I had a talked with OHSAA back in January to get clarification on this since it was my first year coaching for our school. They sent me a copy of an FAQ document they had propared due to this being a popular topic. I am posting straight from the document so everyone can see OHSAAs interpretation of their rules, which is not always the same as answers I have seen posted:
Can volunteer coach players from the school team during the June 1 ? July 31 period of time?
Answer: Basically, ?yes?, but when teams are playing with more than 50% of a schools? roster (4), the days of coaching/instruction must be counted in the 10 total permitted to the staff. If the non-interscholastic team is comprised of LESS than 4 players from the school, the days coaching that team in TEAM COMPETITION do not count toward the 10 days permitted to that coaching staff.
What if I INSTRUCT only ONE (or up to FOUR) players in hitting instruction during the June 1 ? July 31 period. Do THOSE days count?
Answer: Yes. When it comes to INSTRUCTION, a ?day is a day?. ALL days count toward the 10 permitted to a staff.
Can a volunteer coach players from the school team during the ?Off-season? ?travel baseball/softball? (or other non-school baseball/softball)?
Answer: No. A volunteer coach is restricted to the same out-of-season (non-interscholastic) rules that a paid coach is restricted to.
If my son or daughter plays on a Non-Interscholastic team (such as ?club? or ?travel?) can I coach them if I am a school coach?
Answer: Only during the June 1 ? July 31 period of time. Coaching one?s own players is prohibited outside the season other than those dates and no exception is provided for families.
When CAN a player on my team participate in Non-Interscholastic Baseball/softball?
Answer: As soon as his season is complete. This means a Varsity player may participate as soon as his last game (including tournament) is played. Any sub-varsity player may play non-interscholastically when his season is complete but it must be kept in mind that he cannot return to dress/participate in any OHSAA tournament game. Many Athletic Administrations will safeguard this by allowing no level of player to participate in non-interscholastic baseball/softball until the varsity?s last tournament game. Though not entirely necessary, this DOES safeguard all athletes.
How many players can play together on a Non-Interscholastic team (such as ?travel? or ?ACME? or ?Legion ball?)?
Answer: FOUR (4). OHSAA Sports Regulations limit the number of participants on any non-interscholastic roster during all months except May 25, 2012 (the Friday prior to Memorial Day) and July 31, 2012 to no more than 50% of those that make up a starting lineup of a team. In baseball/softball that magic number is 4.
How are players ?considered? when Middle School/Junior High players play with High School players in the off-season?
Answer: Players are considered middle school/junior high until August 1 of their 9[SUP]th[/SUP] grade year and are considered separate as it relates to participating on non-interscholastic teams. For example; 4- 8[SUP]th[/SUP] graders could participate on a ?Club? (non-interscholastic) team along with 4- 9[SUP]th[/SUP] graders from the same school. They are considered separate.
During the summer when instruction is permitted (June 1 ? July 31), how many days are we permitted to coach our players?
Answer: TEN (10). From June 1 ? July 31, a coaching staff is permitted to coach a total 10 days, known as ?instructional days?.
Does a day of my own summer camp count toward these 10 days?
Answer: Yes. Any day of instruction is considered one of the 10 total permitted between June 1 and July 31.
How about if I coach a team (from June 1 ? July 31) that consists of only 5 players from my school team? (less than 50% of the roster)
Answer: Currently the OHSAA does not view that as an instructional day, but one must remember it MUST be between June 1 and July 31 AND it must be in TEAM COMPETITION.
In the above, it is stated that it must be in ?Team Competition?. Explain that.
Answer: When a non-school ?summer? team is comprised of 4 or less players from the same school, a coach may coach that team (ONLY during June 1 ? July 31) without those days counting toward the 10 ?instructional days? permitted to a staff if and only if, the coaching is done during TEAM play. This is NOT true, and all days must count toward 1 of the 10, when instruction is provided to a school team member during June and July whether there is 1 player there or 100 players there.
Does each member of my staff receive 10 separate days?
Answer: No. Obviously, if this were to occur, a school could have upwards of 40 and 60 days of permitted instruction. The 10 days permitted are per staff.
Do Volunteers count in the 10 day total?
Answer: Yes. As mentioned earlier, all volunteers fall under the Bylaws and Sports Regulations of the OHSAA. The 10 days permitted to a staff are inclusive of paid and volunteer coaches.
Can players participate in ?Hitting Leagues? during the off-season?
Answer: Yes, however, they are limited to the 50% limitation of 4 players from the same school on the same ?hitting league? team.