LL Farm(7&8) rule question.

I coach 7 & 8 olds under little league rules. This past fall we played under the following rule that involves stopping play. (we also use a pitching machine). There is a 12ft circle chalked around the pitching machine. Play stops in one of the following ways: 1: Advancement of the lead runner is stopped by an infielder. 2: Ball is thrown back into the pitching circle and is controlled by a player in the circle. (LL district tournaments also use this rule, I've been told).

This spring our board wants to eliminate rule 2. Thus, play only stops with stopping the advancement of the lead runner. Their argument is this is more like real baseball...

I looking for opions on this, and the type of rules other LL associations use for this age group.

I personally like the rule 2 at this age group. It keeps the games a little more under control. We do impose a 4 run or 3 out limit for the first 5 inninings, with the 6 inining being unlimited runs or 3 outs.