CONSTITUTION

I – INTRODUCTION

We the owners, in order to form a more perfect league, make the attempt to establish justice and ensure general tranquility, provide for the common offense, promote the welfare of more than just one team, and secure the blessings of a championship, for ourselves we ordain and establish this constitution for the Owners Club Baseball League.

II – SCORING SYSTEM

This is a head-to-head points based league. A team will play one other team each week. A week begins on Monday (unless otherwise noted by the commissioner) and ends after the last game on Sunday. The points for the players will be totaled and a winner will be determined by whichever team has the most points at the end of the week. This will be repeated throughout the regular season following a pre-determined, schedule, and will continue in the same manner into the playoffs. If a week ends in a tie between two teams, the team that is designated as the “home team” according to the schedule that was crafted prior to the draft or by post-season seeding, will be determined as the winner of that week.

Starting pitcher points are totaled slightly different from the other positions. If a pitcher makes only one start during a week his points will be doubled. If a pitcher makes two starts during the week those two starts will be added together for his total. In the unlikely event that a pitcher makes three or more starts in a week, his individual game scores will be averaged then doubled.

A pitching lineup will consist of four starting pitchers and two relievers. Any pitcher can be utilized as a starter or reliever, however, a pitcher designated as a starter will only accrue points when he starts, and a pitcher slated as a reliever will only score points when brought in relief.

Any pitcher or reliever designated in the starting lineup may also be used as a hitter during that same week. A pitcher or reliever can only be placed in a starting hitting spot that he would qualify as a hitter. according to the Yahoo Position Eligibility rules (see excerpt below). Likewise a hitter in the starting lineup designated at a position may also be used as a pitcher or reliever in that same week. A hitter also designated as a pitcher during a week will only get pitching or relieving points if he pitches and a pitcher or reliever designated as a hitter will only get hitting points if he hits. If an owner chooses to utilize the preceding rule, that owner must declare the switch to the commissioner, and leave the starting spot empty on the Yahoo Site.

KINGFISH ADDENDUM
If a pitcher appointed as a starter enters a game and pitches four or more innings in relief, the points in this game for that pitcher will count as a start and be factored accordingly.

OPENER ADDENDUM
If a pitcher in your starting lineup is designated as a reliever starts a game and pitches 3 IP or less, it will count as a relief appearance and the points will be factored in accordingly.

DEFINITIONS RELATING TO OWNERS CLUB BASEBALL
League: A group of 16 teams that compete against each other in an Owners Club Baseball season.
Conference: The 8 teams that comprise each of the Black and Red groups
Division: The 4 team sub-group within the Conference
Game: The span of time from Monday to Sunday in which one team competes against another
Regular Season: The first 18 weeks of the Major League regular season
Post-Season: The remaining weeks of the Major League regular season
Owner: The individual Owners Club Baseball participant
Team: Each of the 16 groups of 30 players in an Owners Club Baseball league
Group Site: The Owners Club Baseball page on Discord
Roster Site: The Yahoo fantasy baseball site
Standings Site: OwnersClubBaseball.com

SCORING

III – RANKINGS and PLAYOFFS

On the Standings Site, the teams will be ranked according to their division. There will also be an indication of your rank within the Conference. The tie breakers for the Conference Ranking system are:

1) Head-to-head record vs. tying team

2) Division record

3) Conference record

4) Highest average score per week

5) Highest average pitching score per week

The two Division leaders will always be ranked 1st and 2nd in the Conference. The top 5 teams in each Conference will be seeded into the Post-Season at the end of the Regular Season. The 6th and final Post-Season seed in each Conference will be the remaining team with the highest average score per week regardless of win/loss record. Every Division winner will have a first round bye in the Post-Season and the first two rounds of the Post-Season Championship Tournament are single game match ups. Each new Post-Season round will be re-seeded, with the highest seeded team getting to choose which eligible team they wish to play. The Black and Red Conference Championship games and the World Series are all set in 2 out of 3 format. If both Conference Championship winners sweep their respective series, the World Series will commence the following week. A one game consolation match between the losers of the Championship Series’ will be played during the first week of the World Series to determine the 3rd place team. All other teams will proceed in the Post-Season following their elimination from the Post-Season Championship Tournament in a series of one-game matchups to determine a final season ranking of the 16 teams. The final rank will have direct implications on the draft lottery, with the winners of the final games of the year having a better chance in the lottery than the losers.

In an Owners Club with 2 leagues, the final lowest ranked teams in each league will play one game to determine the overall Donkey for that season. This game is an exhibition and does not contribute to any career statistics.

The “home team” during the playoffs will be the team with the higher seed (higher overall Power Ranking) determined by record and scores from the regular season. When a playoff match up involves a best-of-three series, the higher seeded team will be the “home team” in games one and three (if necessary). A Power Ranking is determined first by overall win/loss record, then on to the same determination as the above mentioned Conference Ranking system.

IV – DRAFT and WINTER MEETING

At the draft, a player will qualify at whatever position is determined by the Yahoo Fantasy Baseball site (see below).

The draft order will be determined before the draft date at the Winter Meeting. The schedule will also be determined at the Winter Meeting which will place a team into the template created by previous seasons. If an Owner chose to hold any players they had under contract from the previous season, that owner will submit their choices to the Commissioner by a stated deadline, and all held players from all teams will be revealed at the Winter Meeting. Every 3 years, a new division placement of teams will also be determined.

During the draft, the order will be “serpentine” in which the #1 spot in the order will pick first in odd numbered rounds and last in the even numbered rounds.

Each Owner will have 60 SECONDS per pick during the draft. An Owner may conduct trades after the draft order has been determined but no trades may occur during the draft itself. All Owners will accept and abide by the rules set by the Yahoo draft.

V – LINEUPS and ROSTERS

At the beginning of each week, lineups must be made known to the Commissioner. This can be done in one (or both) of these two ways:

1) Change the lineup on the Roster Site.
2) Post the lineup on the Group Site.

The first aids the commissioner in doing the scores, and the second verifies any changes made on the Roster Site. Posted lineups on the group site will ALWAYS take priority over lineups on the Roster Site. Lineup changes must be made before the player plays his first game of the week. A player may be changed with another as long as both of the teams that the players are on have not played. Starting pitchers are an exception! You may change starting pitchers during the week as long as both pitchers have not pitched during the week. Late lineup changes may be denied. These starting lineups are always drawn from each particular teams 30 man roster and the lineup needs to consist of:

OFFENSIVE PLAYERS (hitters)
One Catcher
One 1st baseman
One 2nd baseman
One 3rd baseman
One Shortstop
Any Three Outfielders
One Designated Hitter (can be a player of any position)

PITCHERS
Four Starting Pitchers
Two Relief Pitchers

Players are only eligible to be in a starting lineup for a team if they appear on their Monday roster on the Yahoo site. That means every player must be acquired before their first game of the week in order for them to be eligible, and they must be put in the Yahoo lineup before their team’s game starts.

The offensive points will be added to the pitching points to arrive at a teams total score for the week.

Every team can have up to four players that are under contract (described below) designated to their Reserve. A player may be placed on the Reserve for any reason. Once a player is on the Reserve, he is ineligible to to return to active play for the rest of the Regular Season and Post-Season, but the team that placed that player on their Reserve retains control over that player and his contract. A player on the Reserve may be traded, but he still must remain inactive.

PLAYER SUBSTITUTION
Beginning on Wednesday of an active game, A HITTER or RELIEVER may be replaced during the week for any reason. If you choose to replace a player. he may be replaced by a reserve player once during the week. That reserve player must qualify at the same position as the player he is replacing. An owner may “double switch” or switch positions when replacing a player. If a STARTING PITCHER misses a start due for any reason, you may replace him with another starting pitcher not in the starting lineup even if that second pitcher has pitched during the week. Any points that may have accrued while the starting pitcher was not in the starting lineup do not count, but his score may be doubled if the forthcoming start is the only start he makes during that week. A starting pitcher may only be replaced if they were originally scheduled to pitch during that week.

You may make a substitution of a hitter or reliever on a Tuesday of an active game only in the case of emergency. The player replaced must have a documented reason for being replaced, i.e. injury, demotion, inactive, etc. (must have red letters next to his Yahoo name giving a reason for missing a game)

In order to make the substitution official, the owner MUST EITHER POST THE SUBSTITUTION ON THE GROUP SITE by the starting time the substituting player will play, OR CHANGE THE STARTING LINEUP ON THE ROSTER SITE. Either way, you MUST notify the Commissioner of your change. A player that has been replaced may not return during the week he was replaced.

STAR PLAYERS
The Owner may declare one Star Player from their roster that is under contract on their team. All Owners retain the right to declare one Star Player at any time.

A player designated as a Star Player would have his current contract ruled void, and would be replaced with a contract that includes the following stipulations:

– The years on the contract are unlimited. AKA “lifetime Contract”. The Star Player can only be dropped when that player retires.

– The Star Player has full protection from any Event Cards.

– The contract is “Guaranteed” in that the Star player may not be traded (except as noted below) or dropped, and the Star Player must be named as a “held player” during the off-season.

– The Star Player may only be traded if another Star Player is included in the trade.

– A Star Player may be placed on the Reserve.,

– A Doomsday (see Event Card page) would cause all contracts, including those of the Star Players, to be removed. The Doomsday would NOT affect the designation of any future Star Players, and would NOT remove this amendment.

– There are no deadlines to declare a Star Player. An Owner may do so at anytime.

– If the Owner of a Star Player forfeits control of his franchise for any reason and that franchise obtains a new owner, the contract of the Star Player reverts to a one-year contract.

– A new Owner earns the right of naming their own Star Player after the completion of one full season. They may name a Star Player immediately after completion of an Owners Club World Series.

VI – TRADES and ACQUISITIONS

Free-agent player pickups and trade proposals are officially made on the Roster Site. Any agreements or trades made outside of the site are not valid until made on the site.

Free-agent pickups may be subject to waiver priority. The waiver priority number is listed next to the team names on the main page on the Roster Site. Only newly available players (ones who were not on the site before) or players dropped from a team’s roster are immediately placed on waivers. During this waiver period of one day, any Owner can claim the player except for the Owner who dropped the player.

(Please note that a player added and dropped on the same day will remain a free agent. If a player is signed as a free agent and dropped that same day, he will not be subject to waivers.)

For example, if a player is dropped on a Wednesday afternoon, all Owners can claim him until Friday at 11:59:59 pm PST. The player will then be assigned to their new team roughly four to eight hours after the claim deadline. Regardless of the time at which the claim is processed and the player was assigned to a team, all Owners had their claims in by 11:59:59 pm PST. Waiver claims are processed according to the waiver claim priority list. Waiver claims are not processed on a first-come, first-served basis.

If more than one Owner claims the same player, the team that is highest on the Waiver Priority List is given the rights to the player. However, each time a waived player is added to a roster, that Owner is pushed to the back of the list. This “rolling” list stays in effect for the entire season. If you are viewing the priority list AFTER a player has been processed, please note that the team ranked last on the waiver priority list will be the team that was most recently awarded a player via waivers. The current list does not reflect the priority that was in place when waivers were processed. The current waiver rankings will be displayed along with the league standings in the “waiver” column on the Roster Site. The team ranked No. 1 on the list has the highest (or best) waiver priority. If no Owner claims a player during the waiver period, he becomes a free agent.

For a complete rundown of the waiver rules, consult the Yahoo Fantasy Baseball site. Initial waiver priority is the reverse order of the current draft.

The start of free-agent acquisitions will be at an agreed upon time determined at the draft. A team may not pickup players after midnight on the last Sunday of the Regular Season. During the Post-Season, all rosters will be frozen. Emergency pickups during the playoffs can be made only if the following stipulations are met:

1) You must have 2 players placed on the DL from the same position. (3 for outfielders and starting pitchers).
2) The player acquired must be a free-agent.
3) The acquired player must immediately be dropped once the injured player he was substituted for returns.
4) The player acquired must have had 200 at bats for hitters, 10 starts for starting pitchers, or 20 relief appearances for relievers.
5) Normal player acquisition rules apply; that player would be eligible for the following week.

The trading deadline will at 11:59 pm of the Thursday following the MLB All Star Game.

After the Draft and During the Regular Season up until the Trading Deadline, draft picks for the forthcoming draft may be traded for players, draft picks for the forthcoming draft, or both as long as any draft pick involved in a trade is outside the maximum number held players that is allowed to be declared. Draft picks may be traded, but they may only be traded in equal quantities, and only picks for the upcoming year’s draft can be traded. Picks for the following year may be traded immediately after the current draft.

Trades can be offered and accepted on the Yahoo Site, or by all owners involved notifying and confirming the trade with the commissioner.

All trades are subject to the Escrow Rule. Once a trade is consummated on the Roster Site, the commissioner will reject it in order to make the escrow process viable. The trade will be posted on the Roster and Group sites, and all other teams will get 24 hours to make offers to those teams involved in the trade for any of the players involved in the trade. If a subsequent offer is accepted by one of the original trading teams, the initial trade is nullified, and the second trade begins the escrow process. The escrow process may go beyond the trading deadline. A trade does not have to be accepted on the Roster Site if it is made during the off-season, but all parties involved must notify the Commissioner to verify the trade.

Any Owner may contact the Commissioner to request a 24-hour time extension of the escrow deadline for any trade, regardless if they are a participant in the trade. Any trade can only have its deadline extended once. A trade made during an escrow period that replaces a trade is considered a part of a trade, and not a separate trade. The deadline request will be posted on the ticker by the Commissioner, and the Owner that requested it will remain anonymous.

If a trade clears escrow, but in any way is judged severely unfair by the Commissioner, the Commissioner may veto the trade

During the time period between the Winter Meeting and the start of the Draft, any and all draft picks for the forthcoming draft may be traded for players, draft picks or both. Standard escrow rules apply. All trades must complete their escrow period before the trade deadline before the draft in order to be consummated and official.

VII – KEEPER LEAGUE STATUS

Every time you DRAFT a player, that player will be considered under contract. The number of years will be randomly determined from zero to two years at the time the player was drafted. A web page for each team will be maintained and will detail every player on that team that is under contract. If a player is traded, his contract status remains and is transferred to the new team. If a player is dropped, he loses his contract and becomes a free-agent. Free-agent players may still be acquired during the season, but they do not have contracts. Any player that does not have a contract will enter the next season’s draft.

On January 1st at midnight of the new year, all contracts for all players decrease by 1. A player may have a zero year contract, but any player with a zero year contract on January 1st at midnight when the new year ticks down will become a free agent and will be available for the upcoming draft.

Each season, Owners will have the option of holding up to 9 players on their roster as long as they are under contract. For the draft, Owners will lose one draft pick for each player held, starting with the 1st pick. Before the Winter Meeting, all owners will individually notify the Commissioner as to which contracted players they wish to keep for the following season. At the Winter Meeting, the Commissioner will announce all of the held players.

VIII – EVENT CARDS

Event cards have different aspects that can benefit the holder of the card. They may be earned in a variety of ways, and may be played within the time boundary displayed by the card next to the explanation on how the card may be used. Cards may not be traded, and the cards MUST NOT be used in coordination with player trades or other favors involving actual Owners Club Baseball play.

See the Event Card page for specific rules for the cards and their effects.

The Commissioner reserves the right to utilize penalties ranging from freezing rosters, taking event cards, taking draft picks, freezing trades, or expulsion from the league.