Comparison Essay: The Differences Between Softball And Baseball

Don’t you dare say they are the same.

“Do you play baseball?” “Baseball and softball are the same sport.” These are two of the worst things that you could ever say or ask a softball player. That is like say that ping pong and tennis are the say thing. Yes, they may have some similarities but they have enough differences to make them different. They are a few major difference that anyone can notice but there are also a few hidden rules that no one really knows about unless you actually play the sport or know the games really well.

The major difference between softball and baseball is pretty obvious. In softball, you throw underhand and in baseball you throw overhand. Just by watching one minute of the game you can figure that out. When throwing

underhand, your ball has a natural upward motion. This is because when a pitcher releases the ball, she/he snaps their wrist, making the ball rotate upward. This may vary depending on what pitch is being thrown. When a pitcher throws overhand, the ball obtains a natural downward motion in contrast to softball.
A softball field and a baseball field are also different. On a softball field, third base and first base are 60 feet from the apex of home plate; second base is then 60 feet away from first and third. These measurements apply to all levels and/or age groups of softball. Now on a baseball field the dimensions vary depending on the level and/or age group. A little league field has the same distance from home to first as a softball field. A major league field, home plate is 90 feet from third base and 90 feet from first.
Softball and baseball players have to use different size balls and different bats.

A softball is 12 inches in circumference and despite the name, it is not really soft. A baseball on the other hand is 9.25 inches in circumference. This doesn’t seems like a huge difference but when you hold the two balls side by side, there is a drastic difference. Softball and baseball bats are completely different in size, weight, and style.In softball you are not allowed to use a wooden bat

The pitching mounds are also a difference when it comes to softball and baseball. In baseball, there is a mound that has a decline angle from the pitching rubber down towards the dirt. These mounds are not flat with the ground. Hints where the word mound comes from. In softball, the mound is nothing more than a rubber rectangle nailed into the dirt. The rubber is usually just a few centimeters higher than the dirt.

Of course anyone can make the argument that softball and baseball are the same but the dictionary says that being the same means being identical and not different. These two sports have different field dimensions, different bat and ball sizes, different pitching mounds, as well as different ways of pitching. The word different has been used an awful lot which leads to conclusion that softball and baseball are definitely not the

same.