Know All Men By These Presents

We the Owners, in order to form a more perfect Griffey World, have hearby adopted through a democratic vote these Rules and Regulations by which to Govern ourselves.

We shall each be subject to a referendum should our franchise lose 200 or more games in any consecutive, two-season period. Thus, should you lose 100 games in a season and 100 the next, the other owners will be asked to decide whether you shall retain your team for a third season. The same rule applies if you should lose 110 in one season and 90 the next, or 115 and 85, etc. The referendum shall be conducted during the playoffs of the season in which the 200th loss is attained.

We shall each be subject to a referendum if our minors are consistently or purposefully neglected. The commissioner shall be the ultimate arbiter of this standard, but the determination shall be based upon persistent complaints from other owners if minor league pitchers are exhausted or if players are played grievously out of position (e.g., C playing SS) or if minor league games cannot be simulated because rosters aren't complete.

I'm not quite comfortable with formalizing a rule based on 1/3 support for a prohibition against cash in trades exceeding the salaries of included players. Basically, we have one more vote than it would take to earn a veto. I think some further discussion is needed on that one, so this portion will be updated. Scratch that, amended.

We should also determine whether to allow someone who's been voted out to return after a one-season hiatus, but I suspect that won't really be an issue here. But a rule would be good. If you have any other questions or concerns, or want a rule clarified further, please let me know.

Binding Vote: Minimum Standards

Please vote for the minimum standards you'd like to see enforced or suggest amendments in the comments below. We got a pretty clear picture of what the owners last season wanted to see, but those results were not binding and we've got a couple of new owners now. In the event of a tie, I will cast the tiebreaking vote.

Addendum: These are simple majority votes.

Vote: Minimum Standards

I've set up a poll to gauge interest in establishing some minimum standards of competition, and to see which ideas discussed so far are most popular. The results of this particular poll will not be binding, and you may vote for each choice that matches your current position. If none of the choices appeal to you please let me know either in a blog comment or a trade chat.

I really want everyone to feel like they've had a say in this, since some of us have been competing in Griffey world for nearly four actual years, and many others for nearly as long. That's really something, and I don't want to wreck a good thing. Any rule changes are intended to proactively deal with problems we may encounter down the road and to improve competition going forward. In other words, I hope to strengthen an already great world.

Please vote by Sunday, April 25, and keep your suggestions coming!

Discussion: League Rules

We've always operated without stated rules, which has worked for us thus far, but after WiS revised its policy regarding private worlds and removing problem owners, it might not be a bad idea to determine our expectations for fair play. I don't really want to change anything, unless there's a real groundswell from you guys to do so, but I'd like to have something to put into writing in the event that a problem owner joins and refuses to leave. Hopefully we'll never need these rules!

Add your ideas to the comments below.