Reply To: When is a batting order official

It depends a lot on what level you are playing.  Some lower levels require teams to bat the entire lineup with “free substitution,” and, thus, lineups are only necessary for the people keeping the books.  At high school, and above, however, the Umpire in Chief needs to keep track of the lineup of both teams for a variety of reasons, so he/she needs to know each teams starting lineup, and who is playing where.

It’s not really “mandatory” to exchange lineups at the plate meeting, but it is a good idea for good, accurate officiating.  A lot of teams really don’t know the rules that well, and having the lineup can help an umpire sort out any difficulties that occur.  Whether lineups are exchanged or not, they become official at the Plate Meeting, and can only be changed in accordance with the rules.  Having the lineup of each team in hand also helps in preventative officiating.  The Umpire in Chief can go over the lineup, and point out any discrepancies ahead of time, and before they become a problem