Softball Association Bylaws

The bylaws adopted by softball associations provide ongoing guidance regarding the terms of participation and other standing guidelines to help establish a basic framework for the organization. The United States Specialty Sports Association and the Amateur Softball Association have playing rules the manage the way the game is played on the field, but they also have bylaws that set up a structure for leagues that choose to join their organization.

  1. Players

    • A player is can participate on a softball team as long as they are part of the established roster. She can only play for one team at a time. Once a team qualifies for any of the national tournaments, players are locked onto the roster and a team is only allowed to replace up to three players after the roster is locked. Replacement players can not come from another team, but must be unattached. Players who are allowed a release from a roster during the season cannot return to that roster until a new season has begun.

    Teams

    • Teams are allowed to carry up to 20 players at any time. The official girls softball season is defined in the bylaws as beginning on August 1 and ending on July 31. Teams in the national tournaments in August continue to play under the prior year's age designation, but any other games or tournaments played after August 1 count towards the following year, and player age designation uses the next year's playing ages. A team that had all 14-year-old players during the spring and summer seasons that plays an October tournament would need to enter the 15-and-under division since it would need to use the following year's designation.

    Tournament Play

    • Teams must pay their association dues and any tournament-related fees before being allowed to participate in a tournament. All tournaments must be designed as double-elimination format or some other format that guarantees each team at least two tournament games. Each team must be classified in a division based on playing ability, and must play in tournaments with other teams of their same level. In USSSA play, these levels are A for the most competitive teams, and then B and C for less competitive teams. Each team in a tournament is required to carry copies of birth certificates for each player on the roster. Players without a birth certificate are ineligible to play in the tournament.