Transgender Issues facing Co-ed Slowpitch

[chapmaja]

Originally Posted by bsnalex

So I'm not taking any side on this, but I was thinking about this on the weekend at a Coed SP Tourney, mostly fuelled by the recent insanity in the southern states.

The rules (at least in ISF) are very clear about the makeup of a team-- 5 men and 5 women (or 6/6) batting alternatively. Outfield two men/two women. Infield two men/two women. Pitcher/Catcher man and woman.

So...I'm sure this will eventually be a larger issue. What happens if and when there's a transgender player? The ruleset doesn't say anything about "man" or "woman" refers to sex at birth or identified sex? For that matter, how do we deal with gender binary/fluid gender individuals?

Say a manager protests what they perceive to be two men batting consecutively, but the second is a transgender woman. Do we ask preop/postop? Do we defer to the governing federation and simply say play on under protest?

How should a federation handle an umpire that refuses to call a game with transgender players?

To use a term I've heard repeatedly in USA Swimming.

"That's above my pay grade"

This simply means we let someone way above us in importance make decisions about things like this.

I think it is an issue that all organizations will need to deal with sooner rather than later. I know swimming is already dealing with it. I think HS sports will really become an issue spot. Most, if not all states have rules prohibiting boys from participating on girls teams, but don't prohibit girls from being on a boys team. From a sports officiating standpoint, the girl on a boys team is not an issue. Where it will become an issue is the person who is born and is genetically male, but identifies as a female. May not be a problem if the individual is the size and strength of an average female, but wait until the 6-2, 250 pound guy identifies as female and is hitting home runs all over the place on a softball diamond.