2013 Eligibility Report!

Let's take a look at who is eligible for the upcoming 2013 season.

BATTERS

The total number of eligible batters this season is 315, up from 313 last season. Remember, to be eligible as a batter, the player must have at least 250 plate appearances (catchers must have at least 200 plate appearances). A player needs to have at least 10 games at a position to be eligible to play that position in DMBL. Players with at least 10 games played in left field or right field can also play the other corner outfield spot; players who played at least 10 games in center can play anywhere in the outfield. Anyone with 250+ plate appearances can be a Designated Hitter, but a player who didn't have 10 games played at any position can only be used as a DH.

There are 48 eligible catchers this season. Of those, 13 are only eligible as "catcher only" (they have more than 200 plate appearances but less than 250 and therefore can't be used as a DH or at another position even if they had 10 games played there), and five are eligible at catcher and one other position.

So in theory, all 16 teams could have three eligible catchers on the roster this year. By way of comparison, last year we had only 41 eligible catchers, and we did fine.

But this year, catcher isn't the scarcest position. It's shortstop, with only 47 eligible players this season, and of those, 21 are also eligible at another position. Last year there were 51 eligible shortstops.

Breaking down the other positions, there are 63 players eligible at first base, with 33 eligible at one or more other positions; 52 players eligible at second base, including 31 with second and one or more other positions; 58 at third base, with 35 having multiple position eligibility; 58 in center field, with 5 eligible at other positions; and 131 in corner outfield, which includes 23 eligible at other positions (and all 58 center fielders). There are three batters who can only be used at Designated Hitter.

If we ran out of players eligible at a position, what would happen?

The Commissioner's Office would have to invoke the Tom Prince Rule. Under this rule, if no free agents are available who can play a specific position and a team had to fill that position due to an injury (and didn't have another player on its roster able to play that position), the ineligible player with the most plate appearances who has 10 or more games played at that position would become eligible. (If another team dropped an eligible player, the Tom Prince player would automatically be released and that player picked up instead.)

This year's Tom Prince players are:

Catcher: Jose Lobaton, .222/.323/.317 in 197 plate appearances.

First base: Jose Lopez, .246/.270/.356 in 248 plate appearances.

Second base: D.J. LeMahieu, .297/.332/.410 in 247 plate appearances.

Third base: Also Jose Lopez.

Shortstop: Marwin Gonzalez, .234/.280/.327 in 219 plate appearances.

Corner outfield: Lorenzo Cain, .266/.316/.419 in 244 plate appearances.

Centerfield: Also Lorenzo Cain.

PITCHERS

As for moundsmen, there are 395 eligible pitchers this year, including 168 starters, 211 relievers, and 16 pitchers who can be used either as a starter or a reliever. If all 16 teams carried 10 starters, we'd still have eight left over... and that doesn't include the 16 swingmen.

To be eligible as a starting pitcher, a player must have at least 10 games started. To be a reliever, a player must have at least 10 games in relief and either 30+ appearances or 50+ innings pitched.

You've got to feel bad for former Iron Fist pitcher Ben Sheets, who hasn't pitched in the DMBL since 2009. Sheets just missed the cut with 9 starts this year, but with a 3.47 ERA and 1.32 WHIP, maybe someone would have given him a shot! Better luck next year, Ben.

The 395 eligible pitchers includes those relievers who qualified by pitching 50 or more innings. The Wickstrom Rule was adopted a few years ago and gives eligibility to pitchers with at least 10 relief appearances who had 50+ innings pitched, even if they didn't have 30 overall appearances. (For many years, the rule was simply 30 appearances, at least 10 in relief.)

This year, eight pitchers qualify as relievers under the Wickstrom Rule. Four of them would have been eligible as starters, but now are swingmen; the other four wouldn't have been eligible at all, but can now be used as relievers.

The Wickstrom Relievers are: SP/RP Travis Blackley; RP Brett Cecil; SP/RP Josh Collmenter; SP/RP Jeremy Hefner; SP/RP Philip Humber; RP Wade LeBlanc; RP Guillermo Moscoso; and RP Everett Teaford.