Kickball Related Games: Rules and Regulations

Kickball Related Games: Rules and Regulations

Kickball:

Basic rules and terms for kickball.

Tag up: If you leave a base when the ball is kicked, and that ball is caught in the air, you must go back to the base you left before the ball is thrown to that base. Once you “tag up” you can then run on the next base.

Forced out: There is always a forced out at 1st base, as you MUST run to first. This means that a fielding player can take the ball and step on the base to get the runner out. i.e. If there is a runner at first base, then the forced outs are at first and second, because the base runner MUST leave first in order for the kicker to occupy it. This is an important concept, because some of the other kickball games do not apply the forced out rule.

Ways to get out: The ball is kicked and caught in the air, then the kicker is out. The kicker kicks two (2) foul balls. Any person off of the base is tagged with the ball or “thrown tagged” (hit with the ball from the shoulders down). The runner is “forced out” (see above for forced out definition) As a base runner, interfering with, or attempting to knock the ball out of the hands of the fielder will also result in an out. Running out of the base line in order to avoid the tag out will also result in an out.

Other basic rules:

Three (3) outs to end the inning. The kicking order does not change throughout the game. If a person kicks out of order, then the inning is immediately over.

TYPES OF OUTS:

Caught Out: Ball caught in that was kicked in the air.

Tag Out: A fielding player tags a runner with the ball while they are off base.

Thrown-Tag Out: A fielding player throws the ball and hits the runner while they are off base. The throw is only legal if it hits the runner from the shoulders to the feet. A throw to the head is an illegal throw tag and results in taking the base.

Foul Out: A kicker kicks the ball outside the foul territory twice in a turn.

**Special Out(s): Game specific out, such as an out resulting in not clearing the cone (going behind it on the way to first/third) in Gumbyball. Entire team out (a pop up that is caught in the game of Dibeke) See specific game rules for other types of outs.

K.B.B. (Kickball Basketball)

Basic Rules and Terms for K.B.B.

Kicking Team Objective: To score as many runs as possible by running the “bases” which are cones as fast as you can once you kick.

Defensive Team Objective: To get as many runners out as quickly as possible to prevent runs from scoring. This is done by fielding the ball and making a basketball shot at one of the three goals provided.

Rules for securing “outs”: The fielding team has two base rules to go by. 1. They are NOT allowed to run or move with the ball; they must throw it to someone standing close to or under the goal. 2. The same person cannot shoot more than one time in a row when attempting to get the same runner out. If either of these occurs, the out does not count until the rules are followed by the fielding team. OUTS ARE NOT SECURED BY ANY OTHER METHOD (caught, tagged, thrown tagged, etc…)

Rules for the kicking team: everyone on the kicking team will kick through their lineup. Once they kick the ball, they are to run as fast as possible around the cones. If they do not go around the cone, (in front of or over it instead) then the run does not count. They continue to run until the fielding team has successfully made a shot to get them out, which at that time, the whistle will be blown quickly to signal the play dead.

Scoring: A player running the bases will score one point for “clearing” (making it beyond) each cone. Clearing the home plate cone is worth two points. For every time around the bases, the runner will score 5 points, unless they have skipped a cone.

Miscellaneous: The only other possible way a kicker can get out is if they kick two fouls to the center of the court (across the half court line) This is to prevent injury to either group of kids playing on either court.

Gumbyball:

Basic rules and terms for Gumbyball:

Kicking Teams’ Objectives: To kick a fair ball and put as many base runners as you can onto the bases or kick to advance your base runners already on base.

Defensive Teams’ Objectives: Main objective is to get the base runners out and off the base path by tagging or throw tagging them out. The secondary objective is to get the kicker out by catching the ball in the air.

Rules for securing outs in Gumbyball:

BASERUNNING OUTS: There are NO forced outs at any base. Any base runner must be tagged or thrown tagged out. Once a kicker is on safely on base, these are the only ways that they can get out and off the base path. There are no “tag-ups” in the game of Gumbyball. The base runner is allowed to run as soon as the ball is kicked. This rule allows for faster game play and more strategy to be used when kicking. **Special note: The base runner is also out if they do not “clear” home plate (which is the home cone). Clearing the home plate cone is when the runner goes BEHIND the cone on their way to first base. If they choose to go back to third base, they must clear the plate again on their way back. If they do not go behind the plate in either direction then they are out.

KICKING OUTS: The kicker is out if they kick two (2) foul balls. The kicker is also out if they kick a pop fly and it is caught. **Special note: If the kicking team runs out of kickers on the bench because all of their team members are now on base, then the inning is over. See the scoring section below for more clarification.

Scoring: The kicking team will be allotted five (5) minutes per inning. The kicker will put the ball into play by trying to kick a fair ball. They will run to the “base” which is represented by the tumbling mats. The kicking team is allowed to have as many people on each base as they want, which means that there are no forced outs at any base because the runner does not have to run to clear the base for the next base runner. When a base runner gets to third base, they must make the decision as to whether or not they should try to score. ALL SCORING IS DONE AT FIRST BASE, NOT AT HOME. The base runner must try to “clear” home plate and make it to first base. If they reach first, they have scored one point for their team, BUT they do not leave the bases as you would in regular kickball. The base runner will stay on the bases and have the opportunity to run until they are either tagged/thrown tagged out or time runs out.

Miscellaneous: When the kicking team has base runners on base; the base runners are not allowed to steal. They must stay on base when the pitcher has the ball in the pitching circle (designated by a blue poly spot). The base runners are allowed to run as soon as the ball is kicked, because there are no tag ups. A player must go back to the base that they were at if they attempted a run and were not at least half way to the base when the pitcher has gained control of the ball.

Dibeke: National Kickball game of Africa

Basic Terms for Dibeke:

Safe Zone: The area where each team kicks from. This is also known as their home base area. It is represented by the gray line that runs across the gym parallel to the bleachers.

The scoring zone and the safe zone are on opposite sides of the gym from one another.

Scoring Zone: The area where each team runs to score. They are also safe within this zone. It is represented by the gray line that runs across the gym parallel to the bleachers. The scoring zone and the safe zone are on opposite sides of the gym from one another.

Pitching Circle: Area in which the pitcher for each team must stand to roll the ball. It is represented by the blue poly spot which is inside the half circle that is painted on the basketball court. (This is just in front of the free throw line for basketball). The pitcher must be standing alone inside of the pitching circle with the ball in order for “time” to be called and for no more running to take place.

Foul Out: A ball that gets kicked to either side of the field and rolls out of bounds before crossing the mid field markers (cones). The kicker alone is out and waits to come back into the game when the inning is over.

Short Kick Out: A ball that gets kicked and does not make it to the mid field marker under its own power. If the fielding team allows this ball to go “dead” without touching it; then the kicker is out and the ball was never put into fair play, which means no runs can be scored. The kicker is out until the inning is over, similar to a foul out. **If the fielding team touches this ball as while it is still moving, it is a fair played ball regardless of if it was a short kick or not. The ball must be whistled “dead” before the fielding team can touch it.

Tag Out/Throw Tag Out: A player on the kicking team that is tagged with the ball while attempting to run from safe zone to scoring zone or back. They can either be tagged with the ball or throw tagged, from the shoulders down. The player is out and must wait until the inning is over to come back into play.

Fly Out: This type of out occurs when a kicker’s ball is popped up in the air and is caught by the fielding team. This is the worst type of out to receive, as the entire team’s inning is over and it is now the other team’s turn to kick. **A defensive score happens this way most of the time. See “Defensive Scoring” below for more information.

Game play rules and regulations:

Each team’s captain determines who will kick first using rock, paper, scissor. The kicking team backs up to their side’s safe zone (gray line). They will be trying to run across to the other gray line (the scoring zone) when the ball is put into play. The defending team will be in the field facing the kicking team. When an inning ends, the

Dibeke: National Kickball game of Africa 2

defending team will then back up to the gray line closest to them, becoming their safe zone, and they will be running across the court to the other gray line, which will be their scoring zone.

The kicking team lines up shoulder to shoulder across their safe zone line. The pitcher for the fielding team then chooses the person that they want to kick. The chosen kicker now steps out of the line and attempts to put the ball into play. When the ball is kicked into play fairly, the kicker MUST attempt to run across to the scoring zone. The rest of his/her team mates are allowed to “help” the kicker out by also attempting to score by running to the scoring zone. Any player that gets tagged/throw tagged by the fielding team during the run is “out” and stands off to the side until the inning is over. If the kicking team’s members make it to the scoring zone, they are considered to be safe and cannot be tagged by the fielding team. If the ball is still in play and not back in the pitching circle, then they can choose to try and run back to their safe zone in order to be eligible to kick. If the ball still is not back in the pitching circle, they can choose to try and run again to the scoring zone. When the ball is back in the pitching circle with the pitcher ALONE standing inside, the play is considered to be dead and the pitcher chooses the next kicker from the kicking team. Any ball that is kicked foul or short will result in the kicker being out until the inning is over. (See foul and short kicks above for further explanation). If the kick is a pop up and is caught in the air, the inning is over and the teams change roles (kicking team is now the fielding team and vice versa). A defensive score of ten (10) points is awarded if the defending team held the kicking team to zero points during the inning. (See defensive scoring below for further explanation)

Defensive Scoring: If the defending team is able to keep the kicking team from scoring during any given inning, then at the conclusion of the inning the defending team will gain a defensive score of ten (10) points. An example of this is if the defending team’s pitcher calls the first kicker up and that kicker kicks a pop fly that is caught. No one on the kicking team has scored yet, so the defensive team will earn a ten (10) point defensive score because a pop fly ends the inning. The defending team will then get their opportunity to kick as well. The kicking team can be caught out on a kick at any time and if that team has not scored during that inning, a defensive score would occur. (It does not have to be the “first” kicker of an inning.) Another example would be if the defending team is able to tag or throw tag the entire team out without a single person scoring. This is an unlikely occurrence, but is possible.