Softball

HISTORY:
Softball began in 1887 when George Hancock, a reporter for the Chicago Board of Trade, invented “indoor
baseball”. By the spring of 1888, the game had spread outdoors. It was originally called either mush ball, kitten ball or
indoor baseball, but by the 1920s it had acquired the name of softball. The sport became organized in the United
States in 1933 with the formation of the Amateur Softball Association of America (ASA). The sport was originally
played by men and did not become popular with women until the formation of the ASA.
Softball has a variation of baseball, the game started with different elements from other sports of which
were boxing and boating. A boating club and a boxing glove were the key parts when playing a game of Softball.
Throughout time softball was once known as Indoor Baseball, kitten ball, mush ball and pumpkin ball. The game then
adopted the name Softball by the 1930s. Softball then grew a reputation across the United States and as a result of
its growth in popularity it became a well-recognized sport across the world. Softball spread slowly to the rest of the
world with, perhaps, it biggest push coming from American servicemen playing and teaching the game on the far-
flung fields of World War II.
It was not until 1965 that the International Softball Federation (ISF) was formed. Author Karen Christensen, in
Encyclopedia of World Sport, notes that softball spread to the United Kingdom because of an American movie. The
movie, “A Touch of Class”, was filmed in London and featured a softball game, which began to be played in England as
a result. Softball consists of several disciplines: fast pitch, slow pitch, and modified fast pitch. Fast pitch allows two
main underhand pitching deliveries; one that involves an entire revolution and the other where the pitchers arm
comes back and then forward. Slow pitch requires the pitcher to lob the ball underhanded with an arc that reaches a
minimum height of 1.83 meters and a maximum height of 3.66 meters. A modified fast pitch allows underhand
deliveries but the arm must not make a complete revolution around the shoulder socket. Internationally, fast pitch is
the dominant game. In the United States, slow pitch is played by millions of people in recreational leagues. Adult
softball bats are used in all disciplines of the game.
World championships in fast pitch softball were first held in 1965 for women and 1966 for men. Slow-pitch
world championships began in 1987, and the competition resumed in Florida (USA) in June of 2002. The first world
competition for junior men and women was held in 1981 and a World Cup for age 16-under girls began in 2001. The
ISF now counts 122 national federations as members.

History of Softball in New Zealand

The history of softball in New Zealand dates back to 1935 when the game was first played as a recreation by
visiting American sailors. The man really responsible for introducing the game into New Zealand was Mr. W. H.
Wilson, of the Ford Motor Company, who had played the game in the United States before coming here. The first
organized competitions took place in the summer of 1937/38, the Wellington Softball (Baseball) Association was
formed in November 1937, and with the game spreading rapidly up and down the country the N.Z. (Baseball) Softball
Council was formed at a meeting at Kelvin Gymnasium, Wellington, on January 11, 1938.

• Softball is one of the most popular sports in the country, and an estimated 40 million Americans engage in at
least one softball game each year. Because it can be played on either a field or an indoor arena, softball
games are played year round. There are three types of softball. In the most common type, slow-pitch softball,
the ball, which can measure either 11 or 12 inches in circumference depending on the age and league, and
must arch on its path to the batter. In fast pitch softball, the pitch is fast and bunting and stealing are
permitted. Modified softball restricts the windmill windup of the pitcher, although the pitcher is allowed to
throw as hard as possible with the restricted back swing.

RULES OF THE GAME:

 • There are 9 players on a fast pitch softball team, 10 on a slow-pitch team.
• The infield is made up of the following positions: 1st, 2nd, and 3rd bases, shortstop, pitcher and catcher.
• The outfield positions are designated as left, right and center field. (Slow-pitch plays an extra outfielder
usually called the short fielder).
• Any ball going outside the 1st or 3rd base line is a foul ball (runners can not advance and the batter gets
another try unless the ball was caught in the air, which is an out).
• An official game is 7 innings. An inning is when both teams have had a turn to bat.
• All pitching must be done underhand.
• High school fast pitch pitchers pitch from a distance of 43’ from home plate.
• A Batter is out when:
o Three strikes have been called
o A fly ball is caught in either fair or foul territory
o The batter does not stand in the batter’s box while attempting to hit a pitch o The batter is hit by her
own batted ball in fair territory (outside of the batters box) before it is played by a fielder
o The batter hits a grounder and the ball is thrown to 1st base before the batter reaches first base.
• Base Running (Slow pitch) o Runners must touch each base in order.
o Runners may overrun 1st base only. At all other bases the runner may be tagged and called out if
they are off the base.
o Runners cannot lead off a base. They must wait until the ball is hit or crosses home plate o After a fly
ball has been caught the base runner must tag the occupied base before advancing to the next base.
o One base runner cannot pass another base runner that is ahead of them.
• A runner is out if:
o They are tagged with the ball before reaching a base o The ball gets to 1st base before the runner
o They run more than 3 feet out of the base line to avoid being tagged

IN-CLASS MODIFICATIONS:
• When running to first base, the batter will run to the outside base while the fielder will use the inside base to
avoid any collision at the base.
• While at bat, if your ball directly hits above the red line it is an automatic homerun.

KEY TERMS:
• Ball- A legally pitched ball that does not enter the strike zone (four balls equals a walk).
• Count- This is the number of balls to the number of strikes the batter has during the time at bat. The number
of balls is always given first by the umpire.
• Double Play- A play by the defense in which two offensive players are legally put out as the result of a
continuous action.
• Force out- An out, which may be made when the runner has to advance to the next base to make room for
the following base runner.
• Foul Ball- A legally batted ball hit outside of the baselines. It counts as a strike on the batter until you get to
two strikes.
• Grounder- A ball that is hit on the ground.
• Inning – A portion of the game consisting of a turn at bat for each team.
• On deck- The next batter.
• Pop up- A ball hit up in the air to the infield.
• Strike-Term used when a ball is swung at and missed or is called when the ball enters the strike zone and is
not swung at all.
• Strike zone- A pitched ball that goes over home plate between the batters armpits and knees.
• Umpire- Person responsible for enforcing all rules of the game.
 • Walk- A batter is awarded first base after the umpire calls four pitches balls.

DIAGRAMS:

REFERENCES:
https://www.softball.org.nz/Softball-NZ/History.html
https://www.ntschools.org/cms/lib/NY19000908/Centricity/Domain/1028/Softball.pdf