The NCAA Baseball Rules Committee and the NCAA Playing Rules Oversight Panel have approved a new rule regarding stadium padding for baseball and softball. The rule aims to mitigate potential injury to student-athletes who may run, slide, or come into contact with hard surfaces during play.
With player safety as the priority, fences, walls, backstops, poles, and any other hard surfaces should have padding. According to Rule 1, “The Game, Playing Field and Equipment,” Section 2e – The Playing Field, it is recommended that padding be placed on all hard surfaces (backstops, sideline, and outfield fences) that a player is likely to collide with during play.
To get ahead of compliance with these NCAA rule changes, we recommend that all levels of play adopt these guidelines as much as possible to enhance player safety. Consider installing padding for dugouts, outfield walls, backstops, and fencing in foul territory. Additionally, installing top rail pads for the top of your fencing is also recommended.
The padding must be mounted no more than 1 ft off the ground and must extend to the top of your fence or pole, or to at least 6 ft from the ground, whichever is lower.
Aer-Flo Sports pads meet these new NCAA requirements. If you need assistance outfitting your ballpark or stadium with proper padding, let us know, and we’d be happy to help you get set up with the padding you need.
