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Gender in sports
Comparing and contrast softball and baseball
Comparing and contrast softball and baseball
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Spring is full of transformations and changes. Flowers blossom, the temperature rises, and those with allergies begin a long journey of pain and agony. The start of spring also brings with it the beginning of baseball and softball. By carefully analyzing two teams representative of each sport at the University of Arizona a sociological analysis based on the similarities and differences between the sports was conducted. Despite the relative similarities between the two sports a number of differences were also identified showing that both sports are interconnected with cultural aspects and elements that may not immediately be observed on the surface.
I’ve been a student-athlete at the University of Arizona for two years. In this short span I have attended many sporting events on campus. I often wear the red, white, and blue colors for nearly all the men’s sports that exist at Arizona, ranging from men’s basketball to men’s swimming. Yet, I have never attended a women’s softball game at the university. In fact it’s important to know that I have never attended any women’s softball games before. I had seen plenty of baseball games in my life, but never a softball game. This all changed on Friday April 4th. As soon as I finished football practice a few teammates and I headed over to the softball field. On this particular evening Arizona was up against the Cardinal of Stanford. When we arrived a Stanford player was at the plate and an Arizona pitcher was preparing to wind up for a throw. As I sat down and took in my surroundings something become blatantly oblivious to me. Unlike baseball the pitcher was not on a mound, rather the pitcher appeared to be in a flat circle. This was interesting and I pondered why there was no mound. Was it...
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...o have a bigger fan base. Yet, Arizona’s women’s softball team arguably has been more successful then the Arizona baseball team historically with 8 national championships over the baseball teams 4. So the reason for the difference in the number fans is still a question may be pondered for many years to come.
Truly, attending both events enabled me to assess and analyze the similarities and differences of two sports. Recognizing that the two sports are culturally different despite being very identical to each other was rather astounding. The social influence that the sports seem to have on the players and the fans also appears to have a positive outlook. It will be interesting to see how each sport progresses in the future in regards to the types of fans that come to the games, how the teams interact with the fans, and the overall atmosphere of the games as well.
At the time, I was not impressed with the “American” sport, but now that I have read Stephen Jay Gould’s essay, “The Creation Myths of Cooperstown,” I will have something to say when the subject arises. Don’t get me wrong: I didn’t like America’s baseball then and I don’t like it now. I do, however, enjoy thinking critically and so I, too, am drawn to that great wad of spit we call baseball because the heterosexual ego and rabid patriotism hiding behind its dirty, sweaty disposition have appeared on my radar screen. Thanks to Gould, I now have the ability to let go of my hostility toward an innocent sport and see the hostility for what it really is: anger towards the males who use baseball as an excuse to unleash their violent hormonal urges.
A rather simple answer is that baseball is their lives. Every boy grows up with a bat and a ball, and everyone gets a chance to play. Baseball in the Dominican Republic, in comparison to the United States, is baseball, basketball, football and nintendo rolled into one culture. I have to use the term culture, because baseball in the Dominican Republic has transcended the boundaries of sport. It has become an extraordinary part of their daily lives. Earlier in the century, the first championship games in Santo Domingo were attended by a crowd exceeding twenty thousand when the population of the city was slightly over thrity thousand. Baseball has evolved into a national culture in the Dominican Republic, with the enthusiasm and the passion for the sport in the Dominican Republic to only have grown since.
While the games of baseball and softball each have many fans, many players prefer to play one or the other but not both. Although baseball and softball are similar in many ways, they have some notable differences. The pace with which each game is played, the rules of each, and the level of leagues are different for each.
Both Lacrosse and Ice hockey are two sports that share similar aspects. One example would be that they both require plenty of athletic prowess, as well as countless hours of training and practice to master. The high amount of contact in both sports enables a player to become both physically and mentally “tough”. Lacrosse has grown to its highest level of popularity it has ever reached over the last ten years. Ice hockey has seen a steady climb in its popularity over the past 25 years making it one of the most popular sports in not only Long Island, but all across the U.S. However, there are many differences as well, and we should not overlook the fact that there are plenty of distinctions between the two great sports. Many of which are the main reasons that these are obviously two separate sports.
The WWII time period was a hard time for American families. The All-American Girls Professional Baseball League helped to change the rights of women in the industrial world. Men took care of their responsibilities and served their time in war, but in the meantime, the world-winning women of the AAGPBL stormed the country by surprise. This league was a major success in our history and will leave its legacy among baseball fans for years to come.
Softball is an extracurricular activity that has been around for many years, and it first started with Slowpitch softball. Fastpitch softball did not come into existence until in recent years, and it has helped the spread of the sport of softball throughout the world. Even though the sport of softball is growing, there are many people who do not know about the sport. While both Fastpitch Softball and Slowpitch Softball contain similar characteristics, Slowpitch does differ in a few aspects. The way the ball comes from the pitcher, and base stealing are differences in the two, however, a similarity between the two is that both Slowpitch and Fastpitch can go to the professional level.
The incorporation of nature and steal, when you have the big man-made structure surrounding a field of grass there’s something special about that. The atmosphere of baseball can be both relaxed and invigorating, maybe you enjoy some food and a beer and watch the game with your family, or it could be a trip with your college buddies to enjoy a day off work. The game starts out with the tradition of the singing of our National Anthem, where people rise and remove their hats for the entirety of the song. For an outsider looking in at this ceremony they could compare this action as a sort of worship towards a flag, similar to tribes sing to a statue. After that it’s “Play Ball,” until the 7th inning where we get to stretch between the top and the bottom of the inning, and sing the beloved song take me out to the ball game. Through doing this field work and having a more emic perspective of the baseball experience it made me better appreciate the sport of
middle of paper ... ... They simply loved the game and knew they could make a pretty penny doing it. However, their skill and bravery proved to transcend gender boundaries in their time, and inspire others to follow suit in the future. As described in Kerry Candaele’s article on the history of women in baseball: “they were not behind the scenes, they were the scene.”
Softball is really important to me because without it I wouldn’t be the person I am today. I’ve learned a lot of life lessons. For instance, I've learned to persevere through tough times. Also, when I don’t always succeed it gives me motivation to try harder next time. Each day I can use softball to try my hardest in school, and other activities.
I have played softball since my freshman year. Before I entered high school I never played a sport because that was the culture of my household. Growing up my parents didn’t want me to play sports because they feared I would injure myself, and they worried that my teammates would not accept me dressed in my hijab. Still, I wanted to challenge myself and find a group of peers. I discovered I had a talent for the game, and I worked hard to develop it, going to practice at 6 o'clock in the morning and staying after school until 6 or 7 pm. Eventually, I earned my teammates respect and have been captain of the team for the last two years. I was also selected as one of the top 20 catchers in the city. Players and coaches from opposing teams are constantly
Softball is a sport that is known throughout the United States and the world. Softball originated on Thanksgiving Day in Chicago in 1887. The game was actually said to have begun as an indoor game. Softball was started by a group of men who had gathered at a club to watch the Harvard vs. Yale football game. When the news came that Yale had defeated Harvard, 17-8, one Yale supporter, overcome with enthusiasm, picked up an old boxing glove and threw it at a nearby Harvard alumni, who promptly tried to hit it back with a stick. This gave George Hancock, a reporter for the Chicago Board of Trade, an idea. He suggested a game of indoor baseball. Naturally, Hancock's friends thought he was talking about playing a game outdoors, not indoors. Hancock, however, wasn't kidding. Using what was available, he tied together the laces of a boxing glove for a ball. Using a piece of chalk, Hancock marked off a home plate, bases and a pitcher's box inside the Farragut Boat Club gymnasium, with the two groups divided into two teams. The final score of the game was 41-40, but what was significant was that Hancock and his friends had invented a sport that would grow in popularity to where today more than 25 million people enjoy playing it in the United States and millions more internationally in more than 100 countries. Hancock set up rules and had his friends over to his house every Saturday night to play this new game. From there it spread all over Chicago. The first rulebook is said to have b...
Softball has been a very important thing to me. It’s a game you either like it or you don’t like it. There is no if, ands, or buts about it. You have to put full efforts for every play and that's where I remember this quote by Jennie Finch “Don’t under-estimate yourself, You are more capable than you think. Keep working. Don't give up.” You never know when the ball is coming to you ands that’s why I love it so much. I started playing softball at the age of 5 which was when you could sign up for tee ball. I really knew softball was my passion when I stepped out onto that field for my first practice ever.
Not only do more people attend more baseball games than football, but also more people play baseball than football. According to a recent survey by the Sporting Goods Manufacturers Association, baseball ranks second in regular players, only second to basketball, and contact football ranks sixth
The ball is different in weight and size. With the weight and the size of a softball, the distance of it being hit will be less than if a baseball is hit, since the baseball is smaller. How the softball is pitched is unique than how a baseball is pitched. A baseball is not much different than throwing ball to a base, other than there being different pitches such as; fastball, slider, 2-seam, 4-seam, changeup, etc. But throwing a softball is a little more complicated. You pitch underhand! It is a little harder, because the release point is at your hip. Some of the similarities of the pitching styles are that they have some of the same pitches, changeup, and fastball. They have to both snap their wrist, but again at different points. Baseball pitchers also pitch from a hill. Their mound is more elevated than softball, we pitch ground level. A baseball mound is higher, because when they pitch they have a downward motion after they throw, but for us when we pitch, we throw straight. We drive our hips, and push off forward toward the
For some people, the culture of the sporting world is less than thrilling. For others, it is a way of life. People who value sports and the culture that comes with it have walked through a progressive field of highs and lows. Sports have gone through a whirl wind of transitions from rules and regulations to local and global inclusivity. Apparel for players as well as spectators have evolved substantially to allow for a more personable experience for all involved. One aspect of the sporting culture has risen above the rest in terms of its impact on players and fans alike. The media has evolved so much in the sporting culture that is has allowed fans and players unthinkable access to the lifestyles and temperaments of the leagues. While this