Requirements: BBWin 5.0 or higher and a desire to remain an active participant in the league.

JABLUSA shall use AIM and will enable injuries in order to promote realism.

JABLUSA will be composed of two 12 team leagues. One league, the American, will use a designated hitter while the other, the National, will have the pitcher hit.

Each league will be divided into three 4 team divisions (EAST, CENTRAL, and WEST). The teams will play a 162 game schedule with NO interleague play.

Division winners and one wildcard team will meet at the season’s conclusion in two rounds of best-of-seven series. League champions will then meet in the JABLUSA series (also best-of-seven format).

The season’s starting date is October 1 and the regular season shall conclude at the end of March (according to the League Manager calendar). The Managers are responsible for sending franchise files, containing lineups and game results, to the Commissioner throughout the season at times determined by the Commissioner. There shall be NO LESS than 2 calendar days for Managers to be able to submit lineup changes between each series. The Commissioner shall simulate all games that are not received by the given deadlines.

Prior to the season’s start, each Manager shall choose a Micromanager, who will manage the teams road games. The Manager’s shall alert the Commissioner and the webmaster. Each Manager is responsible for making sure the league has a copy of the chosen Micromanager.

Franchise files (f-files) shall include: Micromanager, active roster, starting lineup(s), and pitching rotation.

The season will be played with rainouts enabled. Rainouts will be rescheduled throughout the season by the Commissioner. Every effort will be made to schedule as a doubleheader or on an off day during the course of the season. Rainouts that occur in the final series of the season shall be made up at the discretion of the Commissioner. Generally, this will occur if there is an impact on the post-season.

The playoffs will begin as soon as administratively possible upon completion of the regular season.

Regular season rosters shall consist of 40 players ("uncarded" players count towards this). During the season, 26 players shall be ACTIVE and the remaining players shall be placed on the Minor League team created by the Commissioner. The Active roster must also contain a minimum of 4 pitchers designated as "Starter" at all times. Active rosters shall expand from 26 to 30 for the final 4 game home/home series within the division. The Commissioner shall make an official announcement to the league at the said time.

The roster limit of 40 ends after the season’s close and does not come into effect until a date set by the Commissioner (this will be on or around August 15).

Active rosters must include at least one backup at each position. A multi-position player can be considered a backup for 2 positions. The roster must include at least 9 pitchers. Active rosters may ONLY be changed between series.

Inactive players may be exchanged with active players at the beginning of every series. Under no condition may Active and Inactive players be exchanged DURING a series in progress. Changes for away games shall be made in the f-file. Changes prior to home series need not be sent to the Commissioner, but MUST be made prior to the series.

If a player on a team fails to receive a card, the player remains that team’s property (taking up a roster space) until waived. If he receives a card in the future, he is still property of the team that holds his rights. Upon being waived, he may only return to JABLUSA if he is carded in the future and selected in the draft.

The Commissioner will populate each roster prior to the start of the off-season and will send a c-file to the league. It is the responsibility of each Manager to validate the roster that they manage. If a player is missed and subsequently drafted in the Rookie/Free Agent draft, he becomes property of the team that drafted him as soon as the next pick is made. The Commissioner reserves the right to award a compensation pick, which shall occur immediately after the draft. The Commissioner shall have discretion in whether or not to award the compensatory pick, but must justify in writing a reason for NOT awarding a pick.

Each year, a draft will be held at a time to be determined by the Commissioner. The mode of the draft will be via email with time slots assigned by the Commissioner. Generally, the draft will be completed within a 2-3 week time period and will begin on the Saturday of Memorial Day weekend. The Commissioner reserves the right to change the mode of the draft in case of emergency. There will be a single draft pool for all 24 teams. The draft shall be six rounds.

Draft order shall be based on reverse won-loss percentage. In case of ties, the team with the worst divisional record will draft first. If still tied, the team with the best AWAY record drafts first. If still tied, the tie shall be broken by a coin toss. Teams that are tied in the standings will alternate picks each round. The order will be established based on the draft positions, relative to each other, in the first round. For instance, if 3 teams are tied and the established Round 1 order is Team A, B, and C the Round 2 order will be Team B, C, and A. Round 3 will be Team C, A, B. Round 4 would then repeat the order of Round 1. In cases where teams qualify for the draft lottery, the results of the lottery will determine the Round 1 order. Subsequent rounds will follow suit as described above.

To avoid playing for last place, the eight worst teams shall be in a draft lottery to determine the draft order for the first four picks in round one. The chances for the better picks will be weighted so the poorer teams have more chance of receiving an earlier pick. Picks 5 through 8 in round one shall be determined by the same method as described in the preceding paragraph, and will belong to teams that did not win a spot in the lottery.

To avoid playing down to the competition, the World Series winner shall draft last, preceded by the World Series loser. The two 2^nd round losers shall draft 21-22 in inverse win-loss percentage order. The four 1^st round losers shall draft 17-20 in inverse win-loss percentage order.

Draft picks may be traded during the draft; however, trade talk SHALL NOT impede progress of the draft (i.e. talks should happen between individual manager’s, not as part of the draft Chat). To limit confusion, trades that occur on draft day must be announced when the 1^st pick that was traded comes up. Draft day trades provide more flexibility, but the Commissioner reserves the right to take this privilege away should it become to difficult to administer.

ALL carded players that are unaffiliated shall be eligible to be selected in the draft. Any players that remain undrafted shall automatically be added to the waiver draft pool.

Waivers must be filed for players when rosters must be reduced to 40. Waiver claims are accepted in inverse win-loss percentage order. To claim a player or players, a team shall also submit the player whose place will be taken by the claimed player. The newly cut player is NOT eligible to be claimed by other teams.

NOTE: The Waiver Draft will be 2 rounds. Each team can make 3 claims in Round 1. There is no limit to the number of selections a team can make during Round 2. Players claimed during Round 1 MAY NOT be cut during Round 2. Additionally, players cut during Round 1 WILL NOT be eligible to be claimed during Round 2. Thus, a team could theoretically claim 40 players.

Starters shall be limited to their MBF as determined by APBA on the data disk. Pitchers rated 1-4 are an exception. Pitchers rated 1-4 may get MBF increases. Prior to the season, a manager may designate one starting pitcher, in this grade range, whose MBF shall be increased to 1000.

Starting pitchers may only be used in the 8^th or 9^th spots in the batting order.

Rest will be handled by League Manager ratings established by APBA.

Starting pitchers must be removed if they allow eight earned runs or ten runs (earned or unearned) in a single game – this applies to a team’s home games, as the Micromanager will choose when to remove pitchers during road games. This is to promote a deal of realism.

RELIEF PITCHERS:

Relievers shall be limited to their MBF as determined by APBA on the data disk. Pitchers rated 1-4 are an exception. Pitchers rated 1-4 may get MBF increases. Prior to the season, a manager may designate one relief pitcher, in this grade range, whose MBF shall be increased to 330.

Starters may be used as relievers provided that their grade is between 1-7.

Rest will be handled by League Manager ratings established by APBA.

All non-pitchers shall be limited to their MRR/SF ratings as determined by APBA on the data disk. We will use the "930/100" rule. In order to qualify as "innocuous", a player must have a minimum OPS of .300; otherwise, he is limited to his actual PA for the replayed season. Be aware, that these players are subject to injury, as determined by their Injury Rating. Abuse will be handled by the Commissioner on a case-by-case basis.

As a general guideline, players are limited to 120% of their actual stealing attempts or fifteen, whichever is greater. This rule will be enforced, IF and only IF, unrealistic steal usage occurs (i.e a player who was 15/15 on steal attempts, steals 50 bases in JABLUSA). The Commissioner reserves the right to manually change a players steal ratings to "NEVER" should that be necessary. The rule shall be enforced at the Commissioner’s discretion.

A starter cannot be removed unless one of the following conditions is met:

-pitches 3 innings

-gives up 3 earned runs

-allows 8 baserunners (errors DO NOT count)

Pitchers MAY pinch-run; however, manager’s shall use discretion to promote realism.

A pitcher shall only be used as a pinch-hitter should ALL other position players on the Active Roster be used. Furthermore, a pitcher shall ONLY pinch-hit for another pitcher. A pitcher MAY NOT pinch-hit in the American League, which uses the Designated Hitter. In the Jablusa Series, the AL Rules shall apply in the AL home park and the NL Rules shall apply in the NL home park.

Rainouts count if the game was official. If it was not, the Commissioner shall schedule a makeup game as part of a double header or a day in which each team has an off day. If necessary, rainouts will be made up at the conclusion of the season. When possible, ALL games will be made up; however, if there is not an effect on the standings, it is possible that games WILL NOT be made up (i.e. rainouts that occur at or near season’s end).

Injuries shall last as long AIM determines.

Hit & Run may be used in ANY situation regardless of H&R rating, but shall not be used more that 3 times per game. This is to prevent "APBA-ball".

Managers can receive penalties for reasons including, but not limited to the following: late files, flagrant or repeated violation of player usage rules, upheld protests by opposing managers. Penalties shall be determined by the Commissioner and shall include, but not be limited to the following: suspension for a period of time, loss of draft position, and dismissal from the league. Penalties shall not be given unless a Manager first receives a written warning from the Commissioner.

Trading season shall open upon completion of the regular season and will remain open until roster cuts are due.

To be official, trades must be reported to the Commissioner and APPROVED by the league office. This is meant to prevent unbalancing the stability of the league. The Commissioner reserves the right to ask Manager’s to rework trades that appear grossly favor one team. If the Manager’s are not willing or are not able to rework the trade, the Commissioner reserves the right to reverse the trade.

Draft picks may be traded for the current draft only. Future picks may not be traded. This is to prevent trouble if Managers leave or teams become chronic cellar dwellers.

End of season ties affecting which teams make the playoffs shall be settled by a one game playoff. The Home Team shall be the team with the best Head-to-Head record. If still tied, the Home Team shall be the team with the best Division record. If still tied, the team with the best Away record shall be the Home Team. If still tied, the Commissioner shall flip a coin to determine the home team. The tied teams must mutually consent on who will play the game. Anything agreed to by both Managers is acceptable. If no agreement can be reached, the Commissioner will play the game using the f-file submitted by both Managers. The Commissioner may also designate a neutral manager to play the game. If the Commissioner is involved, a neutral Manager WILL play the game, if necessary.

The one-game playoff statistics shall be included in the regular season statistics.

Ties affecting homefield advantage shall be settled in the same manner described above (see Section X above).

With a three division format, a wildcard team is added to the playoff structure (along with three division winners). The first round playoff shall be known as the Division Series. The Division Series shall be a best-of-seven and shall have the following structure:

Series 1 – Playoff Qualifier w Worst Record vs. Division Winner with Best Record

Series 2 – Remaining Two Playoff Qualifiers

Homefield advantage (games 1,2,6,7) shall belong to the Two Division Winners with the best record in the regular season. IN NO CASE CAN THE WILDCARD TEAM HAVE HOMEFIELD ADVANTAGE.

The second round shall be known as the League Championship Series and shall feature the two remaining winners in each league. The format shall be best-of-seven with the homefield advantage described above.

The third and final round shall be known as the JABLUSA Series and shall be played by the Winners of each League Championship Series. The format shall be best-of-seven. For even-numbered diskettes (2002, 2004, etc.), the NL Champion shall host games 1,2,6,7. For odd-numbered diskettes (2001, 2003, etc.), the AL Champion shall host games 1, 2, 6, 7. In games hosted by the NL Champion, the pitcher shall bat; in games hosted by the AL Champion, the Designated Hitter shall be used.

PLAYER USAGE IN THE POST-SEASON

Player usage shall be reset following the completion of the regular season. Injuries that occurred during the regular season WILL remain in effect until there completion, as determined by the game. Each team will be permitted to use 1 pitcher with an MBF < 150 on their playoff roster. Otherwise, players shall be restricted by the guidelines described in Section VI (MBF, RF, MRR, SF, etc.). Generally speaking, AIM shall determine who can and cannot play and will also determine Fatigue. The Commissioner reserves the right to review and rule on any situation in which there appears to be misuse. If the Commissioner is involved, a neutral party shall rule.

POST-SEASON SCHEDULE

Day 1 – LAST DAY OF REGULAR SEASON

Day 2 – DAY OFF (playoff game, if necessary)

Day 3 – DAY OFF

Day 4 – Division Series Game 1

Day 5 – Division Series Game 2

Day 6 – DAY OFF

Day 7 – Division Series Game 3

Day 8 – Division Series Game 4

Day 9 – Division Series Game 5, if necessary

Day 10 – DAY OFF

Day 11 – Division Series Game 6, if necessary

Day 12 – Division Series Game 7, if necessary

Day 13 – DAY OFF

Day 14 – DAY OFF

Day 15 – League Championship Series Game 1

Day 16 – League Championship Series Game 2

Day 17 – DAY OFF

Day 18 – League Championship Series Game 3

Day 19 – League Championship Series Game 4

Day 20 – League Championship Series Game 5, if necessary

Day 21 – DAY OFF

Day 22 – League Championship Series Game 6, if necessary

Day 23 – League Championship Series Game 7, if necessary

Day 24 – DAY OFF

Day 25 – DAY OFF

Day 26 – JABLUSA Series Game 1

Day 27 – JABLUSA Series Game 2

Day 28 – DAY OFF

Day 29 – JABLUSA Series Game 3

Day 30 – JABLUSA Series Game 4

Day 31 – JABLUSA Series Game 5, if necessary

Day 32 – DAY OFF

Day 33 – JABLUSA Series Game 6, if necessary

Day 34 – JABLUSA Series Game 7, if necessary

Proposals may be submitted at the end of the season, at a time determined by the Commissioner. At this time, all Managers with 1+ year of service, may submit a proposal for league vote. In order for a proposal to become an official rule, it must gain MAJORITY vote or 13 votes. The Commissioner may veto a proposal unless 16 or more managers were in favor of the proposal. To veto an item, the Commissioner must provide a statement justifying his use of the veto to the rest of the league.

Proposals that do not garner a MAJORITY vote must gain at least 33% of the votes recorded in the first year it appears on the ballot. If said proposal fails to gain 33% of the votes recorded, it will not be eligible to be on the ballot the following off-season. A proposal that does gain 33% of the vote in year 1 must gain 40% in year 2. If said proposal fails to gain 40% of the votes recorded in year 2, it will not be eligible to be on the ballot the following off-season. This clause is intended to keep us from perpetually voting on the same proposals.

The Commissioner may make additions/amendments to the Constitution without league vote provided the changes are needed for operation of the league. However, changes that are not needed for operational purposes MUST be voted on by the league, and must receive MAJORITY vote.

The season shall proceed in the following general format: