The document provides a history and overview of softball. It began as an indoor version of baseball in 1887 in Chicago. Over subsequent decades the game developed standardized rules and was given the name "softball". Key differences from baseball include using a larger ball and underhand pitching. The document outlines the rules and terminology of softball including positions, batting, pitching rules, and scoring. It provides details on both fast pitch and slow pitch variations.

1. BASEBALL

4. SOFTBALL

5. History
The game of softball originated in Chicago on
Thanksgiving Day, 1887. A group of about twenty
young men had gathered in the gymnasium of the
Farragut Boat Club in order to hear the outcome of the
Harvard-Yale football game. After Yale's victory was
announced and bets were paid off, a man picked up a
stray boxing glove and threw it at someone, who hit it
with a pole.
George Hancock, the inventor of softball, shouted,
"Let's play ball!" He tied the boxing glove so that it
resembled a ball, chalked out a diamond on the floor and
broke off a broom handle to serve as a bat. What
proceeded was an odd, smaller version of baseball. That
game is now, 115 years later, known as the first softball
game.

6. • Due to the initial excitement surrounding the
game, the Farragut Boat Club decided to
officially devise their own set of rules, and the
game quickly leaked to outsiders in Chicago
and, eventually, throughout the rest of the
Midwestern U.S. As the history of softball
shaped itself over the next decade, the game
went under the guise of “indoor baseball,” “kitten
baseball,” “diamond ball,” “mush ball,” and
“pumpkin ball.” In 1926, Walter Hakanson coined
the term “softball” while representing the YMCA
at a National Recreation Congress meeting, and
by 1930, the term stuck as the sport’s official
name.

7. • In 1934, the Joint Rules Committee on Softball
collaborated to create a set of standardized
rules. Up until this point, the game was being
played with varied rules, player positions, and
ball sizes. The original softball used by the
Farragut Boat Club was 16 inches in
circumference. However, Lewis Rober Sr., the
man responsible for organizing softball games ,
used a 12-inch ball.
• Rober’s ball won out as the preferred softball
size, and professional softball games today are
played using a 10–12-inch ball.

8. • According to the official rules developed
early in the history of softball, and
eventually defined by the International
Softball Federation, there are nine players
on the field at a time. The players take the
positions of pitcher, catcher, first baseman,
second baseman, shortstop, third
baseman, and outfielder. Usually, there
are three outfielders holding the positions
of right fielder, left fielder, and center
fielder.

9. • However, slow pitch softball allows for a
fourth person in the outfield. Similar to
baseball, the team with the most runs at
the end of the seventh inning is named the
winner. However, if the teams are tied at
the end of the seventh inning, the game
can go into extra innings, until the tie is
broken.

10. WHAT is SOFTBALL?
• is a version of baseball that both males and
females and mixed-ability teams can play. It
requires a modest outlay in equipment, and it is
playable in a wide, open space. It is generally a
fast game that lasts either seven innings or 60
minutes.
• is a bat-and-ball sport played between two
teams of 9 players. It is a direct descendant of
baseball although there are some key
differences: softballs are larger than baseballs,
and the pitches are thrown underhand rather
than overhand. Softball is played on a smaller
diamond than in baseball.

11. Difference between FAST and SLOW Pitch
• Slowpitch requires the pitcher to throw the ball with an
arc, thus forcing the pitches to come in slow and making
it easier to hit.
• Fastpitch, pitchers can throw as hard as they can
(underhand). This makes it harder to hit because you
have much less time to react. You need to learn to slap
at the ball with a short quick swing if you're playing
fastpitch.

12. Fast Pitch Softball
• The bat used by the batter is made
of metal or composite materials. It may be
no more than 34 in long, 2.25 in
diameter.
• A softball game can last anywhere
from 3 to 9 innings, depending
on the league, rules, and
• type of softball; however 7 innings is
the most common.
• In fast pitch softball the ball MUST
be pitched underhand.
• It also has to be thrown by the
pitcher using the “windmill” pitch
Players and Positions:
Pitcher – 1
Catcher – 2
First Base – 3
Second Base – 4
Third Base – 5
Shortstop – 6
Left Field – 7
Center Field – 8
Right Field – 9
As an example if you heard someone say,
“it was a 4 to 3 play.”
You would take the numbers above to find
out who made the play. 4-Second Base
to 3-First base out.

13. Slow Pitch Softball
All player positions are the same
with the exception of ONE! Slow
pitch has an extra player: # 10.
They are deemed as the “short fielder”
and they play in the outfield to help fill gaps.
Players and Numbered Position
Pitcher – 1
Catcher – 2
First Base – 3
Second Base – 4
Third Base – 5
Shortstop – 6
Left Field – 7
Center Field – 8
Right Field – 9
Short Field – 10
Bases will be 65 feet apart in
the men and women's.
Games are still 7 innings, or
longer if in a tie.
There is NO base stealing!
The pitch must be thrown
underhand (slingshot)
and have a minimum arc of 6
ft. from the ground.
The maximum allowable arc is
12 ft. from the ground.
If the pitch does not meet
these requirements, an illegal
pitch shall be called.

14. Softball Field

16. Skills:
• Catching and Fielding- above waist
and below waist- ground balls and fly
balls
• Throwing- overhand or underhand
• Pitching- basic offensive skill
includes grip, stance, stride, and
swing

17. TERMS
• Base on balls- batter to advance to first base by
the umpire calling four pitches outside the strike
zone
• Defense team- team on the field
• Double play- defensive play results in two outs
as a result of continuous action
• Error- mishandling of the ball by the defense
team
• Fair ball- ball hit within the area boundaries of
the field first, second, third base
• Fly ball- any ball batted into the air

18. • Foul tip- foul ball which goes directly from the bat,
not higher than the batter’s head, to the catcher’s
hand and is legally caught
• Force Out- runner is forced to move- may tag
runner or touch base
• Home run- ball batted into fair territory which
enable the batter to all four bases in one play
• offensive team- team at bat
• Foul Ball- ball hit outside of the baseline.
determined by:
– infield- where it rests
– outfield- where it first hits

19. The Game
• The choice of the first or last bat in the
inning shall be decided by a toss of a coin
• The winner of the game shall be the team
that scores the most runs in the allotted
amount of innings
• One run shall be scored each time a base
runner legally touches first, second, third
base and home plate before the third out
of the inning

20. STRIKE- CALLED WHEN ONE OF THE
FOLLOWING SITUATIONS OCCURS:
• Batter swings at a pitched ball and misses
• Pitched ball is delivered over home plate
between the back shoulder and knees
• Fly ball goes foul and is not caught, and
the batter has less than two strikes
• Foul tip that remains lower than the
batter’s head is caught by the catcher
• Batter with less than two strikes is hit by
her own batted ball

21. • a pitched ball that does not go over the
plate in the strike zone and at which the
batter does not swing
• a ball that touches the ground before
reaching home plate
• illegally pitched ball
Ball- a ball is any of the following:

22. Fair ball- is a legally batted ball that:
• settles or is touched on fair ground in the
infield
• is on fair ground going out of the infield
• touches first, second, or third base,
• lands in the outfield in fair territory
between the extended lines from home to
first and home and third
• ground ball that lands in the outfield in foul
territory but has passed over the 1st and
3rd base bags.

23. Foul ball- batted ball is foul if:
• settles in foul territory between
home and first base or between
home and third
• first touches on foul ground
beyond first or third base
• bounds past first or third on or
over foul ground

24. Batting batter is out when:
• third strike is committed
• bunts foul after the second strike
• a foul ball is legally caught
• when a foul tip is caught at third strike first,
second, and third with less than 2 outs.
Runner advance at own risk
• the fielder intentionally drops a fair fly or
line drive with first, first and second, or
first, second and third occupied before 2
are out. Runner need not retouch and may
advance at their own risk

25. Defense
• know the number of outs and the positions
of the base runners
• know what will be done in the field for all
the different situations and have someone
call the number of outs and the plays
available
• less than 2 outs, the play should be on the
lead, runner when possible.

26. • anytime there are 2 outs with runners on
base, the runner should run on “anything/
any hit”( fly ball included). If a fly ball is hit
and caught it would be the third out and if
dropped the runners could have advanced
or possibly scored
Offense