(7/1/2008)     Unsportsmanlike Conduct The MMFL Board has recently received reports from our umpiring staff of unsportsmanlike conduct at some of our games. Our UIC, Mike Brewer, has prepared a note to all MMFL coaches. Please read it below and understand that we support what he is saying. MMFL Coaches... you are responsible for the conduct of your fans, players & assistants. While most of you are providing the atmosphere of good sportsmanship & life-long lessons that we strive to teach these young women through the game of softball... some teams are choosing to not adhere to the ideals of good sportsmanship. You are allowing your fans to act in a belligerent manner towards the umpires & opponents... the players to conduct themselves in an unsportsmanlike manner (this includes those "blood-curdling screams" during a pitcher's delivery or on a fly ball to distract their opponents) & your assistants/scorers to address umpires in a disrespectful manner. Starting today 7/1/08... my umpires are being instructed to use the ejection procedure if this abhorrent behavior persists. This procedure includes clearing the stands, ejecting an assistant and/or player, or even the Head Coach, for not complying. Please realize that they will not tolerate this type of behavior when it occurs. If you have a question regarding a call on the field... you need to inquire professionally, by asking for time... inquiring the plate umpire as to the call (or if it's a call by the field umpire... asking the plate umpire to go and talk to his/her partner) & waiting for the answer to the question. ASSISTANTS SHOULD NEVER BE RUNNING OUT ONTO THE FIELD. If they can't control themselves and act like adults... they won't be allowed to stay with their team. Again... this isn't a problem for 95% of our teams, and I applaud you for that. For the other 5%... consider this your one & only warning. We have no place in our league for this type of behavior. The umpires work hard to call these games to the best of their ability for these young women... please assist us in keeping this under control. UIC, MMFL (6/17/2008)     Metal Spikes/Cleats Metal spikes or cleats are not allowed in the MMFL or the ASA. Girls wearing them will not be allowed to play. (6/16/2008)     Flooding - Road Closures As most of us have to travel all over southeastern Wisconsin to play our games, perhaps this DOT map will help. It lists the current road closures due to flooding. If your routes encounter one of these closures, it is strongly advised to seek an alternate before you hit the road. COPY this link and PASTE it in the address bar of your browser. http://maps.google.com/maps/ms?hl=en&ie=UTF8&oe=UTF8&msa=0&msid=106714907945366530639.00044f3ec972fee85471d&ll=43.189158,-89.500122&spn=1.874356,3.383789&z=8 (6/9/2008)     Field Conditions Due to the recent deluge of rain here in southeastern Wisconsin, we ask that coaches and umpires check the MMFL Hotline on a regular basis for the week or so. The MMFL is in contact with all our field proprietors on a regular basis. Although the rain has stopped, ground conditions may not be able to obsorb the current amount of water on the surface. Fields and games could be cancelled. Players and parents should not be using the MMFL Hotline, it is reserved for coaches and umpires.   MMFL Hotline (3/3/2008)     Roster Forms Roster forms available to coaches from the secure area of our website have changed slightly. Each line item or player entered now have an additional check box to which parents can acknowledge whether or not they will allow their daughters to be phtographed and used by the MMFL. Before signing the roster forms, it is strongly recommended each parent read the statement at the bottom of the form. By placing an "x" or check mark in the brackets to the right will tell the MMFL they do not grant permission to use their daughter's photo images. (2/14/2008)     MMFL Deals from Dunns Dunns Sporting Goods, an MMFL sponsor, is annoucing special promotions for teams of the MMFL. You will need Adobe Acrobat Reader to view the flyer listed below.   Dunns Flyer (1/28/2008)     Teams Needed-19+ League The Shirley Marten League that operates on the southside of Milwaukee is in need of open age group teams. These teams are typically made up of girls (young ladies) 19 and over, college age players. For more information, contact Cori Morgan at (414) 744-2175. (12/30/2007)     Pitching Distances Just recently the MMFL has received word that the ASA is changing the pitching distance for 18U Class A tournament play. The distance for this classification is going from 40 feet to 43 feet. Below is an e-mail sent to all of our 16U and 18U teams that better describes how this change will affect our league and their teams. "The ASA has decided that the 18U Class A pitching distance will be increased to 43 feet in 2008. Wisconsin ASA Junior Olympic Commissioner Dale Ferron has confirmed that the 18U Class A state tournament and the 18U Class A National Qualifier, both in Watertown, will use the new 43 foot pitching distance. This change will be in place for 18U ASA Northern Nationals and 18U Class A Nationals this summer. In response, the MMFL has also decided that the 16U/18U Gold Division pitching distance will be 43 feet to prepare these “A” level teams for tournament competition. All other 16U and 18U divisions will remain at a 40 foot pitching distance. If you wish to be a part of the Gold Division in order to play at the new pitching distance, please email the MMFL President, Larry Pinkowski. If you previously applied during initial registration to play in the Gold Division but do not now wish to pitch at that distance, please email Larry as well. Some thoughts: 1) If your team is a Gold 16U/18U team you will be pitching league games at 43 feet. Then if your team is 16U and you want to play in the 16U State Tournament, A or B, you will be pitching at 40 feet. 2) If your team is an 18U team and you will play league in another division other than Gold, you'll be pitching at 40 feet. Then if you decide to play in the A level State Tournament or the 18U National Qualifier because of its location, in Watertown, you'll be pitching at 43 feet." (11/21/2007)     New MMFL Feature A new feature has been added to the MMFL website. Around this time of the year, all of the previous year's data is cleared from the MMFL database. Many times it is requested to look back and perhaps see the record of a team or even a specific player on a team from the previous year. From the Teams Page of our website, scroll down to the bottom of the page and click "Previous Year Teams". Then click the Team Name you're interested in and you will be presented with another brief menu. Select "Team Schedule/Record" or "Team Roster". This will be last year's information.   Teams Page (10/1/2007)     2008 MMFL Dates As a coutesy to current members of the MMFL as well as those teams that are eager to join the MMFL, we are announcing approximate start and ending dates for the 2008 summer season. Teams, players and parents should now be able to better plan their summer activities around our schedule. However, please be advised that due to circumstances beyond our control, these dates could be revised. But as of this news article, these are our planned dates for 2008. It appears the 10U, 12U and 14U will be starting the week of 6/2/08. The remainder of the age groups will start the week of 6/9. The regular summer league should end on or about Friday, 8/1/08. (9/26/2006)     10U Pitching Plates As usual, when a new season starts there are fields that have a problem understanding how we use their facilities and what our requirements are. It is strongly suggested that coaches of our 10U teams carry a portable pitching plate to their league games. It would also be advisable to carry a tape measure to ensure proper placement of these plates thus guaranteeing a consistent pitching distance. (9/26/2006)     MMFL's New Survey System Survey programming is finally complete. The MMFL introduces another tool to help decide the direction of the league. Current MMFL members now have the ability to respond to various concerns from the Board of Directors. You must login to the secure area of our website and select the SURVEYS option from your menu. Typically, you will be presented with survey questions. Read the Survey Description for complete details and SUBMIT your response.