Login

✖

Welcome Guest, login to ENYTB:

Username

Password

LOGIN

Lost Password?

Article XVI

Rights of players to move between ENYTB teams.

Section 16.1 Definitions of Terms

A player’s residence is defined as the public school district serving his primary home residence. Disputes regarding a player’s residency or claims of dual residency shall be decided by the League’s Player Agent. [p

Official league roster means any team roster that a member has filed with ENYTB in any given year for purposes of participating in regular season league play at a specific age level and has been certified by ENYTB.

A player may play for only one team in each age division but he may participate on a secondary basis for teams in as many different age divisions as he is age eligible for and can find a team to do so with. However, every protected player is designated as "primary" for one and only one club/team (usually the club that signs him first).

A protected player aka a restricted free agent (RFA) is any player appearing on the official league roster of an ENYTB registered team in the prior year as primary and who appeared in a minimum of 3 league games in that year. and who hasn't been cut since. Player rights shall extend to all affiliations regardless of the sanctioning choices of that player’s team.

An unrestricted free agent (UFA) is any player who does not qualify as a protected player.

A semi-restricted free agent (RFAli) is a RFA who requests his own cut. Such players would count against their new ENYTB team's overall RFA cap (CAP1) but they do not count against any head-to-head RFA caps (CAP2 and CAP3). RFA* also do not count as an RFA loss for their prior team if/when they sign with a new ENYTB team. /li

A franchise player is any player who resides within the franchise area of a full franchise member. Franchise players are exempted from all RFA CAPS when moving from a non-home area club to a home area club.

CUTS - ENYTB recognizes two kinds of cuts and each is treated quite differently. CUT1 - is when a club cuts a player at its sole discretion. Player status after a CUT1 = UFA. CUT2 - is when the player is cut by his own request or by the request of his parent/guardian. Player status after a CUT2 = RFAli (defined above). /li

There is no ban on the active recruiting of RFA from another ENYTB team's roster. Instead, there are limits, or caps, placed on how many RFA each team can have each year.

CAP1 = annual overall number of RFA credits

Existing Teams CAP1 = 1

New Teams CAP1 = 5

Existing Teams - also qualify for "compensatory" RFA credits if they lose two or more RFA to other ENYTB teams in the current year. Compensatory credits, if unused, are carried forward to the next year. This is not true of other credits.

Existing Teams - also can request bonus CAP1 credits if the viability of their team is in jeopardy due to unique circumstances.

Existing Teams - Are subject to a maximum of 5 RFA over the prior 3 years, including the current year.

Example 1: An existing team has added two RFA in each of the prior two years. It is entitled to a maximum of one RFA credit in the current year.

Example 2: An existing team added five RFA in its first year (new). It is not entitled to another RFA credit until year 4.

CAP2 = annual head-to-head RFA cap between any two ENYTB teams.

Existing Teams CAP2 = 1

New Teams CAP2 = 2

CAP3 = 5 year head-to-head RFA cap between any two ENYTB teams. Existing Teams CAP3 = 2 New Teams CAP3 = 2

CAP4 = annual limit on playing-up exemptions Existing Teams CAP2 = 2 New Teams CAP2 = 2

CAP5 = 5 year head-to-head limit between any two ENYTB teams on playing-up exemptions. For All, CAP5 = 2

Section 16.2 RFA Exemptions

RULE 69 TEAM INACTIVITY EXEMPTION - Any active team from the prior year that is not active by the last day of January shall lose all its ENYTB roster protection privileges from the prior year. Clubs that own one or more inactive teams shall have until the last day of January to transfer players from the roster(s) of their own inactive team(s) to the rosters of their active team(s).

RULE 70 - PLAYING “UP” - Any protected player who wants to play in a higher age division for a different club, is eligible to do so on either a primary or secondary basis. If teh player wishes to switch primary teams in order to play up, the player will count against the acquiring team's RFA Credits and H2H CAP Limits.

RULE 71 - Franchise Player Exemption - A franchise player is defined in Section 16.1 as any player residing within the franchise area of a full franchise member. Franchise players are exempted from all RFA CAPS when moving from a non-home area club to a home area club.

RULE 72 - Sibling Credits - Two or more siblings who would otherwise count as RFA may play for the same team for a single RFA credit. Again, the player's new team needs to inform the league of the situation as the website has no way of recognizing this situation on its own.

RULE 76 All co-franchise partners qualify for the same franchise players provide the franchise player is not currently on the roster of any co-franchise member. In the latter case, the player is not eligible for the franchise exemption in order to play for a different co-franchise member i.e., the player will require an RFA credit to switch from one co-franchise member to another.

Section 16.3 Rights To Protected Players/Roster Protection

It is important for League stability that ENYTB grant some form of roster protection to its existing members. It is equally important that players have significant freedom of choice as to what team they play for. ENYTB's RFA CAP System is designed to balance these two opposing factors.

The rules in this section are sometimes referred to as the League’s “anti-piracy” rules because they are designed to prevent League teams from “pirating” or stealing roster players from each other. These rules go to the very integrity of a league. Very few teams would want to participate in a league that provided no roster protection. On the other hand, the League also recognizes that it is important that strong preferences by players to play for the team of their choice be accommodated as best as possible within this framework. The League’s rules on protected players, its exemptions to those rules and its player movement protocols were designed to balance both objectives.

RULE 80 A player's league status at the beginning of the current year shall be determined by the player’s "primary" status at the conclusion of the prior year. NOTE: Fall Ball has no effect on player rights for the summer season. Players are free to play fall ball with any team they wish. Like summer ball, they are limited to one team per age level.

RULE 81 Each year, each returning member team shall hold the exclusive RFA rights to any player designated as primary on its official league roster from the prior year.

RULE 82 Any player having previously participated in the league but was not on the official league roster of any league team in the prior year, in active or inactive status, shall be ruled an unrestricted free agent (UFA). Note: Players designated for the Did Not Report list or CUT are inactive players but they are still considered as being on the team's official league roster for up to two years.

RULE 83 - No league member may place another member’s protected player on his current roster without the express permission of that player and/or his family. Also, to transfer another member's protected player to its own roster, on a primary basis, the team must have sufficient RFA credits and H2H CAP SPACE to accommodate the transaction.

RULE 84 PENALTY: If a club places an RFA on one of its ENYTB rosters in violation of RULE 83, that member shall be required to immediately give up all rights to the player. Any member that insists on keeping another member’s protected player in violation of RULE 83 shall be banned from League participation. This includes all teams owned by the member club regardless of age level.

RULE 85 - PLAYER RESTRICTIONS ON NON-ENYTB TEAMS OWNED BY, OR AFFILIATED IN ANY WAY WITH, AN ENYTB MEMBER

Any ENYTB member affiliated in any way with a non-ENYTB team e.g., a tournament team or a team entered in another league but not ENYTB, shall be limited to Unrestricted Free Agents (UFAs) and those ENYTB players who qualify as "original" UFAs with their club if such participation would result in or coincide with that player discontinuing his full-time participation in ENYTB play.

DEFINITION: An "original UFA" is any player whose ENYTB status was UFA when he was first added to a team roster owned by his current club.

In general, ENYTB recognizes its members have the freedom to register their teams in whatever league or leagues they choose provided they have not formed their team within ENYTB using RFA credits to take players (RFA) from their fellow members.

Any team formed by an ENYTB member with players taken from teams owned by other ENYTB teams, if discontinued in this league, to play in another league, that franchise and all its teams shall forever be classified as a "non-continuing" member. A non-continuing member is any club that does not always continue its teams in this league, choosing to register them in another league instead.

PENALTY: RFA credits shall not be awarded to any team owned by a non-continuing club.

To avoid this reduction in membership status, a member need only continue to register such ENYTB formed teams in this league and play at least six league games for as long as it continues to play said team in any other league. The league shall offer such teams a significantly discounted registration fee to play those six games.

NOTE: ENYTB teams formed entirely of UFA are not subject to this restriction.

This rule has been in place since the league's founding in 1996. From the outset, we did not want this league to merely serve as a conduit or feeder program to other leagues as that only weakens the league in the older ages. We believe it is inherently unfair for one member to take players from their fellow ENYTB members only to take those players out of this league altogether. That is a double predation or plundering.

As stated, this rule is not designed to stop teams from doing what they want but life is a 2-way street. To maintain continuing member status, the league shall require its clubs to at least register such teams in this league for a minimal number of games (6). This will help keep our older age divisions viable with a sufficient number of competitive teams.

NOTE: ENYTB rule 85 permits any ENYTB member club to form a non-ENYTB team, w/o penalty, comprised of players who currently qualify as UFA and/or any orginal UFA with their club i.e., those players that entered or re-entered the league as UFA when the team was first established as a registered ENYTB team as well as any UFA players added to the same team's roster (or roster of any other team owned by the same club) at a later time.

NOTE: This rule was unanimously adopted in 1996 and first applied circa 2000 in the matter of Belmont RBI vs Schenectady Indians, Jim DiMidio, American Legion. It was reaffirmed in 2013, consistent with the RFA/UFA player classification system adopted by ENYTB in 2013, in the face of a challenge by Tom Bird.

Section 16.4 Protected Player Exemptions

RULE 86 MINIMUM APPEARANCE EXEMPTION - Any UFA who failed to appear in 3 league games in his first season with a particular team may apply to the league to have his UFA status restored.

RULE 87 CUT EXEMPTION - Any roster player who is cut in the current season is instantly reclassified as an UFA provided the player or his family did not request to be cut.

RULE 88 - Deadlines For RFA Movement MAR 1 - Teams at 12u and below. APR 1 - Teams at 13U and above.

Rule 89 - Issuance Of Team RFA Credits For Following Season AUG 1 - All ages.

Section 16.5 Roster Protection - General

RULE 96 The rights of any member to his franchise players extend to all affiliations regardless of its team’s sanctioning choices except as provided in section 10.5.

RULE 98 If a player is CUT1 (UFA) or CUT2 (RFAli) prior to June 15, and the player appeared in three or fewer league games in the current season, said player shall become immediately eligible to sign with any other team in the League in the current year. If the player is a RFA* his new team will be required to have an unused RFA credit. /li

RULE 99 All players CUT1 or CUT2 after appearing in four or more games, including those on teams disbanded during the current season, shall be eligible to sign with another ENYTB team in the current season: (1) in another age division; or, (2) in the same age division if and only if that team is not registered under any of the same sanctioning bodies as the team that he was released from. EXCEPTION: The player's prior club has the option of waiving restriction (2). If a player's team disbands during the season, he may join a new team as an UFA.

Once signed to another League team, said player becomes a protected player of that team owner and is once again subject to the usual rules of roster protection.

RULE 101A A club is not obligated to CUT a player who is requesting to be cut. Instead, the club can place the player on its DNR list, thus preserving its maximum rights to compensation.

RULE 101B Except for compensatory credits, unused RFA credits do not carry forward.

Section 16.6 Jurisdiction and Appeal Process

As provided in section 3.2, it shall be the duty of the League Player Agent to ensure that all issues involving player eligibility and the player rights of individual League members are settled in a manner consistent with the rules and procedures prescribed in this document. He shall be responsible for deciding all matters related to a player’s League and team eligibility, including all disputes between and among members regarding their rights to players. The Player Agent also is granted significant discretion in imposing appropriate penalties for significant violations. The Player Agent shall be required to report all his decisions affecting player eligibility immediately to all Executive Board Members and the League Administrator.

Any decision rendered by the Player Agent may be appealed to the League’s standing committee on Player Eligibility. All such appeals must be in writing, citing the section or sections of the Constitution and specific rule where applicable, on which they are basing their appeal. Appeals may be submitted to the President, Vice-President or League Administrator.