RULEBOOK

Revision 1	7/26/2000	contained information on Earl Weaver style of play and how Earl ratings were developed.
Revision 2	1/22/2001	updated to Diamond Mind, new draft and free agency setups
Revision 3	2002	added four teams, changed divisional alignment, changed minimum AB from 150 to 100, changed web page, rewrote playoff rules, clarified trade deadline, allowed roster expansion in September, clarified free agency period and powerball process.
Revision 4	1/25/2004	Changed eligibility from 25IP to 75BF, 100AB to 100PA, kept old divisional assignments, changed draft length, removed cash free agency process.
Revision 5	12/7/2005	Removed minimum eligibility requirements. Changed roster requirements for prospects. Changed prospect draft process. Changed to Diamond Mind version 9. Removed holiday tournament. Changed divisions to 3 per league, two leagues. Removed Sept. call ups. Moved powerball to May.
Revision 6	2/26/2006	Changed roster limits, added eligibility requirements (75PA and 75BF). Note: in 2005 there was 451 batters with 75 real life PA and 460 pitchers with 75 real life BF. With 24 teams in the league, this would only leave 71 players on the free agent list. Added ballpark draft.
Revision 7	1/20/2007	Clarified minor league prospect rule as well as pre-draft roster size.
Revision 8	12/11/2007	Combined the prospect and free agent draft, made roster sizes 50 total (25 active). Ballpark draft changed to allow people to keep their park. Added a third powerball drawing. Removed calendar.
Revision 9	12/18/2008	Reduced roster to 40 total. Dropped from 24 to 20 teams.

1.0 STRUCTURE
1.1 NOTE:
All rules are subject to change by the commissioner. It is a free league, so whining is not tolerated.
1.2 SOFTWARE:
The standard software is Diamond Mind version 9. The standard player statistics and rankings included with Diamond Mind Baseball will be used. The software may be changed at any time.
1.3 OWNERSHIP REQUIREMENTS:
Owners must have an e-mail account and Internet access. Ownership may be revoked for any reason, especially inactivity. Owners are subject to the approval of the commissioner.
1.4 WEB SITE:
The official home of the Ball State Sand Lot League is http://bssll.tripod.com
1.5 SEASON:
The regular season is 162 games long. A designated hitter will be used in all games. The season schedule and divisional alignment is determined prior to the start of each season.
1.6 MANAGER:
The manager form or commissioner's e-mail are used to make lineup changes, rotation changes, roster changes, management changes, etc.
1.7 BALLPARK:
MLB ballparks per Diamond-Mind database are to be used. Limit 1 team per ballpark. Draft will be used to determine who gets which park. Teams that wish to participate in the ballpark draft must leave their field and then enter the draft (teams can keep their park multiple years).
1.8 DIVISIONS and PLAYOFFS:
There are two leagues with two divisions per league. Each division winner and one wild card team per division will make it to the playoffs. Home field advantage is determined by season record. If teams had same record, head-to-head record used. If tied, coin is tossed to determine home field advantage. The first team to win four games in the series will be the winner. 2-2-1-3-1-2 schedule: (2 days rest after end of regular season, 2 days at home of team with home field advantage, 1 day of rest, 3 days at home of team without home field advantage, 1 day of rest, 2 days at home of team with home field advantage (if necessary).
2.0 ROSTER MANAGEMENT
2.1 TEAM ROSTER:
Roster limits are a total of 40 players per team. Up to 25 players can be active on a team at a time, provided that they meet the minimum playing time limits. Players that do not meet the minimum eligibility can not be activated to the active roster. Batters are eligible to hit when they have 75 real life plate appearances. Pitchers are eligible to pitch when the have faced 75 real life batters.
2.2 TRADES:
Both parties must confirm trades, unless a forwarded message is sent to the league office by one of the trading parties. All trades must be confirmed by 4:00 p.m. EST on a simulation day at the official league commissioner e-mail. Multi-player trades are allowed. Draft picks may be traded, however no more than one season in advance. Trades can be reversed if 1/2 of the current owners vote against the trade. The commissioner can veto a trade. Trades will not be allowed after the trading deadline. The trade deadline is July 31st at 8pm EST.
2.3 SIGNING FREE AGENTS:
Free agents are players who are not on any roster, but meet the minimum playing time eligibility requirements. Free agents can be acquired if the team has an empty roster spot. There is a limit of one free agent signing per day (by 4:00 pm EST on sim days), regardless of that team's roster size. Free agents may only be signed after the completion of the free agency draft to the trade deadline.
2.4 FREE AGENCY:
Each team assigns a number between 1 and 55 to each player on the roster. If a team does not submit a list by the deadline, then the commissioner will assign the numbers for that team. Lists will be reported to the league before the powerball drawings. After that, the commissioner will assign three powerball lottery dates to select players. When a number is drawn that matches the number assigned to that player, he becomes a free agent upon the completion of that season regardless of what team he ends up with. After the season, each team is allowed to retain one powerball free agent on their roster. All players who are not retained are released into the free agent pool for the draft. Note that there are five white balls (1-55) and one red ball drawn (1-42) per drawing. Therefore, there is a slightly lower chance that a player numbered 43-55 will be drawn. Any player who is under the age of 27 in real life on the date of the first drawing can be held off that team's list. The date of the first drawing is the first available Powerball day in June.
2.5 FREE AGENT AND PROSPECT DRAFT:
The team that finished last will draft first, second to last drafts second (and so on). In the event of a tie, the team with the lowest scoring differential (runs scored minus runs allowed) will draft first. If that category is also tied, the team with the oldest player on their roster will pick first. The players to be drafted include any free agent who meets the eligibility requirement, as well as any baseball prospect as chosen by the manager. This can include high school and college players or other players that are not playing professionally. This draft is ten rounds long.