LEAGUE OVERVIEW
LEAGUE OBJECTIVES
AAA DIVISION
The objective of the Provincial ‘AAA’ League is to provide a highly competitive yet developmental level of play for players / teams at the 13U, 15U and 18U age categories in a Province-wide format. Provincial ‘AAA’ Leagues will operate on a Province-wide basis for the entire season.
AA DIVISION
The objective of the Provincial ‘AA’ League is to provide a competitive and developmental level of play for players/teams at the 11U, 13U, 15U and 18U age categories in a Province-wide format. Provincial ‘AA’ Leagues will operate on a 3-round seeding basis, with teams playing in a Regional format in May, a North/South Divisional format in June and a Provincial Tier format in July.
A DIVISION
The objective of the Provincial ‘A’ Baseball League is to provide a longer developmental season of baseball for community level teams and players, allowing them to continue to play baseball through the month of July with an ‘A’ Provincial Championship at 11U, 13U, 15U and 18U age categories (based on registration).
Teams will be separated into regional areas (based on number and location of teams) for play in early July with every team qualifying for the Provincial Championships in an appropriate Tier based on results during the first two weekends of play. If there are too few teams registered to host the ‘A’ division of play, the teams entered will be given the opportunity/choice to compete in the lowest ‘AA’ Tier for play in July and will have an opportunity to qualify for that Tier’s Provincial ‘AA’ Championship.
LEAGUE FORMAT & SCHEDULING
RAIN OUTS & SCHEDULING
Teams must provide Baseball Alberta with at least 2 weeks' notice of tournaments, graduations, or any other circumstance where their team is unavailable to play. If inadequate time (less than 2 weeks) is given to Baseball Alberta, the team may be forced to take a forfeit loss. Failure to complete league-scheduled games could result in the team's suspension for Provincial Championship play at Baseball Alberta's discretion.
Games should only be canceled for weather if the field is unplayable or if playing would be unsafe due to conditions. If games must be canceled due to poor weather, the host team is responsible for notifying the umpire crew (if their phone numbers have been provided) or the Umpire Assignor (listed on www.baseballalberta.com).
Teams are responsible for making up games and must coordinate the date/time/place, forwarding the details to Baseball Alberta by 4 pm at least 4 days prior to the anticipated game. If four days' notice is not possible, the Umpire Assignor will do their best to assign umpires. Baseball Alberta will then forward the request directly to the Zone Umpire Assignor, who will confirm with the team if umpires are available.
Any games not made up by the end of the round will either be struck from the schedule (if there was no possible way to make up that game due to timing/weather) or result in a loss assigned for the team(s) unable or unwilling to replay the game. No team will receive a win for a game not played. Any team refusing to travel to play a game may be disciplined further through suspension.
Teams that meet in tournament play may elect to use that game for Provincial League results but must agree before the game and must provide an Official Scorekeeper to fill out all necessary game reports and sheets (must follow rules for pitching and use of affiliates/eligible players). Any team/host site that must cancel a game (other than for weather reasons) must provide notice by 4 pm at least 2 days prior to the game, or the team canceling the game will be charged full umpire game fees for the scheduled game.
All rainout games and rescheduled games must be completed 5 days before the scheduled Provincial Championship weekend for each competition level.
TEAM RANKING & TIEBREAKING GUIDELINES
The following order will be utilized to rank teams and break ties following each round of league play as well as Provincial Championship play. Once a team is removed from a tie, the remaining teams will continue from that point forward through the remainder of the rules to break any remaining ties:
Winning Percentage (per Round(s) of Play or Round Robin portion of Championship)
Head-to-Head Game(s) Result (between tied teams)
Runs Formula from Games Between Tied Teams (Total Runs For Divided by Offensive Outs Minus Total Runs Against Divided by Defensive Outs)
Defensive Runs Formula from Games Between Tied Teams (Total Runs Against Divided by Defensive Outs)
Runs Formula from All Games in Round(s)
Defensive Runs Formula from All Games in Round(s)
For the Competitive Division, teams will be ranked according to Team Ranking and Tiebreaking Rules after each round of play, then seeded into the appropriate Division for Round 2 and the appropriate Tier for Round 3.
*NEW FOR 2024* The following change will impact the following categories Provincial Championships: 11U A, 13U A, 15U A, 18U A, 11U AA All Tiers, 13U AA Tier 2+, 15U AA Tier 2+ and 18U AA Tier 2+. These categories and tiers of A/AA Provincial Championships will no longer have Tie Break Games on the schedule and instead, solely rely on the Baseball Alberta Tie Breaker Guidelines to settle ties amongst teams in the standings.
AAA/13U AA Tier 1/15U AA Tier 1/18U AA Tier 1 Provincial Championships will continue to schedule Tie Break Games if needed.
The Baseball Alberta Tie Breaker Guidelines will be applied as follows:
AAA/13U AA Tier 1/15U AA Tier 1/18U AA Tier 1 Provincial Championships
Two Way Tie for First Place - Head to head record between the two teams will be used to determine 1st and 2nd place.
Two Way Tie for Second Place - Tie Break Game between the two tied teams to determine 2nd place.
Three Way Tie for First Place - The Tie Break Guidelines will be used to determine the 1st place team, the remaining two teams that are tied will play a Tie Break Game to determine 2nd place.
Three Way Tie for Second Place - The Tie Break Guidelines will be used to determine the 4th place team to eliminate them, the remaining two teams that are tied will play a Tie Break Game to determine 2nd place.
A/11U AA/13U AA Tier 2+/15U AA Tier 2+/18U AA Tier 2+ Provincial Championships
Two Way Tie for First Place - Head to Head record between the two teams will be used to determine 1st and 2nd place.
Two Way Tie for Second Place - Head to Head record between the two teams will be used to determine 1st and 2nd place. There will be no Tie Break Game.
Three Way Tie for First Place - The Tie Break Guidelines will be used to determine the 1st place team, the remaining two teams that are tied will have their Head to Head record between the two teams used to determine 2nd place. There will be no Tie Break Game.
Three Way Tie for Second Place - The Tie Break Guidelines will be used to determine the 2nd place team. There will be no Tie Break Game.
TEAM MOVEMENT
'AAA' team moving down to 'AA': An application for a 'AAA' team wishing to move down to the 'AA' division must be submitted to the Baseball Alberta office by May 25th. Any movement between 'AAA' and 'AA' will be at the discretion of Baseball Alberta, which reserves the right to review the competitiveness of 'AAA' teams to ensure the integrity of our leagues.
As of June 30th, if the last-place North/South Division I team has lost all 2nd round games with an average runs differential (total runs scored less total runs scored against, divided by the total number of games played) of -7 or worse, that team will be placed in Tier IV for the Provincial Round of play in July.
As of June 30th, if the last-place North/South Division I team has lost all or all but one 2nd round games with an average runs differential (total runs scored less total runs scored against, divided by the total number of games played) of -5 or worse, that team will be given the option to play in Tier IV for the Provincial Round of play in July.
As of June 30th, if the top North/South Division II team wins all 2nd round games with an average runs differential of +7 or better, that team will be placed in Tier III for the Provincial Round of play in July. As of June 30th, if the top North/South Division II team wins all or all but one 2nd round games with an average runs differential of +5 or better, that team will be given the option to play in Tier III for the Provincial Round of play in July.
On completion of the 3rd Round, if the last-place team in any tier has lost all 3rd round games with an average runs differential (total runs scored less total runs scored against, divided by the total number of games played) of -8 or worse and a spot is available, that team will drop down one tier for the Provincial Championship.
On completion of the 3rd Round, if the last-place team in any tier has lost all or all but one 2nd round games with an average runs differential (total runs scored less total runs scored against, divided by the total number of games played) of -7 or worse and a spot is available, that team will be given the option to drop down one tier for the Provincial Championship.
On completion of the 3rd Round, if the top team in tier II or lower wins all 3rd round games with an average runs differential of +8 or better and a spot is available, that team will move up one tier for the Provincial Championship.
On completion of the 3rd Round, if the top team in tier II or lower wins all or all but one 3rd round games with an average runs differential of +7 or better and a spot is available, that team will be given the option to play up one tier for the Provincial Championship.
Any team moving down a Tier for the Provincial Championship weekend, as determined by Baseball Alberta, will be automatically seeded #3 in any tournament draw that requires seeding placement.
RELEGATION/PROMOTION GUIDELINES (BAEL/18U AAA Only)
In an effort to protect the competitiveness of the Baseball Alberta Elite League presented by Rawlings and the 18U AAA League, Baseball Alberta has developed the following guidelines for relegation and promotion between categories. Baseball Alberta league play standings will be used only. There will be no consideration for Tournament, Exhibition or Provincial Game results to calculate Win Percentage and league finishes for promotion/relegation purposes.
Relegation From BAEL to 18U AAA
A) Last place finish in the BAEL regular season standings - relegation takes effect the following season
B) Season Win Percentage below .200 at the end of BAEL regular season play, even if not in last place - relegation takes effect the following season
Promotion From 18U AAA to the BAEL
A) First place finish in the 18U AAA League regular season standings - promotion takes effect the following season
Relegation From 18U AAA to 18U AA
A) Two season combined Win Percentage during the regular season that is below .300 - relegation takes effect the following season