Venue & Game Scheduling, Planning, WOBA Championship Tournaments (Western Ontario Baseball Association)

PrintVenue & Game Scheduling
  •   A good rule of thumb is to plan to use 1 diamond for every 4 teams entered.

  •   Ensure that the bases, pitching mound, its rubber and home plate are secure and at the correct distances.  See the OBA Rules and Regulations book for specifics to measurements for the different age divisions.

  •   Check the dugouts, backstop, all fencing and the field for holes or unsafe conditions.  Request that maintenance is done prior to the tournament.

  •   In addition to game time limits, ensure that there is enough time scheduled between games to allow for diamond maintenance and transition of teams.  20-30 minutes is reasonable. This extra buffer of time will prevent the schedule from falling too far behind should a game go into extra innings or be slightly delayed due to weather and makes it easier to get back onto schedule.

  •   If a double knockout format is used and determined by the BOD as the format, a game template will be made available for the corresponding number of teams.  This may also be found in OBA book Section RP5.1-Format for OBA Play-Off Tournaments.  A winner must be declared for each game in order to advance.

  •   If a pool play format is used and determined by the BOD as the format, team pairings for round 1 will be determined by the WOBA.  Pool play formats for specific number of teams are listed in this manual and are to be used to prepare a schedule.  Reminder for round 1 of pool play that teams with higher seeding will be assigned “home”.  If seeding was not a determining factor for pool pairings then coin flip will ensue for “home” and “away”. 

  •   When scheduling the game times, pay some attention to where the teams are travelling from if diamonds are not located at the same park. It is difficult to please everyone, and no doubt coaches will be requesting alternate game times.  It is suggested that once a schedule is set and approved to leave it as is.

  •   Prepare an EAP (Emergency Action Plan) for posting at each venue. See sample sheet.