Baseball business rules

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Major League Baseball has a set of rules which governs all aspects of the game beyond what happens in the field of play. These are the Business Rules of Baseball.^[1] There are a number of sources for these rules but they all ultimately are sanctioned by the Commissioner's Office of Major League Baseball. Examples of these rules are the Rule 5 Draft and the Disabled list. Other examples include:

• the 5/10 Rule whereby players who have been with a club for 5 consecutive years and have been a major league player for 10 years cannot be traded without their consent.
• the roster list rules (25 and 40 man lists) which also determines who is eligible to play for a team in the playoffs and world series
• tie-breaking rules for deciding which teams go to the playoffs
• implementing/enforcing the expanded playing rules issued to umpires which goes into much greater detail than the official Baseball rules. These rules are described in the Umpire's Manual.

[edit] The Official Professional Baseball Rules Book

The Rules Book is broken up into the following sections:

• Major League Constitution
• Major League Rules
• Professional Baseball Agreement
• Basic Agreement

[edit] Major League Rules

 The Major League Rules begin with a note stating that whenever a provision of any of its rules conflicts with a provision in the Collective Bargaining Agreement negotiated with the Major League Baseball Players Association, the provision in the Collective Bargaining Agreement supersedes the Major League Rules.

These are the current Major League Rules:

1. Circuits
2. Player Limits and Reserve Lists
3. Eligibility to Sign Contracts, Contract Terms and Contract Tenders
4. First Year Player Draft
5. Annual Selection of Players
6. Selected Players
7. Termination of Player-Club Relation
8. Major League Unconditional Release
9. Assignment of Player Contracts

   • 9A-Temporary Assignement

10. Major League Waivers
11. Optional Agreements
12. Transfer Agreements
13. Suspended Players
14. Retired Players
15. Restricted, Disqualified and Ineligible Lists
16. Reinstatement of Players
17. Player Salaries (governed by the Basic Agreement)
18. Playing Otherwise than for a Club
19. Umpires and Official Scorers (Hiring and Firing Rules)
20. Conflicting Interests
21. Misconduct

    • a)Misconduct in Playing Baseball (throwing games)
    • b)Gift for Defeating Competing Club
    • c)Gifts to Umpires
    • d)Betting on Ball Games

      1. Betting on Other Baseball Teams (1 year ineligible)
      2. Betting on Own Team (permanently ineligible)

    • e)Violence or Misconduct (judgement of commissioner)
    • f)Other Misconduct
    • g)Rule to be kept posted (in English and Spanish in every clubhouse)

22. Claim Presentation
23. Holidays
24. Suspended Personnel
25. Uniform Playing Rules

    • a)Official Baseball Rules
    • b)Playing Rules Committee
    • c)Duties of Playing Rules Committee
    • d)Official Scoring Rules Committee
    • e)Duties of Official Scoring Rules Committee
    • f)Copyright and Publication

26. Gate Receipts
27. reserved
28. Voting
29. Major League Disaster Plan (previously this rule was reserved)
30. Finances
31. Bulletins
32. Schedules (to be issued by commissioner)
33. Qualification for Post-Season Series

    • a)Division Champions
    • b)Wild Card
    • c)Tie-Breaking Procedures

34. Post-Season Series

    • a)Division Series
    • b)League Championship Series
    • c)World Series

35. Post-Season Supervision by the Commissioner
36. Pennant and Memento
37. Post-Season Schedule (this is where the all-star game winner rule applies)
38. Post-Season Series Termination
39. Post-Season Playing Rules (use the home team's rules)
40. Players Eligible for Post-Season (must be active, disabled, suspended or military on Aug. 31)

    • only 25 eligible players on a team

41. reserved
42. Post-Season Expenses
43. Post-Season Playing Grounds
44. Post-Season Admissions
45. Division of Post-Season Receipts
46. Bonus Forbidden
47. Exhibition Games
48. Obligations of Participants
49. reserved
50. Enforcement of Major League Rules
51. Classification of Minor Leagues
52. Major and Minor League Territorial Rights
53. Minor League Expansion, Contraction,Relocation and Reclassification
54. Regulation of Minor League Franchises
55. Minor League Free Agency
56. Standard Player Development Contract
57. Travel Standards for Minor League Clubs
58. Standards for Minor League Playing Facilities
59. Lien on Territory
60. Definitions

    • a)Major League
    • b)Major League Club
    • c)Major League Player
    • d)Minor League Association
    • e)Minor League
    • f)Minor League Club
    • g)Club
    • h)Minor League Player
    • i)First Year Player
    • j)Commissioner
    • k)President of a Minor League Association
    • l)Major League Reserve List
    • m)Minor League Reserve List
    • n)Major League Active List
    • o)Minor League Active List
    • p)Championship Season
    • q)Player Development Contract (PDC)
    • r)Independent Minor League Club
    • s)Inactive Lists
    • t)Winter League

This is followed by the Acceptance of all the Clubs. Then there are the Attachments to the Rules(numbers refer back to Rule# above):

• 3-Minor League Uniform Player Contract
• 4a-Player's acknowledgement of Receipt of Contract Tender
• 4b-Declaration of Club Official
• 12-Notice to Player of Release or Transfer
• 52-Major and Minor League Territories
• 54-Standard Minor League Financial Disclosure
• 56-Standard Form Letter Establishing PDC
• 58-Minor League Facility Standards and Compliance Inspection Procedures

External Links

• The Business of Baseball::Documents

See Also

• Major League Baseball Constitution

[edit] Notes

1. ^ The Official Professional Baseball Rules Book,Office of the Commissioner, New York 2003. This book is available at the Baseball Hall of Fame library in Cooperstown, NY