The Lantern <![CDATA[The Lantern]]> en-us Copyright 2008 - All Rights Reserved. Sun, 22 Nov 2009 13:04:29 GMT 15 <![CDATA[Boys and girls of summer: The comparison of rules, regulations, and fun facts while looking at the spring sports, softball and baseball]]> By Adric Bergan-2007


Making a desperate slide for third base, Kelsey Lingle attempts to gain ground against the Triton team during the April 14th game.

Well, it is that time again and the boys of summer or rather both the boys and girls of summer are ready to take action here in the spring season. Girls softball and boys baseball are just getting underway for the year as is true with the pros. These games have striking similarities between them but there are however, a few differences between the two sports. In both games, players hold a bat and take a swing at a ball, trying to get on base and score a few runs. However, in softball, the ball is larger than the baseball weighing in at around six and a quarter to seven ounces and measuring twelve inches in circumference. The baseball has weighed five ounces and measured nine inches since the year 1872. Of course, the obvious difference, official softballs are now yellow and baseballs are white. The fields in both games have a notable difference as well. While both fields hold the same diamond-type shape, the baseball field is noticeably larger with more room between the bases, having 90 feet compared to the softball diamond’s 60 feet. From home plate to the fence in all fields is also farther in baseball, including in the alleys between left and center and right and center. In both sports, when a team is on defense, they are allowed to have nine players in the field with each at their own position. While on offense, the team batting will bat a line-up of nine players, which must be the players playing in the field on defense. This is also true of both sports. However, while batting, in baseball the batter that is up can foul off as many balls as needed, while in softball the batter cannot. A few various rules include the following. On the infield in softball, the double first base is required. In baseball, there is no such thing as the double first base. In both sports, the batter and all runners on base are required to wear a batting helmet along with the on deck batter and any non-adult coach. Courtesy runners are legal and are in effect for both softball and baseball along with the pinch runner rule. In both softball and baseball, a regulation game lasts seven innings unless one team is winning by ten or more runs by the end of the fifth inning. In this case the game ends after five innings and therefore implies the “10-Run Rule.” Also, if the game is tied after seven innings, each has the ability to go into extra innings in order to determine a winner. Those are just a few rules and differences between the games of baseball and softball. This will give anyone knowledge of both games so they will be prepared as summer swings into high gear around the state. Just a reminder that some of these rules apply to the professional leagues and not to high school league regulations. ]]> Sun, 15 May 2005 21:38:00 GMT