Softball... Heard of it? Play it?

DirtyMonkey · 16 Mar 2006 at 11:42

Does anyone here play softball?

I'm just about to start my 2nd season in the Manchester league here, surprisingly there are over 300 people who play every week during the summer and there are a number of leagues around the country - although most are concentrated in London.

If I wasn't a simpsons fan I probably wouldn't even have known what softball was.

Just wondering if there are any other softballers on OcUK!

DirtyMonkey · 16 Mar 2006 at 12:18

There's different kinds which confuses the matter.

In the olmypics (although it's been dropped from 2012) the sport is women only and is played with a fast pitch underarm.

Here in Manchester its a mixed sex sport for adults, bigger balls than a baseball and it is pitched slowly underarm (slowpitch softball). Mixed teams is good fun, not often you get to get down and dirty whilst sliding hard between the legs of a woman after 5 minutes of knowing her

There is some softball in schools aroudn the uk but I think they play a combined version of the slow and fast pitch (modified pitch).

G|mp said:
Aye thats the one !

With an oversized ball that was rock hard

Cue looks of WTF Softball!!!

Yup, very true - nothing soft about it, someone broke their ankle last year after they had a ball thrown straight into it.

DirtyMonkey · 16 Mar 2006 at 13:29

cool - are you going to any of the tournaments this summer?

DirtyMonkey · 16 Mar 2006 at 13:39

Well you're welcome here in Manchester! You could also take part in our world record match if you want - 5 days of solid softball to raise money for Christies (cancer) hospital.

DirtyMonkey · 16 Mar 2006 at 16:16

I can imagine being forced to play anything in PE being crap - thats what I thought about most things we did (I remember trampolining having certain plus points, but that was more the watching than the taking part

)

I play more for the social side of things, going to tournaments around the country, having a few pints in the pub after the match...

DirtyMonkey · 17 Mar 2006 at 20:35

dandoubleo said:
On the simpsons do they not kick it??

Nope - they play with a bat! Its the one where Mr Burns runs the power plant team and gets in a load of ringers for a game against the team from the Shelbyville plant.

DirtyMonkey · 19 Mar 2006 at 11:59

Doohickey said:
We played it in school, but it got a bit stupid for the older years. Because it was under arm pitching, it was a fair bit slower and easier to tonk the massive ball miles, so anyone with any decent hand eye co-ordination could smack it miles, = home run every time.

You think the other team would figure it out and move their outfield further away = big hitters caught out every time...

DirtyMonkey · 20 Mar 2006 at 12:22

6thElement said:
Gutted!!

Suddenly discover there's softball going on in Manchester after I've lived here for over 4 years :/

Don't be too gutted mate! Season starts in a couple of weeks, there's plenty of time to get yourself on a team if you like! I'll email u the details.