League Updates Rules

Report from the 2020 Winter Meetings

Here’s what happened at the 2020 EFL Winter Meetings:

  1. 2018 EFL Champion Mark Johnson of the Portland Rosebuds presented the trophy, complete with updated inscriptions, to our 2019 EFL Champion Mark Johnson of the Portland Rosebuds.  Everyone else muttered appropriate congratulatory sentiments.  Concern was raised that the Commissioner had not won in living memory, but Mr. Johnson examined the trophy and confirmed the Commissioner had won as recently as the first term of the Obama administration.  Mark Weinert of the Pittsburgh Alleghenys (he of the 7 EFL Championships) said it was a good thing for the trophy to be won by people other than the Commissioner.
  1. Election of officers (Commissioner, etc.)  

No one was nominated for Commissioner. So we’re stuck with the same one. Phil Smith brought a box of fresh donuts. So he was re-elected Vice Commissioner for Treats. No one dared challenge Dave for Vice Commissioner for IT, so he also endures.

  1. Confirmation of membership for the 2020 season

Everyone is back. No new teams are being added.

  1. Adopted the following Rule Change
  2. Mid-Month Roster Moves:

a.) For each month during the season, the Commissioner will announce a deadline for roster allocations. By that deadline each owner must submit a document assigning at least 25 active players to their positions. Active players contribute 100% of their statistics toward team totals, unless the roster allocation specifies a smaller percentage (ie, playing less than full time at that position) which cannot be less than 30% with any unallocated time assigned to the bench.  More than one player can be allocated to each defensive position, including each of the five spots in the starting rotation, to make allocations for each role total at least 100%. (See also rules specifying minimum and maximum PA per defensive position, and minimum IP, in Section VI.B.5)

 

b.) During the month each EFL owner may make three roster moves. A single roster move:

(1) Must identify a single focal move in which a single focal player’s playing time at a specific position (or the bench) is increased, and

(2) Must identify corresponding decreases to the playing time of the focal player at one or more other positions (including the bench) and,

(3) May identify changes in playing time for up to two other players to fill gaps left by the focal player’s moves.

  1. No player may be moved from starting pitcher to relief pitcher, or vice versa, as a mid-month replacement.  (NOTE: This is the existing rule. We rejected the proposed change allowing pitchers to switch roles mid-month.) 

 

d.)  All mid-month roster moves take effect when they are posted on the EFL transaction page, unless MLB play has already begun for that day, in which case they take effect at the close of play for that day.  Statistics and standings already accumulated for that month will be unaffected.  Mid-month roster moves can only affect outcomes after the move is posted.

The meeting rejected the second proposal limiting teams to 13 active pitchers.

  1. Rule 5 draft  results

Brookland and DC were not present at the meeting.  The draft went as follows:

ROUND 1:

DRAFTED Unprotected
BC (pass)
CC Wentz S Alexander
KD Kimbrel T Frazier
CK Sale M Pineda
HD (pass)
PA Hampson
PP (pass)
OD Keuchel
FH Wingenter
PR Greiner

ROUND 2:  All passed

Note: The newly re-elected Commissioner tried to draft Pineda but Canberra refused to comply, citing a stupid rule that no team could lose more than two players in the Rule 5 Draft and reporting the ‘Roos were still mourning the losses of Kimbrel and Hampson.  So the Woeverines had to settle for Keuchel.

  1. Spring Draft Schedule

The group discussed whether we’d like to do the Rookie and Free Agent drafts on the same day like we did last year, or split them into two separate drafts as we did all the previous years (except the very first year, I think?). Of those present, 4 said they preferred same day, 3 said they preferred to split them, 2 were ambivalent by choice and the Commissioner was ambivalent in his role as clerk of the meeting (although a single draft day strikes him as slightly easier to organize and offers the option of having lunch together).

Jamie declared the spirits of both Rob and Brooks had told him they would prefer a single draft day. Some of the group expressed skepticism about Jamie’s telepathic powers, or worried about the trustworthiness of disembodied spirits, so we agreed to proceed tentatively.

Everyone present said Saturday March 21 looked good for a day-long draft, with March 7 as a possible alternative date.  The Commissioner will consult with Brooks and Rob to see if they can keep the day of March 21 (the first Saturday in GF’s Spring Break) free for a day-long draft.  If they can, that’s when we’ll set it.  If not, we’ll keep discussing which date(s) to meet.

  1. Swing deals!

Jamie already did this before the meeting.   There were officially no good deals left to be swung.

Therefor, as part of my Commissionarial duty to protect you all from danger, I hereby caution everyone to be wary of offered deals until you hear from me that the coast is clear.