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Softball has been developed from baseball. It was first played in 1887 in Chicago, Illinois. Somebody picked up a boxing glove and threw it at somebody and they hit it back with a broomstick. George Hancock witnessed this and he started getting some ideas. |
| The equipment first used is different from what we use today. The ball was two boxing gloves tied together, the bat was a broomstick, and home plate and the "Pitcher's Box" were marked off with chalk. |
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Base running is also very different today. In 1908, the lead-off batter chose the direction of running by going left to third base or right to first base. This would obviously make it more confusing because the fielders would not know where to throw the ball until the batter started to run. |
| The game of softball grew rapidly during and after World War I and World War II. Service men played the game wherever they went. |  |
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There were many different names for softball back in the old days. The original name was "Indoor-Outdoor". In 1900, the name got changed to "Kitten Ball" because of a team's name , "The Kittens". In 1926, Walter Hakanson came up with the name softball because it was similar to baseball, yet different. The name ASA (Amateur Softball Association) wasn't official until 1933 when the rules were decided on. |
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Since the ball didn't go very far, the game started inside. Teams would play all winter and during spring, the game moved from college gyms to outside on a field. |  |
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In 1887 , masks and gloves were not necessary, but knee pads were highly recommended. In the late 1930's and early 1940's, long pants were also recommended for women. |
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| Fastpitch softball became a medal sport for the first time in the Olympics in 1996 (Atlanta). USA team beat China to win the first ever gold medal in softball at the 1996 Olympics. The team got another gold medal in the next Olympics in 2000 as well. |
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