The Rules for Softball

Softball is unique in that it is one of the few sports that is widely played both for leisure and professionally. While there are always city leagues that play the game for fun, there are also highly esteemed universities who offer athletic scholarships to top high school softball players. The game has even been played in the Olympics. Before you can become great at softball, you must first have a basic understanding of the rules. While the rulebook can be very confusing and convoluted at times, most of the rules are fairly straightforward.

  1. Number of Players

    • Each team must have nine players, consisting of eight position players and a pitcher. Likewise there can be up to thirteen players from the two teams on the field: Nine fielders on one team, three baserunners and the batter on the other team.

    Field Dimensions

    • Bases are set in a diamond pattern, with bases 60 feet apart. The pitcher's mound, sometimes called a circle due to the fact that unlike baseball there is no actual mound, is directly in the center of the diamond. The outfield dimensions have no set rules.

    Game Length

    • An official softball game is seven innings long. One inning is completed after both the home and away team has come to the plate and recorded three outs.

    Pitching

    • Whether you are playing slow-pitch or fast-pitch softball, the ball must be delivered from the pitcher to the batter underhand.

    Baserunning

    • When a batter puts the ball in play, the batter must run to first base. Once the batter leaves the batter's box, he is now referred to as a baserunner and, to advance, the baserunner must touch each base, in order, while running around the diamond in a counter-clockwise direction.