[Dakota]

The only local rule that I truly do not like is our fall league's bat-the-roster rule. It symptomizes the problems with many local rules - they don't think through the situations and consequences.

The fall bat-the-roster rule specifies the effect as forfeit of the game. Yet it fails to distinguish between BOO and failure to bat the roster.

The result was a game a couple of years ago in the fall end-of-season tournament. A kid comes to bat early (i.e. BOO). The kid who should have batted was in the dugout. Opposing coach wanted a forfeit for failure to bat the roster. Appeal went all the way to the state HQ - ruling: forfeit for failure to bat the roster. Incredible. The rule still has not changed. Even more incredible.

So, my gripe with local rules isn't that they are somehow tinkering with the integrity of the game. It's just that the rule's ramifications are usually not well thought through.