AL NAIL Constitution (06/27/2021)

NAIL Constitution

Modifying the Constitution
League Officers
Voting
League Organization
Seasonal Draft
Eligibility Rules
Supplemental Draft
Trading

Modifying the Constitution

What is the process for modifying the constitution?

If any issue is not covered by the constitution, the default Scoresheet rules will be in force. Each of these proposed rules must be approved by 2/3 of those voting in an election and by at least a majority of all owners.

Future admendments to the constituion should be presented and seconded. A period of time for discussion (to be determined by the president) should take place before the vote. It is reccomended that controversial proposals be drafted during this stage with input from all sides.

Future admendments to the constitution must then be approved by a 2/3 of those voting in an election and by at least a majority of all owners.

Changes to the structure of the league should not be put into effect until at least an year from the time of the vote to make the change. Example of this, would be changing the number of protectees or expanding the league. This rule may be overruled by an unanimous vote.

League Officers

What (if any) are the league officers?

NAIL will have a president & a secretary/web-master.

What are their duties?

The president will :
Lead the discussions of leagues rules and policies.
Coordinate the drafting process by enforcing the draft rules.
Coordinate any elections.
Make any decisions that need to be done. Any of the president's rulings may be overridden by a majority of the other owners.

The secretary/webmaster will:
Keep the web page current.
Keep track of the drafts.
Submit the results of the draft to Scoresheet.
Make any decisions on matters directly involving the president

How are they chosen?

The officers will be chosen my a majority vote during the off-season, with an election around the time of the spring draft. They will serve from the start of the baseball season (April) till the start of the next season.

What is the process for elections? Are candidates nominated for positions? Can owners decline a nomination or elected position? Are there requirements for internet access (home users vs. work users) that would prevent some owners from holding certain league positions?

Candidates may volunteer for election for a week before the election. The election will be held before the start of the new season . Since candidacy is self-nominated, candidatesmay turn down the nomination. The candidates should be able to fulfill the requirements of the office, namely that the president has e-mail access and the secretary e-mail access and the ability to edit the web page.

Voting

How are votes organized?

The president or his nominee should organize the votes. He may nominate the person proposing the change to do it. First, there should be a period of discussion where the proposal may be revised. Next the actual vote is taken. The period of time for discussion is up to the organizer but probably should be no less than 3 days for non-urgent matters.

Once the vote is called, each owner has 3 days to cast his vote. Any vote may be changed during that period

How can they be removed?

They can be removed by a majority vote. If the president is removed, a new election is held by the secretary.. If openings occur for secretray, the president may appoint an officer to fill out the term or fulfill the duties himself.

League Organization

How is the league organized into divisions?

NAIL is divided into 3 divisions of 4 teams each. The winner of each division and the wild card make the playoffs. The divisions are not reorignized on a regular basis.

What is the process when an owner wishes to leave NAIL?

The owner should inform all of the other owners that he is leaving as soon as possible, hopefully right at the start of the offseason so as to allow a new owner to be selected. At the minimum, an owner deciding to leave should make up his mind by November 1.

How are new team owners chosen?

Nominations for a new owner can be made to the league. If a majority of the owners agree, an invitation can be issued. It should be noted that the proposed candidate should not be allowed to join the list before he is approved and should not be involved in discussions about him.

Seasonal Draft

How many protected slots are there?

There are 14 regular slots, 4 rookie slots (3 previous to 2018), & 3 crossover slots. Regular & rookie slots may be traded. Crossover slots may be traded (effective 2020). Rookie crossovers do not count as crossovers (effective 2020).

What is the definition of a rookie?

The definition of a rookie is the same as Scoresheet's: 130 AB for position players & 50 innings for pitchers.

When is the protected list due?

The protected lists are due one week before the start of the spring draft. The president should either submit his list in public or to a third party two days before the lists are due.

When is the inital spring draft held?

The initial spring draft begins on 2/22.

How will the draft be held?

Rounds 15-23 will be by email and the remaining rounds will be by the Scoresheet web tool

For how many rounds?

The spring draft is for 37 rounds, beginning with round 15 after the protection slots. If rookies are protected they use up rounds 34 through 37. If a team trades his rookie slot, they lose the corresponding pick.

How is the order determined?

All spring drafts will be in round-robin fashion The non playoff team with the worst record shall select first, followed by all other non-playoff teams in inverse order of finish.

Teams eliminated in the semi-finals or earlier rounds of the playoffs will select next, in inverse order of finish within this group. The loser of the league championship has the next-to-last selection, and the winner of the league championship shall have the very last selection.

How will ties be broken in the draft order?

If 2 or more teams are tied, than the first tiebreaker will be run differential (runs scored - runs given up). The 2nd tie breaker will be head to head record. All tied teams will flip-flop their position in subsequent rounds.

How long does each owner have to make a pick?

An owner has 24 hours to make a pick of an eligible player. The 24 hours may not be extended. Once an owner is skipped he will continue to be skipped until making a positive statement that he around. Each owner should make a good- faith effort to meet the 24 hour deadline and the other owners should realize that sometimes circumstances cause the deadline not to be met. Alternatives to picking by e-mail should be explored if an owner is not going to be availble by e-mail such as giving his pick to another owner, a third party, submitting a list, or setting up a phone call. The president should enforce the time limit. Trading of the draft pick will not reset the clock. Once an owner says that he is back, a league officer will then make an announcement that the skipped player may pick after the current player on the clock.

Eligibility Rules

What are the eligibility rules during the spring draft for players not on the Scoresheet list?

Players signed or drafted by an AL organization before the cut off date are eligible for the NAIL spring draft.

Players signed or drafted by an NL organization before the cut off date are ineligble for the NAIL spring draft and the NAIL supplementals.

Players who were last affiliated with an AL organization without being affiliated with a foreign major league and are unsigned at the cutoff date are eligible for the email portion of the spring draft. If they are given a NL player number they are ineligible for the web portion. If they are given a AL player number, they are eligible for the web portion.

Players who were last affiliated with a foreign major league are ineligible for the NAIL spring draft but may become eligible for the web portion if they are given an AL player number before the web portion starts. If they sign later into the AL, they are eligible for the first supplemental draft after sign.

Players who were last affiliated with an NL organization but are currently unsigned are ineligible for NAIL but may become eligible for the web portion if they sign before the start of the web portion draft. If they sign later into the AL, they are eligible for the first supplemental draft after sign.

Players who had never played or been drafted by Organized Baseball are inelgible for the NAIL spring draft but may become eligible for a supplemental draft if they sign before the start of that supplemental draft.

What is the eligibility cut off date?

The official start date of the draft, either the spring draft or the supplementals.

How should eligibility of players be determined you didn't play in organized baseball the previous year?

It should be based on the last organization they were affiliated with unless the player was affiliated with a foreign team. In that case, the player is ineligible for a NAIL draft until signing with an AL team.

What determines affiliation? Are Japanese players in spring training with an American team considered to be affiliated. What about teams that load another team a minor league player? What about the amateur draft? Would these players be considered affiliated with the teams they played with?

Affiliation should be the team that owns the contract or draft a player.

Can an owner change his mind after posting a pick and if so, how long does he have to do so?

It has to be immediate, before the next pick.

How long (number of subsequent picks) can an ineligibile pick go unnoticed? Does it become an eligible pick if no one notices after a certain number picks?

A pick becomes official after 12 subsequent picks except for the end of the draft where the mistake can be caught within 24 hours.

If an owners has to change his pick (because he is ineligible or for whatever reason) and subsequent picks are made, then I assume that the draft continues and he just jumps right in whenever he can. Then what if his alternate pick is the same as one that comes in simultaneously from another owner. I.e. what is the criteria for determining who gets the pick? Is it the owner who sent the pick in first or the pick that was received first from the NAIL list?

Whichever pick is dated first from the NAIL list should be first. If an owner asks for an eligibility check, it stops the clock.

If a team switches leagues, what effect does it have on affiliation?

If a team switches leagues, a player is considered to be in the new league even if he last played for the team in the old league.

When is the cutoff date to determine elgibility draft?

The cutoff date is the official start of the draft (either spring or supplemental). A team making an early selection has no effect on the cutoff date.

Supplemental Draft

How many supplementals are there?

There are 5 supplementals with 3 rounds in April & May & 2 rounds in June, July, & August.

When are they held?

They are held the second Wednesday (if Scoresheet plays games on Monday) or the second Saturday (if Scoresheet plays games on Thursdays) in April, May, June, July, & August. Each supplemental will be run via Scoresheet's web based draft.

How is the order determined?

The April supplemental will be determined by the previous year's standings. All of the other supplementals will be determined by the current standings. The order of all rounds will be round-robin. If 2 or more teams are tied, than the first tiebreaker will be run differential (runs scored - runs given up). The team with the lower run differential will draft before the team with the higher run differential. The 2nd tie breaker will be the position of the team in the original spring draft (the worst team in the spring getting the earlier pick). All tied teams will flip-flop their position in subsequent rounds.

Do the eligibility rules differ between the supplemental & the regular draft?

Yes, players that were not in the AL the previous year, not on any Scoresheet list, but not signed at the time of the start of the NAIL draft but now in the AL or playing for a AL minor league team, or drafted by an AL team are eligible for the supplemental draft.

What are the procedures if an ineligible player is chosen?

If an ineligible player is chosen, the offending owner may select a new player. If players have been chosen since the ineligible player, those players may not be chosen by the offending owner.

Is roster balancing in effect?

Roster balancing is not in effect for any draft.

Trading

How are trades announced?

Trades are announced to NAIL via e-mail. Both teams should make an announcement. During the season, the trade should also be reported to Scoresheet.

What can be traded?

Players, protection slots, rookie protection slots, regular draft picks, & supplemental draft picks may all be traded. "NL" slots may not be traded.

What is considered an "unethical" trade?

An unethical trade is one where one team does not improve in either the short or long term, especially one designed mainly to help one team without improving the other.

How (and why) can a trade be vetoed?

A trade may be vetoed by a majority of votes of the non-involved teams. This is a very SERIOUS matter as it questions the ethics of the owners involved. Great care should be done before a veto is done. Gathering opinions from outside of NAIL about the trade is greatly suggested.

What is the playoff setup?

The top team in each division make the playoffs along with one wild card-team. All ties are handled by Scoresheet's procedures.

What is the Internet playoff against OWL?

The champion of NAIL plays in a World Series vs. the champion of the OWL-NL league