Before thinking about whether to lay down the bunt, slap the ball through the left side or swing for the fences, you have to situate yourself in the batter's box. Becoming comfortable at the plate requires familiarizing yourself with your surroundings. The rules are simple, and once you've grasped them fully, you can wait for your pitch and drive it.
Dimensions
The standard batter's box measures 3 feet across by 7 feet deep, according to the Amateur Softball Association of America rulebook, and one is marked on each side of home plate. The two boxes lie 17 inches apart, with home plate between the two. The center of home plate must be 4 feet from the front line of the batter's box. The catcher and umpire must position themselves within the catcher's box, beyond the back line of the batter's boxes.
Foul Balls
Once the ball is put in play with a swing, it cannot touch the batter again while he is within the batter's box or else it is deemed a foul ball.
Illegally Batted Balls
The hitter can choose to stand wherever she pleases within the batter's box, whether she positions herself close to home plate or at a distance. Both feet must be set within batter's box before each pitch. However, the hitter must avoid stepping outside the box, including on home plate, while making contact with the ball or else the umpire can call it an illegally batted ball. In that instance, the hitter is out.
Game Flow
A hitter will often step outside the batter's box between pitches, although in recent years it has been discouraged to speed up play. At any time, an umpire can warn the hitter for delaying the game if she steps outside the box.
If the ball is hit fair or foul, the batter may leave the box in the direction of first base. Other common instances that may require him to step out include on a wild pitch or passed ball or to avoid being hit by a pitch. A batter may also leave the box if his request for a timeout is granted by the home plate umpire.
Batter's Interference
If the umpire feels a hitter intentionally blocks the catcher during his throw out of an attempted base stealer, he can call her for batter's interference. The consequence is that the base runner is called out. The hitter's at-bat continues if three outs have yet to be recorded.
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