League Rules

Welcome to the Stitches 108 Baseball League! This is a fun and competitive league where owners will guide, draft, trade, sign and play their way to glory, and win it all, the Stitches World Championship! This league will test your skills, will challenge everyone and give a winning environment to play in. All teams, whether rebuilding, or contending will be given a fair chance to build their team up. With unique features and new additions, you won?t regret joining! With active owners, Stitches has a great environment and a rewarding experience. There is something for all! Good luck, have fun, and play ball!

Here are some of the league?s rules, features and other things you need to know....

Our resident reporter is Tim Kurkjian. He will be posting stories up on the homepage updating everyone on the latest news from the Hot Stove, Trade Deadline, Draft Day, and more!

Commish: joeyrex

Our league schedule is divided into three phases:

Offseason Phase
-Trades Turned ON
-Sign any unsigned player
-Contract Extensions
-Bottom 5 Teams Prospect Requests
-Progressions/Retirements
-2 Round Draft
-Contract Buyouts
-3 Stage Free Agency Signing Period
-Prospect Boost can be used
-Stitches Baseball Skills Camp opens
-Free Agents are assigned
-Position Changes Requests
-Relocation Proposals

Regular Season Phase
-Season Starts, 162 Games
-Set Lineups and manage roster/cap space
-Interleague Prospect Boost Challenge Series
-All Star Week! Festivities, Game, Break (Day TBA by season, but usually Day 85)
-International Free Agent Signing Period
-Trade Deadline! Trades Turned OFF (Day TBA by season, but usually Day 120)
-Season Ends
-Relocation Poll and Vote (Team moves happen in the Offseason)
-Awards Given Out (MVP, Cy Young, Rookie of Year)

Postseason/Playoffs Phase
-AL/NL Wild Card Series
-AL/NL Division Series
-AL/NL Championship Series
-World Series

ONE WEEK INACTIVE = WARNING. ONE DAY AFTER WARNING = BOOT! Message commish if you are going to be inactive for more than a week.

1- Budget
Each team has a $250M salary cap. You can go over it during off-season but must be back at or under by opening day. The 108 Stitches Commissioner Team will correct any teams that are over-budget after game 1. If that happens: potential loss of picks in next draft, lost of least amount of players needed to get under cap (regardless of position or need). Front offices must manage their cap!

2- Expiring Contract Negation
Each team may negotiate with ONE player with an expiring contract at the end of a season. The negotiations will be held via the commissioners office and the max length of a extension is 5 years. Owners must specify the contract length. After owner request the player to be extended, the Commissioners office will return with the player?s demanding salary. Owners may select and choose the number of years (1-5 years). No negotiations of price, but length can be adjusted by owner. After owner is satisfied with length they will send back the years of contract to the Commish Office and the player will be signed. However, once player's contract demands price are known, owner can pull out of negotiations if they deem price to be too high.

3- Contract Buyout Option
A) Each team may buyout any player(s) during the off-season. Cost is team has to pay out 50% of total contract value. Example: Player A has a contract = $10m x 8years = $80m total contract value. Team would be responsible for paying $40 for any amount of year of the team's choosing with a maximum of 10 years possible. In the example, the positive is the team is freeing up $40m is cap space and they could also add 2 more years to the buyout terms so that the team is now paying $4 over 10 years. A contract can only be bought out once. You can't use the 50% reduction on a contract that was already bought out prior. That buyout will stay with your team until the total year is met. The negative is your team now has $4 of dead money for 10 years. Team's decision on if this will benefit them or not.
B) Every team may cut any contract that is in the final year (represented by a $) at any time. This is because their salary has already been paid and not counted towards a team?s salary cap. Exception: a contract that has been previously bought out (buyouts must stay entire length).

4- Team Management
- Every team will have a 45 man roster 25 majors 20 minors ?
If team is over on players on opening day they will be given a couple days. If 108 Stitches Commish Office must make roster drops for a front office, penalties will be: lost of player regardless of need/position and/or draft picks.

5- Players
Starting Pitchers will be on 4 days rest between starts
Position Players will use endurance
There will be minor league spots for draft picks or Prospect Tag (check section 17)
Majors- all players signed to or on expiring contracts
At end of the season, any player not signed (both major or minor) becomes a free agent.

6- Free Agency -- 3 Phases
Round 1 > All teams and free agents are eligible. Minimum total contract value = $25m. Maximum number of years = 10.
Round 2 > All teams and remaining free agents are eligible. No minimum total contract value. Maximum number of years = 10. Teams may bid a 1yr/$0 on a player in round 2. This would sign the player to contract (represented by a $) but at no cost. This would be a path to fill rosters with cheap vets rather than using the free-for-all phase. If a roster is full, no $0 bids will be awarded.
Round 3 > waivers may be used following each Spring Training Game.

7- Rules for Free Agency:
1) If only one team bids, they sign player without a rebid.
2) all submissions must arrive before deadline. No submissions after deadline will be accepted.
3) front offices may bid on as many free agents as they wish, however, they are limited to only 1 bid per free agent. No redos accepted in any stage.
4) Format is: position, name, $ per year, # of years, and total contract value. Example = C Johnny Bench $10m x 10 years = $100m.

8- Prospect Requests
After every season, the worst 5 teams in the league by standing will get a player request from their team. For example, the Angels might request Jo Adell.
Players will be created with stats that reflect their real life scouting report and grades.
The bottom 5 teams may choose to trade these requests to any other team if they want.

9- Trades
Trades are unlimited
Lopsided trades may be subject to reviewing and Commish reserves the right to overturn trade. If necessary, most likely, as a league, a poll can be set up to review trades. Everyone here wants a competitive fair league!

10- Progression
- players progress till 28 and decline after 32
- Players retire at age 40 if not signed to contract
-players who's stats are too low and are FAs, will be removed.
-Once a player is retired from the this league they can not come back, a son may show up in the rookie draft, though.
-Any player that reaches 100 overall ranking PRIOR TO AGE 28 will have their potential edited to F (that player has achieved the top of our player pool). That same player will have their potential edited to C PRIOR TO AGE 33.

11- Position Change Requests
During the off-season you may request to swap ONE player's primary and secondary stats at no cost to you. No player request allowed or processed during the season. If SP is converted to a RP, their stats will be divided until their innings pitched is between 40-79. H/9 will go down by about 1.5, bb/9 will go down by about 1 and so/9 will go up by about 2. Stamina will equal 25.
Position players may only change to their secondary positions. Inf or Ut designations must declare a primary position if changed and their secondary position becomes their former primary position (thus eliminating their Inf/Ut destination). Position fielding percentages will work as: Improves slightly or remains same if SS or 2B switches to 3B or 1B. Improves slightly or remains same if OF or 3B switches to 1B. Worsens under all other scenarios.
Limit to 1 change per off-season.

12- Draft - 2 round slow draft
-All drafts will be made up players from the future. For example, in the draft next year, you will have possible 20 year old studs who don't exist.
-Real players will be FAs with minor changes to name and stats
- can trade picks for the current season Only.
- Rookies will have all progression types
-Draft players stats will depend on how strong/weak the league is becoming
- You will be given plenty of notice prior to the actual draft to pre rank the
Players your interested in if you can't attend draft.
- If you don't pre-rank or attend the draft you will not be getting the best player
available when your pick comes up, auto pick will simply take highest rated player without regard for position.
- Front offices who take the time to either be at the live draft or pre-rank will be rewarded for the players they either select or have ranked. Auto pick has no strategy. Front offices should pre-rank if they can not be present for any draft.

13-Tanking or Violating rules
-NO TANKING ALLOWED, if you have higher ranked guys that are major league players sitting in minors and your starting low level guys that's tanking! But if you have prospects in minors and you don't want to call them up there is leeway with that.

If your caught tanking or violating rules and do not fix it u will lose picks/Prospects
1st offense - 2nd rd pick
2nd offense - 1st rd pick
3rd offense - Prospect(s)
4th offense - Booted from League

14- New Owner "CONTRACT PURGE"
New owners can request to cut/void 3 contracts without penalty during the off season that the owner joins or within a week of real time of joining during the regular season whichever comes first and with a deadline set via the Commissioners. Message commish on which contracts you would like voided.

If during the season, those players will be placed on the DFA team (not free agent). A bidding will take on those voided players with total contract value winning and team with worst record breaking a tie.

15- Awards
Cy Young
MVP
Rookie of the Year

16- Relocation
Two options with each allowed no more than one per off-season.
Option #1: Owner petitions commissioner's office with proposed list of cities for consideration. Owner and Commissioner refine proposal to one city and possible team name(s). Owner must then develop an OFFICIAL PROPOSAL messaged to Commissioner's Office for review. Commissioner's Office makes decision on which ONE plan to make available for league vote. League approval of 20 owners is mandatory. This could result in realignment which would be addressed in proposal.
Option #2: Two owners switch franchises (not rosters). Example: Cincinnati Reds owner and Boston Red Sox owner trade teams but rosters stay with the owner. The players on the Reds become Red Sox and vice versa. Two owners must message Commissioner's Office for review. Commissioner's Office makes decision on which ONE switch will be made. No league vote required on this one as this will not result in realignment.

17- Prospect Tags
Prospect tags will allow a team to keep a player for FREE after progressions. All amateur draft players and most IFA's will qualify for this tag each year. Owners may drop a player with a prospect tag at any time without penalty.

Stipulations to qualify are:
1) Player must be 24yo or under (if they turn 25yo, a tag will NOT keep the player on a team after progressions).
2) Player may not appear in any games. Player does not have to accumulate any stats. The simple appearance nullifies a prospect tag.

18- Stitches Baseball Skills Camp (added prior to 2027 season). SUSPENDED FOLLOWING 2028 SEASON
The Stitches Baseball Skills Camp happens every year, near the end of the offseason phase. It is a way for lower ranked players to improve their ranks and numbers. Owners in each offseason have 1 invitation to send a player to camp. While working in camp, players will be double progressed to help boost stats without aging.

Bottom 10 teams will get a second player slot eligible for camp.

Eligibility for Camp for bottom 10 teams will be:
-Player 1 must be under or 24 years old and has to have an overall rating lower than 70
-Player 2 must be 25-28 years old and has to have an overall rating lower than 70
Eligibility for Camp all other teams will be:
-Player must be under or 28 years old and has to have an overall rating lower than 70
For all camp submissions:
-Players May only attend one Training Camp in their entire career

These invitation slots themselves CANNOT be traded. However, the boosted player may be traded.

19- The Interleague Challenge Series SUSPENDED FOLLOWING 2028 SEASON
Every year, each team will have a series against an Interleague opponent designated as a Challenge Series. The winner of the 3 game series will receive a prospect booster that can help rookies & prospect tagged players with a boost to stats, and a potential (F/U) changes.

League Settings

Year Range of Stats	2019 - 2050
Roster Size (Majors)	26
Roster Size (Minors)	24
Keepers	(40 keepers)
Change Stats Allowed
Free Agency
Drops
No-Drop List
Player Fatigue
Batter Injuries	(10 games max)
Pitcher Injuries	(18 games max)
Use Pitcher's HR Allowed Stats
Allows Max Surprise Bunts
Min Batters Pitcher Must Face	3
Slump Buster	(1unlimited days)
On Fire	Classic
User Sims