Panama/The World Baseball and Softball Confederation (WBSC) announced the world rankings, in the male and female branches, from their affiliated countries in the soft ball. In both lists, Panama is present.
A male level, Panama It is in position 28 out of 44 countries with 149 accumulated points. According to the report of the WBSCthis record is equivalent to a significant improvement compared to the previous ranking. The country went from being in 35th place to 28th, progressing seven positions.
Other countries that improved significantly in the men’s ranking were Dominican Republic y Costa Rica who advanced nine and seven steps, respectively.
The classification is led by Argentinafor the second consecutive year, adding 3,141 units. They follow him Australia y Japan with scores of 3035 and 2818, respectively. It’s close Canadawhich registers 2814 points and is in fourth place.
Female mother
Meanwhile, within the women’s classification, Panama It is ranked 59 out of 65 countries with 20 units. The country that leads the world ranking of women’s softball is USA with 5106 points. The second place is occupied Japan (3965 pts.) and the third has it Puerto Rico (3474 pts.).
This year’s record represented the low of a position for the country compared to the previous classification.
The sport
He softball It is a team sport similar to baseball, but with some differences in the rules and characteristics of the game. It is played on a field that is smaller than that of baseball and with a larger, softer ball. Here are some key characteristics of softball:
Equipment: It is played between two teams, each composed of 9 or 10 players (depending on the game variant).
Aim: The objective is to score more runs than the opposing team. Runs are achieved when a player safely rounds the bases until reaching the final base, known as “home plate”.
Ball and bat: The ball is bigger than baseball (normally 12 inches in circumference) and is thrown with a bottom-up motion (“underhand” pitch). Furthermore, the bat is shorter and heavier than baseball.
Match duration: The game is divided into 7 inningswhere each team has the opportunity to bat and pitch. The team that scores the most runs at the end of the game wins.
Launch: As I mentioned before, the launch is in “underhand” (from bottom to top), which differentiates it from baseball, where the pitch is in “overhand” (from above).
Variants: There are different variants of softball, such as fast softball and the slow softball. In fast softball, the pitch is faster and the distance between the pitcher and batter is shorter, while in slow softball, the pitch is slower and the distance is greater.
Softball is very popular in several countries, especially in the United States, Japan and in many nations of Latin America. It is also an Olympic sport in some editions of the Olympic Games, although it has not always been included.
