from the front will continue to be the weather for game 2. 2.2 Post Season 2.2.1 Participants The IBL playoffs will consist of 5 teams in each conference. The three division winners and the 2 remaining teams with the best record will be in the playoffs. The manager of the team winning a playoff series is responsible for submitting a complete GRS (including boxscores, play-by-play, and pitcher/limitation usage) to the league officers and all other managers of playoff teams prior to commencing the following series. Failure to comply will result in IP penalties. 2.2.2 Standings and Tiebreakers Standings will be based on winning percentages with ties decided by tiebreakers or a one-game playoff. The IBL will use a one game playoff when a playoff spot is at stake between the teams that are tied. Tiebreakers will be used when all the teams that are tied are guaranteed a playoff spot. Tiebreakers are used to determine home field advantage or to sort teams into division winner and wild card(s). The tiebreaker for division winner is determined prior to resolving any other tiebreakers. Tiebreakers are based upon winning percentage. The tiebreaker order is: 1) head-to-head record (round-robin record if 3+ teams) 2) division record (conference record when teams are not in same division) 3) road record 4) coin flip In case of complicated tie-breaking situations not covered by the Constitution, the Commissioner is empowered to craft an equitable tie-breaking system which would allow all teams an opportunity to make the playoffs. 2.2.3 One-game Playoff Format For a one-game playoff, the visiting team will use pitchers' usage for the preceding road weeks and the home team will use pitchers' usage for the preceding home weeks to determine rest requirements and pitcher eligibility for the playoff game. For days after the playoff game, a winning visiting team will use pitchers' usage for the preceding road weeks plus the playoff game and a winning home team will use pitchers' usage for the preceding home weeks plus the playoff game to determine rest requirements and pitcher eligibility for the IBL Wild Card Series. The one-game playoff will be played on the off-day before the start of the IBL Wild Card Series. Statistics from this playoff game will count as regular season statistics. If three or more teams are tied for both a division title and a wild card spot, the division is first decided by one game playoff, followed by additional one game playoffs for the wild card berth. A loss in a division deciding playoff game does not break a tie for the wild card berth. 2.2.4 Wild Card Series The two wild card teams will face each other in the Wild Card Series of the IBL playoffs. The host team for the Wild Card Series is the team with the better winning percentage. In case of a tie, the Commissioner will use tiebreakers to select the host team. The Wild Card Series will be a 5-game series, with games 1, 2 and 5 played at the host team, and games 3 and 4 played at the visiting team. The Wild Card Series will be played during two calendar weeks. Games one and two will be played during week one, games three, four if necessary, and five if necessary will be played during week two. 2.2.5 Division Series The team with the best record in the conference will face its choice of either the wild card winner or the division champion with the worst winning percentage in the Division Series of the IBL playoffs. The two remaining teams will play in the other Division Series. The host teams for the Division Series are the division champions with the top two winning percentages. In case of a tie, the Commissioner will use tiebreakers to select the host team. The Division Series games will be a 7-game series, with games 1, 2, 6 and 7 played at the site of the host team, and games 3-5 played at the site of the visiting team. The Division Series will be played during three calendar weeks. Games one and two will be played during week one, games three, four, and five if necessary will be played during week two, and games six if necessary and seven if necessary will be played during week three. 2.2.6 Conference Championship Series The two winners of the Division Series will meet in a best-of-seven game series to determine the conference representative in the League Championship Series. The host team of the Conference Championship Series is the team with the higher winning percentage, except that it may never be a wild card team. In case of a tie, the Commissioner will use tiebreakers to select the host team. Games one, two, six, and seven of the Conference Playoffs series will be played at the site of the host team. Games three, four, and five will be played at the site of the visiting team. The Conference Playoffs will be played during three calendar weeks. Games one and two will be played during week one, games three, four, and five if necessary will be played during week two, and games six if necessary and seven if necessary will be played during week three. 2.2.7 League Championship Series The two winners of the Conference Playoffs will meet in the best-of-seven games League Championship Series. Games one, two, six, and seven of the League Championship series will be played at the site of the American conference champion in odd-numbered years and at the site of the National conference champion in even-numbered years. Games three, four, and five will be played at the site of the National conference champion in odd-numbered years and at the site of the American conference champion in even-numbered years. The League Championship Series will be played during three calendar weeks. Games one and two will be played during week one, games three, four, and five if necessary will be played during week two, and games six if necessary and seven if necessary will be played during week three. 2.2.8 Post Season Schedule The IBL uses the following playoff schedule: (n) = night game (d) = day game WC = wild card series D1 = divison series #1 (top seeded team) D2 = division series #2 CC = conference championship series LC = IBL championship series There will be 1 day off between the end of the regular season and the first day of the playoffs. Schedule A is used by the Conference with Home Field Advantage in the IBLCS. Schedule B is used by the Conference without Home Field Advantage in the IBLCS. Day Schedule A Schedule B 1 off day after end of regular season 2 off WC#1 (n) 3 WC#1 (n) WC#2 (d) 4 WC#2 (n) off 5 off WC#3 (n) 6 WC#3 (d) WC#4 (n) 7 WC#4 (n) WC#5 (d) 8 WC#5 (n) off 9 off D1#1 (n) 10 D1#1 (n) D1#2 (d) D2#1 (n) 11 D1#2 (d) D2#1 (n) off D2#2 (n) 12 off D2#2 (n) D1#3 (n) off 13 D1#3 (n) off D1#4 (n) D2#3 (d) 14 D1#4 (n) D2#3 (d) D1#5 (d) D2#4 (n) 15 D1#5 (d) D2#4 (n) off D2#5 (n) 16 off D2#5 (n) D1#6 (n) off 17 D1#6 (n) off D1#7 (n) D2#6 (d) 18 D1#7 (n) D2#6 (d) off D2#7 (n) 19 off D2#7 (n) off off 20 off CC#1 (n) 21 CC#1 (n) CC#2 (d) 22 CC#2 (n) off 23 off CC#3 (n) 24 CC#3 (d) CC#4 (n) 25 CC#4 (n) CC#5 (d) 26 CC#5 (n) off 27 off CC#6 (n) 28 CC#6 (d) CC#7 (n) 29 CC#7 (n) off 30 off off 31 LC#1 (n) 32 LC#2 (n) 33 off 34 LC#3 (n) 35 LC#4 (n) 36 LC#5 (n) 37 off 38 LC#6 (n) 39 LC#7 (n) 2.2.9 Post Season Postponements Post-season games which have reached the 5th inning will be suspended if prematurely ended due to adverse conditions. The suspended game shall be resumed prior to the beginning of the game scheduled for the next day, or on the scheduled off-day. Should a post-season game be postponed, the home manager shall play the game on the next schedule day without having to notify the Commissioner. The home manager shall indicate the postponement in the game report. The game missed shall be made up on the next scheduled off-day for the series. 2.3 All Star Game The IBL All-Star Game shall be played during the designated All-Star Break. Owners and associates may be allowed to vote for the All-Star starters for each conference. The defending conference champion's manager shall choose the pitchers and reserves. Each conference's roster shall consist of 28 players, with each team in the conference having at least one representative. The All-Star Game will be played at the home park of the defending IBL Champions. The manager for each conference will be the defending conference champions. Should a manager still be needed, a manager would then be chosen from the conference runner up, remaining division winner(s) or the wild-card entries from the previous year. The All-Star break consists of three off days for purposes of resolving pitcher's rest and injury requirements. Injuries in the All-Star game do not carry over into the regular season. 3 ELIGIBILITY, THE ROSTER, AND LIMITATIONS 3.1 Eligibility 3.1.1 Carded Players All position players having at least 30 plate appearances and pitchers having at least 20 innings pitched are eligible for IBL rosters. Players who were considered carded in the previous season are also eligible for IBL rosters. A player who had at least 30 plate appearances as a non-pitcher and at least 20 innings pitched will be eligible as a position player and a pitcher. 3.1.2 Uncarded Players Any eligible player who does not have a card for the current season may be kept on the 36 man roster. If a player is uncarded one season, retained on the roster, and has a card the following year he must remain on the active roster until Week 8. However, the player may be deactivated if he will be totally unavailable for at least the two weeks following the proposed deactivation. The player must be reactivated as soon as he becomes available to play in at least one game of a week prior to Week 8. If the team fails to do so, the Registrar shall activate the player for the team and randomly deactivate another player from the team's active roster. The player may not be released until Week 8, but may be traded. The team that receives the player shall be under the same roster restrictions as the team that trades the player. 3.2 Regular Season Rosters and Limitations 3.2.1 Active Roster Each team is limited to an active roster of 26 players from week 1 through the week prior to the trade deadline. The active roster limit is expanded to 36 players after the trade deadline through the end of the season. 3.2.2 Inactive Roster Each team may carry an inactive roster. The active and inactive rosters are not to total more than 36 players. A player placed on the inactive roster must remain there for two weeks. This restriction does not apply once the active roster limit expands to 36 after the trade deadline. 3.2.3 Game Apperance and Starting Position Limitations Players may not appear in more than twice as many IBL games as played in the previous major league season. A player may start at any position at which he played during the previous major league season. Players with fewer than 24 games played at a position may not start more than twice the number of games played at that position. Players with 24 or more games played at that position may start the greater of the total number of games played or twice the number of games played at that position. A pitcher may not start more than twice the number of games started in the previous major league season. Relief appearances of 18 batters or more will be considered a start when calculating the limitation. Failure to comply with these rules shall result in forfeiture of any games in which a player exceeded his legal appearances or starts. The number of legal starts for all players at each position will be distributed to the league members by the Commissioner. 3.2.4 Starts due to Injury or Suspension Players may not exceed their legal starts at a position unless forced to do so for the remainder of a series due to an injury or a suspension. If this occurs, the player may legally start at the position for the remainder of the series, but the team must add a player to their roster for the next week who can legally start at the given position should the injured or suspended player still not be available. Failure to comply with this rule shall result in forfeiture of any games started at a given position by the player after exceeding his legal start limit at that position. 3.2.5 Designated Hitter The IBL uses the Designated Hitter rule. Any position player may DH, provided he has not exhausted his games played limitation. The IBL adopts all MLB rules regarding the DH -- including, but not limited to the following: the DH must make one plate appearance before he can be removed, unless he is injured before or during the initial plate appearance; the DH position in the lineup may not be double switched, and no player can move to the DH position; a team shall lose the DH position if the DH takes the field or the pitcher enters to bat for the DH. 3.2.6 Injury Exception for Exhausted Limitations When the only rated replacement for a player unavailable due to injury, ejection, or suspension is a player with an exhausted limitation, the limited player may be allowed by the opposing manager to enter the game without resulting in forfeit. If the opposing manager does not allow this then an emergency replacement may be used (i.e. replacement not rated at the position). This option is not available to replace players after voluntary removal, such as pinch-hitting or pinch-running. 3.3 Post-Season Rosters and Limitations 3.3.1 Playoff Roster Each team owner must submit a 26 man playoff roster to the League Office prior to the Newsletter following the trade deadline. If no post-season roster is received, the post-season roster will be that team's active roster at the trade deadline. 3.3.2 Playoff Roster Changes Playoff teams may change their 26 man playoff roster between series. If a team wishes to change their playoff roster it must submit the changes to the League Offices for approval. The new roster is not official until the League Offices have acknowledged that it conforms to all requirements for a legal playoff roster. Once approved the team must notify its upcoming opponent of the changes. 3.3.3 Playoff Roster In-Series Injury Replacements A team may (but is not required to) replace a player on its playoff roster who is injured during the playoffs and will miss games of a subsequent series. The injured player who is removed from the active roster will be ineligible to be re-added to the active roster for the next series, regardless of subsequent injuries. The following restrictions apply to the selection of the replacement player: * The replacement player must be a playoff-eligible player on that team's 36 man roster. Free-agents may not be used as a replacement during a series. * If the injured player is a pitcher the replacement player must also be a pitcher. * The choice of replacement must still leave the team with two players who may play each position unless no playoff-eligible player is available on the 36 man roster who will fulfill that requirement. 3.3.4 Playoff Starting Positions During the post-season, position players may only start (or enter the game prior to the 6th inning) at positions in which they were eligible for 48 starts during the regular IBL season, unless an injury or suspension causes the team to have no players who were eligible to start 48 or more games at the position. 3.3.5 Playoff Eligibility, Limitations, and Restrictions Rules for position players: * A batter with less than 100 total plate appearances (PA) is not eligible for the post-season. * A batter with less than 150 total PA may only enter the game from inning 6 onward, unless he is the only available defensive replacement for an injured player. * A batter may only start a game in the post-season if they had at least 50 PA vs the hand of the starting pitcher, unless there are no other players available which would allow a legal starting lineup. * A batter may only pinch-hit in the post-season if they had at least 50 PA vs the hand of the current pitcher, unless he is the only available defensive replacement for an injured batter. * A batter with less than 50 PA vs the hand of the current pitcher may only enter the game as a pinch-runner or defensive replacement from inning 6 onward, unless he is the only available defensive replacement for an injured player. Rules for pitchers: * A pitcher with less than 100 total batters faced (BF) is not eligible for the post-season. * A pitcher with less than 150 total BF may only enter the game from inning 6 onward, unless no other pitchers are available. * A pitcher must have recorded at least 150 total BF as a starting pitcher in order to be eligible to start a post-season game or enter the game in a situation where a pitcher would be required to be rated as a starter. * A pitcher not rated as a starter but with at least 150 BF may enter the game from inning 5 onward, or anytime prior to inning 5 when the current pitcher has allowed 3 runs or is fatigued. 3.4 Active Roster Positional Requirements Each team's active roster must contain players of sufficient positional diversity for every series, including the playoffs, such that an injury to any single player during the course of that series would not force a team to start a player out of position or role. A player who is injured for not more than 2 days of a series may be counted towards this requirement. 3.5 Extra Starts Any player entering the game prior to the sixth inning, unless replacing a player who has been injured or ejected, or relieving a fatigued pitcher, or relieving a pitcher when the opposing team has not scored five runs shall be considered as using one of the player's starts at the position which he enters. If a position player enters to replace a player who has been injured or ejected enters at a different position and necessitates other players to shift positions, none of the players shall be charged with the extra start. 3.6 Playing out of Position Players may be used at any defensive position listed on their card. A player may only play a position not shown on his card in a desperation move. A desperation move shall only include, when due to injury, ejection, or pinch-hitting or pinch-running when tied or losing in the 9th inning or later, no player is available who is eligible to play the position in question. A player forced to start at a position not listed on his card, due to injury from previous games in a series, shall be considered to have that position listed on his card with the appropriate emergency rating. 3.6.1 Out of Position Ratings Players playing out of position will use the following defensive ratings (If a player has the position shown in parenthesis on his card, he may use the rating on that line, otherwise he must use the "Others" line): * Catcher 0/K/+4/Pr. Pitchers must also use their fatigue numbers while a non-catcher is catching. Consider all "Blocked" wild pitch results to be passed balls. * First Base (infielder) Error rating is two grades lower than the lowest of any infield position, range is two grades lower than the lowest of any infield position. Reduce all pitcher hold ratings by one grade, and give all baserunners a +1 adjustment on steals of second base. (Others) 0/KK/+1. Reduce all pitcher hold ratings by one grade, and give all baserunners a +1 adjustment on steals of second base. * Second Base (ss,3b) Error rating is two grades lower than the lowest of ss/3b, range is two grades lower than the lowest of ss/3b, “minus” pivot rating. (Others) 0/KK-/+1 * Third Base (2b,ss) Error rating is two grades lower than the lowest of ss/2b, range is two grades lower than the lowest of ss/2b. (Others) 0/KK/+1 * Shortstop (2b,3b) Error rating is three grades lower than the lowest of 2b/3b, range is three grades lower than the lowest of 2b/3b, “minus” pivot rating. (Others) 0/KK-/+1 * Left Field (rf,cf) Error rating is two grades lower than the lowest of rf/cf, range is two grades lower than the lowest of rf/cf, arm is two grades lower than lowest of rf/cf. (Others) 0/KK/+3 * Center Field (lf,rf) Error rating is three grades lower than the lowest of lf/rf, range is three grades lower than the lowest of lf/rf, arm is two grades lower than lowest of lf/rf. (Others) 0/KK/+3 * Right Field (lf,cf) Error rating is two grades lower than the lowest of lf/cf, range is two grades lower than the lowest of lf/cf, arm is two grades lower than lowest of lf/cf. (Others) 0/KK/+3 3.7 Pitcher Fatigue and Rest The IBL uses the Advanced (Batters Faced) pitcher fatigue and rest rules. 3.7.1 Starting Pitchers A pitcher must have a BF SP fatigue rating in order to start a regular season game. Pitchers without this rating may only start in the event that weather (or other circumstances) caused postponements resulting in no other rested pitcher with a BF SP fatigue rating being available. In this case, the pitcher must start the game using his fatigue (italicized) numbers. If the pitcher remains in the game after exceeding his BF RP fatigue limit he must use the Emergency Pitcher card. 3.8 Errata All errata published by the IBL Game will be sent to all members and associate members by the Commissioner. The corrected data will become effective immediately. 4 ROSTER MOVEMENT 4.1 General Roster Moves All roster moves during the regular season must be made between weeks, with the transaction deadline being 24 hours after the reporting deadline. Roster moves made during the off season may be made at any time. No roster changes may be made from the last day of the regular season through December 1 and from February 1 through February 28 (February 29 during leap years). 4.1.1 Emergency Roster Moves A team may (but is not required to) deactivate an injured player during a series by activating another player from their inactive roster, so long as that transaction allows the team to fulfill legal roster requirements. Teams may not sign free agents in this situation, only players on the inactive roster at the start of the series are eligible replacements. Emergency transactions should be reported with the GRS for the series. Players deactivated in this manner must remain inactive for the next two weeks, just as if they were deactivated after the conclusion of the series. 4.1.2 Special Pitcher Activations A team may replace pitcher(s) on the active roster with pitcher(s) on the inactive roster after any game that extends beyond the 9th inning, after the completion of a suspended game played on the same day as another game, or anytime during a series with a double-header (including between DH games). Any pitcher activated in this fashion must have been eligible to be activated for the current week (as per 3.2.2). Teams may not sign free agents in this situation, only players on the inactive roster at the start of the series are eligible replacements. Special transactions should be reported with the GRS for the series. Players deactivated in this manner must remain inactive for the next two weeks, just as if they were deactivated after the conclusion of the series. 4.2 Trades Trades may be made from March 1 until the Newsletter following the trade deadline announced by the Commissioner prior to the season, and from December 1 through January 31 in the off-season. A team with an outstanding GRS or box score from previous weeks may not trade. All owners involved in a trade must notify the Commissioner, Vice Commissioner and Registrar of the trade via the game report during the regular season and via electronic mail during the off season. All trades are final, pending protests, and all player compensation shall change hands at the time of the trade. Draft choice compensation may be conditional, but all conditions must be announced at the time of trade. 4.2.1 Trading Draft Picks During in-season trading periods, owners may trade draft picks in the upcoming free agent draft. During off-season trading periods, owners may trade picks in any draft that will occur prior to the Opening Day following the next IBL season. 4.2.2 New Owner Trading Any owner newly appointed shall be barred from making any trades until four weeks after the appointment is announced in the IBL newsletter unless he, at the time of taking over the new team, was a co-owner of another IBL team and has served as such for 17 weeks consecutively. 4.3 Free Agent Signings An owner may sign any player on the free agent list from March 1 until the Newsletter following the trade deadline. Any owner signing a free agent must notify the Commissioner and Vice-Commissioner of the signing via the game report or by electronic mail before opening day. In the case of a conflict between teams attempting to sign the same free agent, the player will be assigned to teams by the following priority: 1) Teams not on probation who have reported their home results from the most recent week of play and have no other outstanding results or box scores, in reverse order of winning percentage. 2) Teams not on probation but with outstanding results or boxscores (even if an extension has been granted), in reverse order of winning percentage. 3) Teams on probation, in reverse order of winning percentage. For players signed before the beginning of week 4, winning percentages will be determined by the previous year's standings. In all other weeks the winning percentages will be determined by the standings from the previous week. Teams that still have outstanding results or box scores one week after the completion of the regular season will be treated as having outstanding results during the pre-season transaction periods the following year. 4.4 Player Releases Owners may release from their roster any player who has not exceeded his 133% usage from opening day until the Newsletter following the trade deadline. Any player may be released after the conclusion of the regular season through December 15. Any owner releasing a player must notify the Commissioner and Vice-Commissioner of the release via the game report or e-mail. The released player will then be considered an available free agent. A player released during the regular season may only be immediately re-signed the following week by the releasing team if no other IBL team submitted a claim on the released player. 4.5 Free Agency 4.5.1 Definition of a Free Agent A free agent is a player who is not on the active or inactive roster of any team in the league, or one who did not meet the league usage requirements last season. 4.5.2 Usage Requirements Every player must accrue IBL usage of at least 75% (3/4) but no more than 133% (4/3) of their usage in the previous MLB season. The usage metric for position players is plate appearances (PA). The usage metric for pitchers is batters faced (BF). During the IBL season intentional walks do not count toward the usage requirements for pitchers. A player who qualified as a position player and a pitcher must meet usage requirements as both a position player and a pitcher. For these purposes, batting plate appearances as a pitcher will count toward batter usage. Players not meeting their usage requirements for a given year become free agents at the end of the regular season. Post-season usage shall not be considered for usage requirements. 4.5.3 Usage Credit for Injuries Players will receive usage credit for IBL injury days. A player's injury adjusted usage (injury credit + earned usage) is only used when determining whether a player meets their 75% usage requirement. Injury usage is calculated using the following formula: Injury Usage = (MLB Usage/162) rounded up to the next integer * Number IBL Days Injured 4.5.4 Usage Caps Players may continue to participate during the regular season despite exceeding their 133% usage limitation, but a player may not exceed 150%. Failure to comply with this rule shall result in forfeiture of any games in which a player participated while exceeding 150% usage. 4.5.5 Usage Appeals At the end of the season, the Commissioner (or his designate) will send the league a report listing all players who have failed to meet usage requirements and will become free agents. This report will *not* credit players with injury time (as per section 4.5.3). If an owner wishes to retain a player who is listed as a potential free agent on the Commissioner's report, an appeal must be filed with the league officers. Owners will have one week from the release of the Commissioner's report to file an appeal. Usage appeals should include calculations of injury credit (as per section 4.5.3) as well as any other mitigating circumstances which should be considered. Reasons may include, but are not limited to, injury time, missing boxscores, inappropriate use by an opposing team following an MIS. The Commissioner will rule on all appeals, while in all cases allowing for injury credit earned. The Vice-Commissioner shall rule on appeals requested by the Commissioner for his own players. All rulings are subject to the protest procedure (7.3). Usage shall be measured against the offical source of MLB statistics for the IBL: http://www.baseball-reference.com. Any discrepancy between the data used in the Commissioner's usage report and the official source will be resolved in favor of the official source. Once usage appeals are concluded the Commissioner will release an official free agent list to the League. Only players on this list are eligible for the annual free agent draft. 4.6 Free Agent Draft The IBL shall hold a free agent draft supervised by the Commissioner after each season. Teams must have less than 36 players on their combined active and inactive rosters on February 1 in order to participate. Any free agent eligible for an IBL roster may be drafted. 4.6.1 Draft Order By November 30, the Commissioner will send the draft order for the free agent draft to all league members. The order of the IBL Draft shall be determined by playoff appearances in the prior three seasons. Within each of the four tiers (0 appearances, 1 appearance, 2 appearances, 3 appearances), the initial order will be randomly determined. Drafting order in additional rounds will be in the inverse order from the round before it. 4.6.2 Draft Schedule From December 1 through the first Friday in February, members may announce their selections, one-by-one, in the order of the draft. There will be no deadline for any member to announce and no member should feel pressured to announce a selection prior to the first Friday. Prior to the first Friday, the Commissioner will appoint a Draft Administrator to oversee the draft. The Draft Administrator may be the Commissioner. On the first Friday, the Draft Administrator will send the order for the remaining rounds of the draft to all league members. By the following Monday, league members will send to the Draft Administrator a draft list of players they would like to draft for the remainder of the currently active round. The Draft Administrator shall then assign the free agent players to teams based on the draft order and the members' draft lists. Following this, a round of the draft will be conducted on subsequent Wednesdays, Fridays, and Mondays, and so forth. The draft will conclude on the fourth Friday of February, with all remaining rounds of the draft being resolved on that day. League members must send updated draft lists to the Draft Administrator by a designated time, this deadline not to be earlier than 12:00am PST on the morning of the day the draft round is to be completed. On the first Wednesday in March, the Registrar will send to all league members the final draft results, and the opening day rosters and free agent list. There will be a penalty of -2 Incentive Points for failure to submit a list for a round in which the member has draft picks. Members may pass a round by sending a list stating that they desire to pass. Members may instruct the draft administrator to use a single list for multiple rounds. Once a team reaches the 36 player limit in February, that team shall not make any further draft selections. 4.7 Winter Stadium Draft In the off-season teams may change MLB stadiums, subject to the restrictions laid out in section 1.5.3. The Commissioner will schedule a Winter Stadium Draft once the off-season trading freeze commences (see section 4.2). All teams wishing to participate in the draft must inform the Commissioner via email. Selection order for the stadium draft will be determined randomly. The draft order will remain the same for the entire process. The pool of available stadiums is initially limited to those which were not occupied by an IBL team the previous season. Each team has the opportunity to select a new stadium from the pool when its turn comes up in the selection order. When a stadium is selected that team's old stadium immediately enters the pool of available stadia. Stadia may change hands multiple times during this process. The draft continues until an entire round has been processed with no selections. Teams must make a selection in this draft in order to be prevented from entering a future stadium draft by the restrictions in section 1.5.3. 5 INCENTIVE POINT SYSTEM The Incentive Point (IP) system is designed to keep all IBL members playing their games and reporting the results in a timely manner. The incentive point system is designed to reward members who consistently play and report on time while severely penalizing members who either are consistently late or are extremely late in any given week. The system takes into consideration that circumstances will occur that will cause a member to be late on occasion. 5.1 Allocating Incentive Points All members shall begin each season with an Incentive Point total of 36. Associate members shall begin each season with their Incentive Point total at the end of last season. New owners will be upgraded to 36 Incentive Points. Members on probation who take on a co-owner will remain on probation but will be immediately upgraded to 36 Incentive Points. Associate members receive one point for every completed series (up to a maximum of 5 points to be accumulated from the series of a single team) and three points for every full or partial season that they are associate members. 5.2 Incentive Point Penalties 5.2.1 IP Penalties for Late Management Instruction Sheets * -1 for failing to upload a MIS by the start of week 1 * -1 for each subsequent week that a team fails to upload their MIS * -1 if an owner fails to provide their MIS to their opponent by the Thursday deadline and the home team is forced to use an outdated MIS Late MISes must be formally reported by the home owner to the Commissioner and Vice-Commissioner. 5.2.2 IP Penalties for Late Game Reports and Box Scores * -1 to the home team for failing to report results or ask for a FTF extension by the Monday deadline * -1 to both teams after asking for a FTF extension and failing to report results within 48 hours of the Monday deadline * -1 to the home team for each week that results have been outstanding for two calendar weeks or more * -1 to the home team for each week that a GRS, box score, or scoresheet has been outstanding for two calendar weeks or more * -1 to the home team per item outstanding at the conclusion of a real-time off week, in addition to any other late penalties 5.2.3 Other IP Penalties * -1 per week after exceeding 5 weeks of using associates in a single season * -2 for failing to submit a draft list for a round in which your team has picks * -3 per week for missing playoff GRS * -5 for failing to vote on Constitutional amendments 5.3 Consequences 5.3.1 Removal The Commissioner is empowered to remove any member whose Incentive Point total is less than 10. 5.3.2 Probation A member with less than 25 Incentive Points will be placed on probation. A member will remain on probation until completing a season with at least 25 Incentive Points. All IP penalties are doubled for members on probation. The Commissioner is empowered (but not required) to appoint a caretaker for any team being run by a member on probation. 5.3.3 Free Agents Free agent claims by members on probation are processed after claims by members who are in good standing. 5.3.4 Free Agent Draft When determining rosters going into the free agent draft, teams will be allowed to keep a maximum number of players on their roster equal to the number of Incentive Points they have remaining. 6 REPORTING 6.1 Management Instruction Sheets (MIS) Each member is required to send a management instruction sheet for their road series to the home manager each week by 4:00 p.m. PST (5:00 p.m. PDT) on Thursday. Additonally, each member is required to upload an up to date copy of their MIS to the official IBL shared storage location. It is the responsibility of the home manager to notify the Commissioner, Vice-Commissioner, and the visiting manager if a management instruction sheet is late. Owners may cc the Commissioner and/or Vice-Commissioner to ensure receipt and avoid IP penalties. If the opponent's MIS is not received by 5 pm PDT on Thursday, the home owner is allowed to play the series at his own discretion using the copy of the MIS available at the IBL shared storage location. The home owner can make other arrangements with the visiting owner to receive the MIS later if he so desires. 6.1.1 MIS Requirements The management instruction sheet should include: * Active roster showing injuries, pitcher fatigue, games played by position, and remaining limitations. * Lineups for all games in the series showing starters and injury replacements. * Instructions concerning the pitching rotation, including contingencies for postponements. * Instructions for pinch-hitting, pinch-running, stealing, hit and run, sacrifice, squeeze plays, and baserunner advancement. * Instructions for holding runners, bringing infielders in, cutoff throws, guarding the lines, and late inning defensive substitutions. * Instructions for removal of pitchers. * Other instructions and information needed by the home manager. The visiting manager must remember, the more explicit the instructions the better the home manager can make decisions for the road team. However, it is not wise to create laborious instructions. The MIS should simply contain instructions for every possible situation. If a situation is left out, it will be up to the home manager to manage the visiting team if that situation occurs. 6.1.2 Missing MIS The home owner is allowed to play the series using his discretion if an MIS is not received by 5 pm PDT on Thursday. The home owner can then make other arrangements with the visiting owner to receive the MIS later if he so desires. 6.2 Game Reports Each member is required to send via E-mail, FAX, US Mail or phone a game report for their home series to the Commissioner, Vice-Commissioner, Registrar, visiting manager, and next week's visiting manager. Game reports are to arrive each week by 11:59 pm PDT Monday. 6.2.1 Game Report Requirements The game report must include the following information, at the top of the game report, before any other information: * Final scores * Pitcher usage * Limitation usage * Injuries and suspensions * Next week's home pitchers * Roster moves Changes to next week's home pitchers and/or roster moves would be allowed if received prior to the mailing of the newsletter. 6.2.2 Game Report Extensions Owners who are experiencing face-to-face (FTF) scheduling problems may request a 48 hour FTF extension. This request must be sent to the Commissioner before the Monday reporting deadline. Both the home and road teams will be assessed IP penalties if results have not been reported within 48 hours of the original reporting deadline. 6.3 Scoresheets (Play-by-play) Scoresheets are to be sent via E-mail (play-by-plays), FAX, or US Mail. Scoresheets should arrive by Monday one-week after the results are due. Scoresheets are not necessary if games are played face-to-face. 6.4 Box Scores Box scores are due by 11:59 pm PDT on Monday one week following the game reports. A one week extension request may be made. In order to receive an extension the member must request the extension by the box score deadline. No owner may request more than 2 extensions during a season. The statistics must follow strict formats in order for the statistics programs to use the data in the report. 6.4.1 Batting Statistics * Each team's batting statistics must begin with a heading line beginning with the word "BATTERS". * Follow the heading line with the batting statistics for each player that participated for that team. Do not put a blank line between the heading and the first player. Do not put blank lines between players. * Begin each player's statistics in the following manner: Include all positions played separated by hyphens ("-"), i.e. lf-rf. Make sure to use the correct team abbreviations. Make sure you use the last name (including capitalization) as it appears on the player's card with the following exceptions, players who require a initial to be unique on their real team (JonesC.), and removing spaces from players' names that are two or more words (VanderWal). * List statistical information from the game for atbats, runs, hits, rbi, doubles, triples, homeruns, stolen bases, caught stealing, walks, and strikeouts, PA vs LH, PA vs RH in that order. Be sure to list a number for each statistic. If a player had none of a certain statistic, place a zero ("0") in that column. * Separate each column with one or more blanks or tabs. Lining up the columns makes for a more readable game report. * Follow the last batter for a team with a blank line. 6.4.2 Pitching Statistics * Each team's pitching statistics must begin with a heading line beginning with the word "PITCHERS". * Follow the heading line with the pitching statistics for each player that participated for that team. Do not put a blank line between the heading and the first player. Do not put blank lines between players. * Begin each player's statistics in the following manner: <"W", "L", "S", or "-"> Make sure to use the correct team abbreviations. Make sure you use the last name (including capitalization) as it appears on the player's card with the following exceptions, players who require a initial to be unique on their real team (JonesC.), and removing spaces from players' names that are two or more words (VanderWal). * List statistical information from the game for innings pitched (use decimal format, 7.2 instead of 7 2/3), hits allowed, runs allowed, earned runs allowed, walks allowed, strikeouts, and homeruns allowed in that order. Be sure to list a number for each statistic. If a player had none of a certain statistic, place a zero ("0") in that column. * Separate each column with one or more blanks or tabs. Lining up the columns makes for a more readable game report. * Follow the last pitcher for a team with a blank line. 7 PROTESTS 7.1 Protesting a Trade Any league member may protest a trade between two teams based on fairness of compensation in the trade. To protest a trade, a league member must send to the Commissioner, Vice-Commissioner, Review Board, and the teams involved in the trade an explanation of why the league member feels the trade was unfair. Protests must be filed by 10:59 p.m. PST (11:59 p.m. PDT) on the Monday following the Tuesday that the IBL Newsletter reports the trade being protested. The Review Board shall request information from the teams involved in the trade as necessary. A unanimous vote on the protest by the Review Board voids the trade. 7.2 Protesting a Game Result A visiting manager may protest to the IBL Review Board any incorrect game result which the visiting manager feels resulted directly from negligence on the part of the home manager. Managers should try to settle all protests by mutual consent prior to filing a formal protest with the IBL Review Board. If a member elects to protest the result of a game, the member must send to the Commissioner, Vice-Commissioner, the Review Board members, and the home manager an explanation of the protest as well as all documentation regarding the protested game. Protests must be filed by 10:59 p.m. PST (11:59 p.m. PDT) on the Monday following the Tuesday that the IBL Newsletter reports the game being protested, or one calendar week following the sending of the full GRS, whichever is later. The Review Board shall then request a statement from the home manager regarding the protest. The Review Board shall then request a statement from the home manager regarding the protest. The Review Board shall then review all evidence and vote on the protest. If a Review Board member believes that negligence did occur and this negligence created an incorrect game result, the member should vote in favor of upholding the protest. A unanimous vote is required to uphold a protest.The Review Board, upon upholding a protest, may require a game be replayed either in its entirety or from the time of the protest. 7.3 Protesting a Commissioner Decision In the event that an owner disagrees with a discretionary decision made by the commissioner, such decision may be protested. Such a protest shall be heard by an Expanded Review Board, consisting of the Vice-commissioner, the Review Board, and another owner selected by the Vice-Commissioner based upon the subject matter (i.e. the statistician if appropriate). The Expanded Review Board shall determine if the Commissioner has abused his discretion and the decision will only be overturned upon a unanimous or 4-1 vote of the Expanded Review Board. A commissioner decision may also be challenged on a going-forward basis, on the next ballot and the Commissioner's determination will be overturned by a simple majority vote. 8 PLAYING RULES All rules of baseball and the IBL Game will apply, insofar as they do not contradict any specific Constitutional provision. 8.1 IBL Game Clarifications This section needs to be filled in by the membership. Any ambiguous or confusing rules that you feel need to be included should be sent to the league Commissioner and the TIG Design Team. 8.1.1 Relay Throws The IBL will use the following chart to determine whether a relay throw is necessary on all throws from the outfield following extra base hits and to determine which fielder makes the relay throw. Where two fielders are designated, the defensive team may choose between the two positions. Throw to From 2b 3b Home rightfield line (rfl) None 2b 1b,2b rightfield (rfw) None 2b 2b rightcenter (rc/rcf) None 2b 2b centerfield (cfw) None ss 2b,ss leftcenter (lc/lcf) None None ss leftfield (lfw) None None ss leftfield line (lfl) None None 3b,ss 8.2 MLB Rule Clarifications 8.2.1 MLB 3-batter rule for pitchers The IBL follows the MLB rules requiring pitchers to face a minimum of three batters or complete a half-inning, except in cases of removal due to injury or ejection. 8.2.2 MLB rules for extra innings The IBL does not follow MLB rules placing runners on base in extra innings. IBL games that go into extra innings will be played to conclusion using standard rules. 9 GAME PLAY PROCEDURES 9.1 Face-to-Face Play (FTF) Owners may elect to play games face to face on the IRC server instead of playing games via Manager Instruction Sheets. Road owners should still send MIS to the home opponent just in case; home owners are still obligated to finish games by 11:59 pm PDT Monday. Refer to the FTF Guidelines page on the IBL Wiki for decorum and protocol. 9.2 Management Instruction Sheet (MIS) Play 9.2.1 Channel Logging As per 2.1.5, all games played by MIS must be logged on the IRC server. The visiting manager may request a replay of any MIS game that was not logged. 9.2.2 Logging Requirements In general, logged MIS games should follow the same guidelines as FTF play. Specifically, the home team is required to: * announce all lineup changes (e.g. pinch-hitter) prior to rolling * announce any non-default defensive alignments (e.g. infield in) prior to rolling * announce any non-default offensive strategies (e.g. hit & run) prior to rolling Failure to comply with these requirements is grounds for the visiting manager to request a replay, provided the omission was material to the outcome of a play.