A new NCAA Approved Softball Bat List (December 14, 2020) and Summary of Changes (December 14, 2020) have been posted. The link to the current bat list on our Locker Room Links page has been updated. You can access this new bat list by going to the Locker Room (select the Links button on the Dashboard page) or by using the NCAA Central Hub ( https://sup.arbitersports.com) under the NCAA BATS heading.

An updated 2020 and 2021 Softball Case Book (Dec. 7, 2020) has been posted by NCAA. You can download this document by either accessing the NCAA SUP website or using the link on the Locker Room – select the Links button on the Dashboard page.

The 2021 CCA Softball Umpires Manual has been available for a few weeks. This is the official “mechanics manual” for college softball umpires. If you join the NCAA Softball Umpires Program (you must be a member to be considered for NCAA postseason assignments), you will receive this manual as part of your registration. If you will not be joining the NCAA Softball Umpires Program you should order this manual as soon as possible; there have been significant changes from the 2020 Manual.  You will find a link to order it on the Locker Room –  select the Links button on the Dashboard page. In the near future we will post an article to the Locker Room with a summary of the major changes.

An interesting addition to the Manual – two lists of all the warnings required by the Rule Book – Individual Warnings and Team/Head Coach Warnings (Section 5.2). Did you know that you already had access to a similar list which has all this information? It was posted to the Locker Room in July 2020 and includes the rule reference for each of the warnings. A comparison of the warnings listed in the Locker Room article versus the ones in the new CCA Manual show that they are the same with one exception – the CCA manual list does not include the warning to the PA announcer or official scorer (11.9.3 Note 3). This is understandable as this warning is neither an individual nor team/head coach warning.

NAIA news – Registration for the 2021 season is now open for umpires on the NAIA Central Hub. According to the information we have received, those who registered last season have been notified. A link to their registration page has been added to the Links page on the Locker Room. If you have any questions about the NAIA registration contact them directly.

Postings since last month’s News & Notes

Revised articles
Rules Corner/Batting/On the Pitch – Batter Actions; revised section Hits, Bunts, Slaps
Rules Corner/Pitching/Regulations – Substances on the ball; added a section at the end.
Rules Corner/Runners/Interference… – Offensive Team Personnel/Equipment Interference; added section at end.