Dallas Section of the Society Petroleum Engineers



The 2020 SPE Dallas Softball Tournament has been postponed due to uncertainty and safety concerns regarding COVID-19. A new tournament date will be determined when conditions are safe for everyone to participate, most likely the Fall. Please contact Travis Straub at travis.straub@denbury.com or 432-638-8699 for more information or questions. Thank you!

13th Annual Oil & Gas Softball Tournament

What: Modified Co-ed (2:1 male:female) Double Elimination Oil & Gas Softball Tournament hosted by SPE Dallas encouraging industry camaraderie and benefiting SPE Dallas's Community Outreach & Education Programs including oil and gas workshops for teachers, DFW Future City Science Fair, Brookhaven Earth Science Fair, Perot Museum initiatives and various STEM programs.

When:   Saturday, May 16th, 2020 First games start at ~8:30 am (pending number of teams)

Where: Trinity View Park Softball Complex  2221 E. State Highway 356, Irving, TX 75060

How: Email team name and contact information (name, email and cell phone number) to Travis.Straub@Denbury.com and pay the $250 entry fee by  May 1st, 2020 at http://connect.spe.org/dallas/events/ (see registration options below) or send a check to:

Travis Straub
5320 Legacy Drive
Plano, TX 75024

Who: Tournament is only open to oil and gas industry employees and their spouses over 18 (no ringers). Rosters with names and company affiliation must be submitted prior to the tournament and will be checked to ensure there are NO RINGERS. Complimentary lunch, snacks and beverages, so invite your colleagues to attend.  The winning team name and year of victory will be inscribed on the Tournament Champions Cup and they get to keep the cup until next year’s tournament.

Sponsorship! PLEASE CONTACT YOUR EMPLOYER/COMPANY ABOUT SPONSORING THIS EVENT. SPONSORSHIP IS AN ESSENTIAL PART OF MAKING THIS EVENT A SUCCESS!

$500 – Diamond Field Sponsor – (Sponsorship A below) Donation will help pay for field rental and umpire fees. Sponsorship includes recognition on the tournament bracket banner, tournament program, SPE webpage and during tournament announcements. You are welcome to hang your company banner on one of the fields.

$200 – Gold Food/Drink Sponsor – (Sponsorship B below) Donation will go towards paying for food and drinks for participants. Sponsorship includes recognition on the tournament bracket banner, tournament program, SPE webpage and during tournament announcements.

$100 Bronze Sponsor – (Sponsorship C below) Donation of $100, or Other donations including door prizes (sports tickets, gift cards, etc.), giveaways (backpacks, cups, coozies, drinks, desserts, etc.) and/or other means of sponsorship will be recognized at the tournament.

Sponsors may hand out promotional items at the tournament.

Additional: Event is sanctioned and officiated by ASA.  Game balls will be provided.

Teams are required to furnish their own gloves and bats, which must be ASA certified.

Uniforms (same colored shirts) and numbers are strongly encouraged. Double elimination tournament format with 55 minute games and extra innings if needed. Team seeding is based on the previous year’s finish.
Absolutely no alcohol allowed in the park.
Team captains will be informed of inclement weather or emergency schedule changes.

Questions? Travis Straub: Travis.straub@denbury.com or 972.673.2272 o, 432.638.8699 c

                                   SPE Dallas Softball Tournament Rules                   

• Players must be at least 18 years old and work in oil and gas or be the spouse of an industry employee.
• Teams must have at least 9 players, of which at least 2 must be female, or they will forfeit. If a team only has 9 players, an out will be taken at the 10^th spot in the lineup. If a team only has 2 females, an out will be taken every time the third female would bat. A maximum of 7 fielders can be male. There is no max for female fielders. If a team only has 2 females, they can only have 9 players in the field. There are no restrictions to where players can be positioned in the field. Substitutions can be made anytime.
• Teams can bat as many players as they want (bat the bench), but no more than two males can bat consecutively. If a team does not have an exact 2:1 M:F ratio of batters, use male and female batting lineups and switch between them following M-M-F. A lineup of 8 men and 4 women works well because all 12 players bat, 7 men and 3 women play in the field, and 1 man and 1 woman sit each inning.
• If a male batter is walked and the next batter is female, the batter will be awarded second base if there are less than two outs. If there are 2 outs, the female batter can skip her at bat and take first base. If a female batter walks or a male batter walks before a male, the batter gets first base like usual.
• All batters start with a 1-1 count with 1 courtesy foul allowed after 2 strikes.
• No base stealing. If a runner leaves base early, he/she will be called out without warning. Each team is allowed one pinch runner per inning to replace an injured player. The runner must be the last out of the same sex.
• Three over the fence home runs are allowed per team per game. After three, over the fence home runs will be outs. There is no “one up” rule.
• Pitching arc is 6-10’. Fake or trick pitches (such as behind the back) are not allowed.
• Official ASA softballs will be provided for all games. Teams furnish their own gloves and bats. Bats must be checked and ASA certified at the office by located Field #1. Metal spikes are not allowed.
• Standard men’s 12” ASA softballs will be supplied and used for all batters. The 11” women’s ball will not be used. The batting team must retrieve any ball hit out of play (home run or foul) and return it to the field.
• Prior to each game, team captains submit batting lineups (including any subs) with jersey numbers or player names to the home plate umpire and opposing team captain. Batting out of order is an automatic out.
• If there is a play at first base after a batted ball (usually an infield grounder), the batter running to first is expected to touch the orange safety bag and the fielder use the regular white bag to prevent injuries.
• Double home plate and commitment line will not be used. Unless there is a force out at home, a player running home must be tagged out and is free to return to third base.
• Teams are required to hustle on and off the field between innings. No warm-ups allowed after the first inning. Runs can be subtracted at the discretion of the umpires or tournament director for attempting to stall a game.
• Games are 7 innings, but no new inning will start after 55 minutes, which will be monitored on the scoreboard. If a game is tied, extra innings will be played 1 pitch per batter with no courtesy foul.
• Mercy run rule: 20 runs after 3 innings, 15 after 4, and 10 after 5. Flip-flop rule will be used.
• Any regulations not mentioned follow Plano Softball Bylaws ASA Slow Pitch Softball Code and will be interpreted by the ASA umpire staff and Director if necessary, which includes the halo rule prohibiting batters from hitting at the pitcher. https://www.teamsideline.com/Assets/570/By-Laws/Adult%20Slow-Pitch%20Softball%20By-Laws%20(edited%201.11.18).pdf http://downloads.asasoftball.com/about/pdf/2018USACODE_352018.pdf
• A rule interpretation can be politely questioned by one player, but judgment calls are at the discretion of the umpires who have the authority to eject any unruly players.
• For any questions or issues contact Travis Straub (432.638.8699) or 911 for an emergency.

Trinity View Park is located at 2221 E State Highway 356, Irving, TX 75060. The complex is North of Highway 356 and East of Loop 12. The complex backs up to the Elm Fork Trinity River. It is 7 miles from downtown Dallas, 20 miles from Plano, 12 miles from Carrollton, and 25 miles from downtown Fort Worth.