Rules Of One-pitch Softball

One-pitch softball is a recreational game designed to move quickly so many games can be played in a particular day or night of softball. In one-pitch softball, each batter gets to see one pitch and he must put that pitch in play to stay alive in the at bat.

Pitching Setup

In one-pitch softball, the offensive team supplies its own pitcher. The pitcher is trying to pitch the ball right over the heart of the plate to give the hitter an opportunity to take a powerful swing. If the pitcher throws a poor pitch and the ball is not over the plate, the batter must swing because he only sees one pitch per at bat. If the batter swings and misses, fouls a pitch off or takes a pitch, he is out. All other balls are in play. The defensive team keeps a player in the pitcher's circle to field balls hit up the middle.

Time Limit

A time limit is in almost all one-pitch games. Depending on the league you are in, no inning of a seven-inning game may start after 35 to 45 minutes have been played. So if a team comes up in the top of the sixth inning at the 34-minute mark, that full inning may be played in a league that uses a 35-minute time limit. However, the seventh inning will not be played because the game will have gone past 35 minutes by the time that inning starts.

Home Run Limit

Often there is a limit on the number of over-the-fence home runs that may be hit in one-pitch softball. No team may hit more than three home runs that fly over the fence in a game. If a fourth ball flies over the fence, the umpire will call it an out and all runners must return to their original base.

Defensive Setup

In one-pitch softball, most leagues include 10 defensive players. The extra defensive player is usually positioned in the outfield, but that is the defensive team's choice. The extra fielder can be placed anywhere in fair territory. If the team does not have its full complement of players, it must have at least eight players to start the game. Teams that have less than eight players five minutes after the scheduled start time will forfeit the game.