The game of softball is constantly evolving. The new bat technology is allowing hitters to hit the ball farther and with more authority. New balls are being constructed that allow pitchers to get a better grip and produce more spin. There are hundreds of new equipment gimmicks being sold that are promised to improve your game if you use them. Another big change over the past couple of years has been the replacement of grass outfields with Artificial Turf.
Artificial Turf is making its way into the softball playing field. Several college teams have ditched grass outfields and have replaced their playing surface with artificial turf. Over half of the Professional teams play on full field turf surfaces. Does artificial turf have a future in softball? After making a list of the benefits of playing on turf, we certainly think so.
- Turf looks nicer: People may argue that this benefit doesn’t matter, but we think it’s important, especially to the college game. Have you ever experienced a spring softball season in the Midwest? Winter covers the softball fields in the Midwestern states for a good four to five months of the year. The grass takes a serious beating. Most grass outfields in these states don’t recover until temperatures rise in May. Who would want to play on a brown, dead grass, outfield, when you could play on forest green turf? Turf doesn’t change color with the seasons and if cared for, looks just like grass anyways.
- Holds up against weather: Turf can and will hold up against mother nature. College teams, especially in the Midwest transitioning to turf outfields, are more likely to get most, if not all of their spring games in. You will also start to see the number of canceled games decrease the more turf fields are used. It’s much easier to move snow off of artificial turf than it is grass. Rain won’t be as much of a factor because rather than sinking into the ground, it will remain on top of the turf which is easy to remove. It also won’t be rock hard or take the time to thaw out from the winter months like grass does.
- Less maintenance for field crew: In college and pro softball, metal cleats are worn by almost every athlete. Metal cleats and grass don’t get along very well. Have you ever been to a college or pro game that is played on grass, and there are big chunks of grass missing, or dirt patches where the outfielders stand that you can tell where grass used to be? With turf, that will never be a concern or a problem. Artificial turf also doesn’t need to be watered or mowed. This means less upkeep for the field crew workers and fewer finances that can be used elsewhere.
- True hops on ground balls: Ground balls on turf fields are every fielder’s dream. There are no divots, lips, or rocks to be worried about. Rarely will you ever see a bad hop on artificial turf surfaces. The ground balls may come a little faster in the outfield because there is no grass to slow it down, but at least you can expect a nice clean hop. After a couple buckets of ground balls in practice, outfielders will settle in and make the necessary adjustments.
- Fewer Injuries: Because of the durable and even surface turf provides, athlete injury will be less. As mentioned in the point above, there won’t be any surprise hops taken off body parts. There is also less chance of ankle rolls or knee injury because the playing surface on turf is durable and flat. When multiple games are played on the same field, hidden divots and holes form in the outfield that no one can see until it’s too late. With artificial turf, that fear will be diminished completely. The safety of the athlete is extremely important and turf outfields just seem to make the most sense.
Don’t be surprised if you see more and more college teams incorporating turf into their stadiums. Especially teams in the Midwest and northern states who fall victim to winter. Playing on turf doesn’t take away from the game, in fact, it adds to it. It creates more opportunity to play through tough weather conditions and it protects athletes from faulted injury. It is because of the benefits listed above that we believe turf is a positive addition to the game of softball.
Feature Image by: Sam Janicki
