Softball Information

Using fusible batting inside a quilt allows you to skip the tedious tacking portion of quilting and go straight to assembly and completion. Fusible batting has a webbed adhesive on each side that…

Baseball and softball gloves have an intoxicating leather smell when they are new. The problem is, when they are new, they are also very stiff and hard to control. On the playing field, a glove should…

Sports tryouts give coaches precious little time to fully evaluate players' skills. The athletes' narrow window of opportunity also reduces the acceptable amount of subpar performance, so an off-day…

Rafters are a common anchor point for indoor batting cages. Hanging the netting from the rafters is a simple job that requires basic hardware. The typical netting is light and does not stress the…

Batting cages are erected using a large variety of hanging techniques. Some cages are draped from indoor rafters and others are connected to cable systems. Metal end poles are also common for free…

Many people associate softball with either a slow-pitch recreational league with high-arcing pitches or a high-level fast pitch game with violent windmill pitching motions. However, in the middle of…

A batting cage can be a fun way to see successive pitches for an extended period of time. The machine is also much more accurate than most pitchers, which can help you get a handle on the ball when…

In many competitive sports, motivation isn't always a problem. At the competitive level, each athlete has likely practiced for untold hours and beaten out competition to earn a spot on the team. While…

As with baseball, the key to an effective change-up pitch in softball is selling the batter on the idea that a fastball is coming, only to send a slower pitch to the plate. This means your motion has…

Softball hitters have a tough task when they step into the batter's box. They must demonstrate quick reflexes to locate and hit fast pitches, all in less than a second. This job is made tougher by…

A backhand changeup is an off-speed pitch thrown in fastpitch softball. A changeup can be an effective pitch if thrown properly because it has less velocity than a fastball. If a batter is not…

Baseball and softball teams can determine who's best on the field, but the real decision makers -- ball or strike, safe or out -- are the umpires. These men and women have a responsibility to be…

Hitting a slow-pitch softball isn't as easy as it looks. The ball has a large surface area and striking it in the proper spot will help you hit the ball harder, farther and increase your batting…

USSSA is an acronym of the United States Specialty Sports Organization, an independent, multi-sports organization with sports leagues for athletes under the age of 19. Founded in 1968, this…

Slow-pitch softball is played differently than fast-pitch softball. Whereas fast-pitch softball has many similarities to baseball -- bunting, hit-and-runs, stealing -- most slow-pitch softball players…

Players have one chance to impress coaches during fast pitch softball tryouts. Organization of the tryouts is important to give the player a chance to perform at their personal best, which provides…

Any baseball player that wants to improve his swing spends a lot of time in a batting cage. If you don't have access to an athletic center that has an indoor or outdoor facility where you can practice…

Softball, like all other sports, can be fiercely competitive, the will to win so strong that players can contravene the rules. Softball umpires are there to adjudicate when the rules have been broken…

Say, "slow-pitch softball" and the image evoked is a scene of barely athletic players enjoying a friendly game as part of a family picnic. Becoming a professional slow-pitch softball player in the…

The most widely known tournament brackets are the NCAA basketball tournament referred to as "March Madness." Thousands of sports fans, marginal and die-hard alike, fill out their brackets for the…

Fast-pitch softball requires hitters to react to pitches within a fraction of a second. As such, the American Softball Association (ASA) has established clear guidelines to prevent pitchers from…

Youth baseball can be incredibly competitive, and the desire to be the best player can be overwhelming. As an outfielder, you need speed, good judgment and a strong arm. There are a number of drills…

If you have an indoor space 50- to 100-feet long and at least 15-feet wide, you have what you need for a batting cage. An indoor cage can be used for teaching young players the art of hitting or for…

Baseball is one of America's favorite pastimes, and, for some, is more fun played than watched. The rules of the game are simple, hit the ball and run around the bases. But the physics behind why the…

Fast pitch softball is the most competitive form of softball predominately played by women. The pitched ball is thrown at speeds up to 85 miles per hour, which is nearly as fast as professional…

A softball umpire has one of the most important jobs on the field. It is the job of the umpire to call out when a pitch is a strike or a ball, or when a softball that's been hit is either fair or…

Composite bats are new to baseball, but have been used in softball for years. Traditional aluminum softball bats are hollow in the center. Composite bats have a new technology which produces a woven…

Purse nets are wide-mesh traps used to catch small wild animals. Trappers stretch the opening of a purse net over the opening of an animal's den ground to catch it as it attempts to exit. The animal…

Speed is the name of the game in softball whether you're at bat, on the bases, in the field or on the mound. As a pitcher, the harder you throw the more movement your pitches have and less time the…

Fastpitch pitching is important for softball players of all ages to learn. Many people play softball either as a recreational sport for a league, through school or even professionally. Many softball…

FITA stands for the Federation Internationale de Tir a l'Arc, or the International Archery Federation. This is the official governing body for archery. It sponsors competitions and promotes the sport…

The windmill pitch is the most traditional pitch in softball and allows you to to get the most speed out of your pitch. It is only allowed in fast-pitch games. With this pitch, women commonly attain…

Windmill pitching is an underhand pitch used in advanced levels of fast-pitch softball. Softball is often played in female or coed leagues. The game is played following rules similar to baseball, with…

Youth fast-pitch softball is growing in popularity with the rise of television coverage in collegiate and Olympic fast-pitch competition. The number of youth fast pitch teams rose to more than 86,000…

A batter's swing is one of the most important aspects of the offensive side of baseball. If a batter swings too wide, the ball will not connect with the sweet spot of the bat and will likely result in…

Teaching T-Ball requires a coach to have patience and understanding as the young players first learn how to play the game. For most players, T-Ball is their first introduction to the sport of…

If a softball or baseball player is looking to add a little bit of power to his swing and distance to his hits, a popular technique is end loading a bat. According to a study performed at Kettering…

The art of swinging a bat at a thrown ball is a common element for many sports. Though baseball and softball are the most common of this type of sport in the United States, popular variations exist in…

Since the earliest days of baseball, pitchers have developed variations in the way they pitch the ball. Out of these variations came the two- and four-seam fastballs. The speed of a fastball is often…

Softballs used for play in men's competition vary in size among leagues and tournaments. The Amateur Softball Association of America has rules governing balls for each level of play. All ASA-approved…

Throwing a baseball or softball underhand can feel unnatural and difficult, especially if you've always pitched overhand. Yet with time, practice, and a little patience, you'll feel just as…

In baseball, a short, quick and compact swing is often desired by coaches at all levels of play. The shorter and more compact the swing, the more time a hitter has to view the baseball and decide…

Breaking-ball pitches -- like sliders, curve balls and screwballs -- often fool batters into watching a strike float right over the plate or to swing at pitches that fall far outside the strike zone.…

A slider that is thrown properly can be one of the most difficult pitches for baseball batters to hit. The pitch travels more slowly than two- and four-seam fastballs, but faster than curveballs. Most…

Choose the proper bat for yourself to positively impact your game. If you aren't in the pros and don't play in an all wood league, consider getting an aluminum bat. With improvements in technology,…

Selecting and purchasing a baseball bat requires attention to the bat length. Bat length is determined by the height of the player with room for adjustment based on the player's comfort. The weight of…

Womens' fast-pitch softball is a quickly growing sport in America, played at all ages and all across the country. Pitching is an integral part of a team's success, but it is also one of the more…

The curveball is a popular pitch in baseball to throw off the hitter on an opposing team. The curveball is an average of 15 miles per hour slower than a fastball and breaks at approximately a…

Softball is a game that shares key similarities with baseball; however, softball uses altered pitching techniques, along with a smaller field and a larger ball. Softball is traditionally a women's…

Successfully fast pitching a softball takes a combination of technique and practice. Girls with a natural talent for pitching hard increase their speed and accuracy by consistently following the three…