TRAVEL TEAM RULES AND POLICIES
· Each season, Forest Hill Baseball will organize travel teams for various age levels from age 6-18. The number of teams will be determined by the number and ability of participants at each of the team tryouts and the availability of qualified managers.
· All travel teams must be self-funding and will be under the direct jurisdiction and supervision of the Forest Hill Baseball Director.
· Players participating in the Travel program must register and participate in the Forest Hill in-house (Rec) program from ages 6-12 and must attend at least 75% of the scheduled in-house and tournament games in order to remain eligible for travel play. This includes the 12U trip to Cooperstown and any post-season play associated with the travel team. Once the player has missed the number of rec games that would make it impossible for him to fulfill his rec obligation, he becomes ineligible to play Travel baseball and will be released from the travel team with no refund in fees.
· Travel managers must avoid any and all conflicts with the rec baseball schedule when scheduling travel practices, games, tournaments, travel all-star games, and Babe Ruth games. Travel players who also play rec have the obligation to attend their rec games when there are conflicts in scheduling. The Travel manager must also be aware of these potential conflicts. We cannot prevent parents from choosing to bring their child to a travel event when there is a conflicting rec game, but the Travel manager has the sworn obligation to inform the parent that the child is ineligible for participation in the conflicting travel event and must attend the rec game. The Travel manager will be immediately suspended as manager of the Travel team if he allows the ineligible child to participate in the Travel event. In addition, since the child is declared as an ineligible player, any Travel game in which he participates will be forfeited by the Forest Hill Baseball Program.
· Travel players must play in their natural, appropriate age division and are not permitted to play up/down in a different age division. Age divisions are 7-8, 9-10, 11-12 and 13, 14, 15/16 and 17-19. For example, 9 year-olds can play on a 10U travel team, but 8 year-olds can not play on a 9U travel team, because 7-8 and 9-10 are separate age divisions.
· Managers are selected and evaluated by the Baseball Director on a year-to-year basis, and are selected and confirmed in the November/December timeframe. Coaches are selected by the managers and must be approved by the Baseball Director.
· Travel players must be selected to the team each year, and no player is carried automatically.
· Travel teams practice indoors weekly in the pre-season and have a scheduled outdoor practice day once the season starts.
· Travel games are usually played on weekends, although practices and make-up games may be scheduled during the week as long as the travel games or practices do not conflict with any in-house activities.
· There is no guaranteed playing time in Travel baseball.
· The Travel fee includes a uniform, league, umpire and tournament fees, as well as equipment fees and insurance for the team.
· Players selected to the 12U team are required to fundraise for and participate in their annual trip to Cooperstown Dreams Park or alternate venue.
· Each travel team has the option to play in tournaments that can include: Spring Classic, Summer Classic, Overlea, Essex, and HCTB Championship. Other tournaments are at the discretion of the manager and must not interfere with the regular travel schedule.