National Collegiate Athletic Association

The NCAA News - News and Features

July 21, 1997

Women's softball rules committee puts clamps on jewelry

The NCAA Women's Softball Rules Committee, meeting June 28-July 1 in Snowmass Village, Colorado, made new rules and clarified concerns regarding jewelry, obstruction, and pitchers' wind-ups and deliveries.

As a result of a request from the Division I Women's Softball Committee, the committee made its rule on jewelry more specific.

Last year, all exposed jewelry was illegal, but no penalty was attached for a violation. The committee will recommend to the Division I Championships/Competition Cabinet that, for safety reasons, the only jewelry permitted shall be posts or studs in the ears and necklaces that are tucked in. Medical alert bracelets are permitted but must be taped to the body.

Under the recommendation, no penalty would be assessed if the offender removed the item(s) upon request. Failure to comply would result in ejection.

The committee also addressed all types of obstruction (catcher, fielder, base runner).

Next year, the first time an umpire calls any type of obstruction will serve as a warning for both teams. The next violation by either team will result in the penalty for the specific offense as listed in the rules book. Just as last year, flagrant obstruction will result in immediate ejection. In a rundown situation, a base runner who is obstructed will be awarded the next base.

The committee also defined three new limits on pitchers' wind-ups, replacing last year's limits of not being able to stop or reverse forward motion and not being able to make more than one revolution of the arm (windmill pitch).

The new limits are that the pitcher, after having taken the signal and brought her hands together, may not: (1) stop or change direction more than twice; (2) allow the arm, during the wind up, to pass the vertical plane by the ear (whether the pitching arm began up or back, it may not pass the vertical plane of the ear in either case); and (3) once the pitching arm begins its clockwise motion that will result in the release of the pitch, no more than 11/2 continuous revolutions of the pitching arm in the same direction may occur (the hands must be separated in the delivery phase of the pitch to begin).

Surveys planned

The committee also agreed to do three surveys this year, in order to assess sponsoring institution's opinions on the game.

The first will address the cost of complying with facility recommendations the committee made last year to the current NCAA Executive Committee regarding bullpens, dugouts and fences. The Executive Committee did not approve those recommendations because it had no information on the cost of such requirements. Because of the importance of getting this information in a timely manner, this survey will be extremely short.

The second survey also will deal with facilities, but will cover a wider variety of topics.

The committee also plans to do a rules survey that would focus on the eight-run rule, speed-up rules, the fake tag and the development of an on-site protest.

The committee hopes to mail the first survey before the end of the summer.

Other issues

The committee also addressed these areas of concern:

Umpiring Improvement Program: Assigned a subcommittee the task of developing data to support starting an umpiring improvement program.

In a related matter, recommended to the Division I Championships/Competition Cabinet that, until a national coordinator of umpires is selected and an umpiring improvement clinic is in place, the cabinet should make funds available to cover the secretary-rules editor's presence at the Women's College World Series so that rules interpretations can be given on site as needed. The committee also noted that Divisions II and III events, which traditionally are held concurrently, should receive similar coverage, and recommended that the secretary-rules editor be funded to attend each on a rotating annual basis.