Unlike many sports, there are two different variations of softball, each with its own set of rules and regulations. Fast-pitch softball is the more difficult of the two, and is traditionally used for high school, college and international competition. Slow-pitch softball, meantime, is the version of preference for youth players, work-related leagues and other social venues. While some of the skills needed to excel in the sport are universal, there are also plenty of difference in terms of both rules and skills required.
Pitching
The biggest difference between the two forms of softball relate to pitching. In slow-pitch softball, the pitcher must pitch the ball at a moderate speed, to be judged by the umpire, where as in fast-pitch there is no speed limit. Fast-pitch pitchers generate pitch speed by winding their arms forward in an underhanded windmill motion before firing it to the catcher; whereas pitches in slow-pitch softball must reach a peak arc of between six and 10 feet, making them far easier to hit then the darting fastballs, rise balls and other breaking pitches thrown in fast-pitch.
Batting
Because of the relative ease in hitting, in some slow-pitch leagues you can strike out by hitting a foul ball with two strikes. Fastpitch softball mirrors baseball in that you can only strike out by swinging and missing or watching a pitch that the umpire deems a called strike. Bunting is rare and sometimes barred in slow-pitch softball, where as the bunt is a major weapon in fast-pitch -- especially the running slap bunt, in which the batter begins to take off for first base as she's bunting the ball.
Defense
In both versions of softball, there are generally nine players on the field, though some recreational slow-pitch leagues allow for an extra outfielder. A half-inning ends when a team records three outs, which can be done in a variety of ways: strikeout, flyout and groundout being the most common. In competitive softball games, defenses must account more closely for baserunners because base-stealing is allowed. So catchers with strong throwing arms are at a premium in fast-pitch, where as slow-pitch catchers' only difficult responsibility is tagging out runners attempting to score.
Other Rules and Gameplay
In both versions of softball, many leagues have stipulations that can end one-sided games early. The NCAA, for instance, has an eight-run rule; if one team is up by eight or more runs after the trailing team has batted at least five times, the game is ended. In both forms, a baserunner can only advance on a caught ball after the out has been recorded. In some recreational and youth leagues, an inning ends if the team batting has already sent all of its players to the plate in that inning; this, like the eight-run rule, is meant to keep mismatched games from lasting too long.
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