Maintaining our fields is crucial to providing a safe and enjoyable experience for our players, coaches and officials. This also reduces maintenance costs. Please follow these simple guidelines.
Before Games and Practices with recent rain, plan to arrive early to prepare the field. If possible, try to work on fields a few hours ahead of game/practice. For games, both team's coaches should be involved.
- Remove standing water first. Use the field sponge to soak up all standing water, prior to addressing the field further. Please hang the field sponge on a dugout, preferably in the sun, to help it dry faster.
- Aerate flooded areas. Once standing water is removed, use field rakes to simply turn over the infield material. If possible, do this a couple hours before gameplay or practice.
- Use QuikDry product sparingly; as needed. Prioritize "high traffic" areas for QuikDry product, given high costs. This includes near bases, home plate, and pitching mounds.
- Avoid removing field dirt. Use caution dragging water away with rakes, as you will leave low spots, exacerbating poor field conditions.
- Drag, rake, and remove large rocks. Use caution dragging a wet field, however, as you may make conditions worse.
Always report safety concerns immediately to your level coordinator or the FCKLL's safety officer. You can find these individuals here.
After Games and Practices
Fields should always be dressed after your team has finished practicing or playing a game.
How to Properly Rake and Drag Infield
Proper raking and dragging techniques help to reduce the formation of a grass lip on the infield edge:
- Always rake with a grass edge not into it, and avoid pulling infield material into the grass edge
- When dragging the infield stay at least six inches away from the grass edge
- Hand screen drag on the infield skin and warning track, and a hand rake on baselines, infield cutouts, pitching mound, and home plate
- Do not allow players or other kids to use drags
Detailed field maintenance procedures