Fast Pitch Softball…

Is it a girl’s or guy’s sport?

By: Siliva Toelupe & Matea Manuleleua

Thesis Statement

Although some may say that Softball is for

Girls, softball was originally made & played
by men, but has become mostly a women’s
sport.
 The Differences Between…

Baseball Softball
● Ball: 5-5.25 oz ● Ball: 6.25-7 oz
9-9.25 in 11.88-
● Pitching: 12.13 in
overhand motion ● Pitching: underhand
● Can lead off when the motion
● Leading off when the
pitcher sets up to pitch.
ball leaves the pitcher’s
hand
Baseball Pitch

Softball Pitch
Where It All
Started!!!
In Chicago

In Chicago
 Hearth (Origin)
- Chicago (1887) Thanksgiving Day… On this day, a bunch of men
gathered in a club to watch a game of football between two major
colleges.(Yale & Harvard) Previous to this game, these men placed bets
on the two teams. At the close of the game the victorious side began to
celebrate their win, and during this very exciting moment one of the Yale
fans randomly threw a boxing glove at one of the opposing fans. Noticing
the object that was quickly coming toward him the Harvard fan swiftly
grabbed a broom and hit the boxing away from him. In all this commotion,
a bystander by the name of George Hancock, who was a reporter for the
Chicago Board of Trade, and he thought that he could make this into a
game. Taking this idea, he wrapped up a boxing glove into a sphere,
grabbed a wooden broom stick, used chalk to make boundary lines and
played a game with about 80 runs scored. That night the game was born.
 Types Of Diffusion
- Relocation Diffusion: The game softball also spread to other
countries because as soldiers who knew the sport, were being sent to fight in
WWII and taught this game to other soldiers there and also the people who
resided there.
-Contagious Diffusion: The game of softball started in Chicago and
began to spread throughout the city. Until a man named Lewis Rober Sr.
taught it to firefighters in Minneapolis, Minnesota as a recreational activity that
they could play while waiting for the alarm to ring. After this action, the game
became so enjoyable that leagues were being created and the game began
to spread all over.
 Gender Inequality
-January 1, 1895, The first official women’s softball team was formed in
Chicago at West Division High School. This impacted the independence of
woman because at that time women were slowly becoming more independent
and this new sport was similar to sport baseball, which was played by men, this
gave women the feeling of independence.
 Gender Inequality
-In 1951, the first woman that was hired as a licensed empire in organised
softball was 25 years old, hailed from the Bronx in the state of New York and
her name was Madeline Lorton.
-No one knows the exact reason why softball has become a women’s sport, but
the biggest assumption why is that previous to the creation of the game
softball, men were already playing baseball, which is very similar to softball,
and since the men already had one sport like that the women should have the
other.
 Men Playing Softball
- For men and women who are older and do not play in college or
professionally, there is a separate league that they can play in called
SLOW PITCH. It is the same as baseball and softball, all the same rules
apply as softball but the only difference is the way the ball is pitched.
- In fast pitch softball the ball is pitched underhand and what a pitcher wants
is speed and accuracy. Pitching in fast pitch your goal is to pitch the ball
and keep the path from you to the batter as straight as possible.
- In slow pitch softball the ball is also pitched underhand but your goal is
accuracy, not speed. While pitching in slow pitch, you want the ball to
move up after you release the ball and then come down at an angle in front
of the batter.
- Slow pitch softball both men and women play on the same team, not like
baseball and softball where the boys and the girls are separated,
 Softball History
-The game softball has actually had many names some being diamond ball,
mush ball, pumpkin ball. The first name being kitten ball, it was named this due
to fact that the actual ball that people used to play was super soft. The game
was officially named Softball in the year 1922.
-In 1895, a man named Lewis Rober Sr. introduced the game to a fire house in
Minneapolis, Minnesota which was meant to be a time passing activity for the
firefighters to do while waiting for an emergency. Softball became so addicting
and fun that people began to create various leagues which allowed the game
spread.
-In 1933, the ASA or the Amateur Softball Association was formed. This was
the first softball association that was ever created. Now, the ASA is the official
regulator for the rules and guidelines in softball.
Bibliography
● http://softball.isport.com/softball-guides/history-of-softbal l
- This article gives the details of the events that took place on the night that softball was invented which is 1887 in
the city of Chicago. This contributes to the presentation because it also gives a timeline of the events that
followed contributing to the game of softball, that lead to the worldwide spread of the game of softball. This
timeline represents the various diffusion process’ of the game softball. This also gives some evidence of gender
inequality situations that have occurred referring to softball.

● http://www.timetoast.com/timelines/the-history-of-softball
- This article gives information on the many differences that baseball and softball has but also compares the
similarities. It provides and insight on how softball was basically a second hand sport because baseball was
already around. This contributes to the presentation because it helps clarify the differences between the sports
baseball and softball

● http://www.timetoast.com/timelines/the-history-of-softball
- This article clears some of the many conclusions that people have about softball and baseball. It also gives us
information about the foundations that started to represent softball leagues in many areas of the world, which
interestingly enough, are still around today and have some of the biggest most popular foundation companies.