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Softball
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What is softball?
Softball is a sport similar to baseball but played on a smaller field with a larger ball. The game, which consists of seven innings, is a popular participant sport, especially in the United States.
Softball is generally believed to have evolved from indoor baseball, first played in Chicago in 1887, and has been known by various names, including kitten ball and mush ball. The Amateur Softball Association of America, founded in 1933, is the recognized governing body for organized national competition promotion and control. The Fédération Internationale de Softball coordinates international competition.
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How is softball different from baseball?
Softball is a variant of baseball played on a smaller field with a larger ball, delivered underhand. A softball game lasts seven innings. The regulation softball field features a diamond shape with 60-foot baselines. Pitching distance is 46 feet for men and 43 feet for women. Bats can be up to 34 inches long with a maximum diameter of 2.25 inches. The official softball has a 12-inch circumference and weighs between 6.25 and 7 ounces.
In softball, runners must stay in contact with the base until the pitcher releases the ball. A popular variation, slow-pitch softball, has ten players per team, and the ball must be pitched with a visible arc.
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How many players are on a softball team and how is the game played?
A softball team typically has nine players, though a slow-pitch variation uses 10. Softball is played on a smaller field than baseball, and a game lasts seven innings. The game involves batting and fielding, with similar strategies to baseball. However, in softball, the ball is pitched underhand. In fast-pitch softball, base stealing is allowed, but the runner must stay on the base until the pitcher releases the ball. A popular variation, slow-pitch softball, doesn't allow base stealing, and the pitch must have a moderate speed with an arc of at least 3 feet.
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What equipment do players need to play softball?
In softball, the regulation playing field features a diamond shape with 60-foot baselines. Players use round bats, no longer than 34 inches, with a maximum diameter of 2.25 inches. The official softball has a smooth-seam, measures 12 inches in circumference, and weighs between 6.25 and 7 ounces. While fielders typically play without gloves in some variations, gloves are allowed.
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How did softball originate and how has it grown as a sport around the world?
Softball originated from indoor baseball played in Chicago in 1887 and was known by several names, including kitten ball and mush ball. In 1923, a committee formed to standardize the rules, which later became the International Joint Rules Committee on Softball. The Amateur Softball Association of America was then established in 1933 to promote national competition.
The Fédération Internationale de Softball (International Softball Federation) formed in 1952 to coordinate international competition between over 40 countries. Women's softball was introduced to the Olympics in 1996 but was removed after 2008, and then added back in 2020. Today, softball maintains similar batting and fielding strategies to baseball but is played on a smaller field with a seven-inning game.
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Softball, a variant of baseball and a popular participant sport, particularly in the United States. It is generally agreed that softball developed from a game called indoor baseball, first played in Chicago in 1887. It became known in the United States by various names, such as kitten ball, mush ball, diamond ball, indoor–outdoor, and playground ball. There were wide variances in playing rules, size and type of playing equipment, and dimensions of the playing field.
In 1923 a rules committee was appointed to publish and circulate a standard set of rules. The committee was later enlarged to form the International Joint Rules Committee on Softball, which came to include representatives of a number of organizations that promote and sponsor softball. The Amateur Softball Association of America, organized in 1933, came to be the recognized governing agency for promotion and control of organized national competition.
The Fédération Internationale de Softball (International Softball Federation), which was formed in 1952, acts as liaison between more than 40 softball organizations of several countries. Headquarters are in Oklahoma City, Oklahoma. The federation coordinates international competition and regular regional and world championship tournaments for men and women. In 1996 a women’s softball competition was added to the Olympic Games. It was removed from the Games following the 2008 Summer Olympics but was added back to the program of the 2020 Summer Olympics, which were postponed until 2021, owing to a worldwide coronavirus pandemic.
The fundamentals of softball are the same as those of baseball. Batting and fielding strategy are similar, but softball is played on a much smaller area, and a game is only seven innings long.
The regulation playing field for softball includes a diamond-shaped area with 60-foot (18.3-metre) baselines. The pitching distance for men is 46 feet (14 metres) and for women 43 feet (13.11 metres). Bats must be round, not more than 34 inches (86.4 cm) long, and not more than 2.25 inches (5.7 cm) in diameter at the largest part. The official softball is a smooth-seam ball 12 inches (30.5 cm) in circumference, weighing between 6.25 and 7 ounces (177 and 198 grams).
In softball the ball is delivered by an underhand motion, whereas in baseball the pitch is overhand or sidearm. Base stealing is permitted in both games, but in softball the runner must keep contact with the base until the pitcher releases the ball on delivery to the batter.
A popular variation of softball called slow-pitch may be played with regulation equipment. The major differences from softball (fast-pitch) are that there are 10 members on a team, the pitching distance for men and for women is 46 feet, and a pitched ball must be delivered at moderate speed with an arc of at least 3 feet in its flight toward the batter. Speed and height of the pitch are left to the judgment of an umpire, who may eject a pitcher for repeatedly throwing the ball too fast. Base stealing is not allowed in slow-pitch.
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Another variation, popular especially in Chicago and other midwestern American cities, is played with a ball that is 16 inches (40.64 cm) in circumference on a diamond whose base paths are 55 feet (16.8 metres) for men and 50 feet long (15.25 metres) for women. The ball is delivered as in slow-pitch, and fielders typically play without gloves.