The annual development sessions run each year by the Greater London Softball Mixed League (GLSML) for new and inexperienced slowpitch softball players, known as Softball 101, will start on Monday evening 14 May in Regents Park and run every Monday evening thereafter through 13 August.
The sessions will start at 6.30 pm on Pitch 7, in the top right-hand corner of Regents Park on the map below, and run until the light fades – after which everyone usually heads to the nearby Edinboro Castle pub for a drink!
Sessions cost £3 per week, making them one of the cheapest things you can do in London (the money is used to cover pitch hire, equipment and insurance).
The sessions cover the fundamentals of softball -- throwing, batting, fielding and softball rules – and participants get a chance to put their new skills into practice with a game at the end of each session.
When the sessions have finished, one or two new teams will usually form to enter late-season recreational tournaments in 2018 and then play in the GLSML the following year.
Anyone who has their own fielding glove should bring it along – but if not, there are plenty of gloves for everyone. Please wear clothing and shoes that are comfortable to run around in, and please bear in mind that there aren’t any changing room facilities in Regents Park.
Community
The GLSML’s Softball 101 sessions offer a great chance to get involved with a fun and friendly mixed-gender sport and community, and to gain the confidence necessary to play the game.
Slowpitch softball is a social and enjoyable sport, and the basics are easy to learn and play. The various defensive positions demand a range of different skills from players, making it a great game even for people who don’t consider themselves to be athletes.
The rules are very similar to baseball – you get to wear a glove and swing a bat – but because the ball is pitched slowly and underarm it is considered a hitting game: the ball is easy to hit and there is a lot more action out in the field.
GLSML coaches will help you learn to throw a ball, catch using a glove, pitch and hit – and you’ll meet a load of great new people while doing it!
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Testimonies
“I had no real idea what softball was, but I went along with a work friend and really loved it -- plus I've met a load of new friends.” – Jo, 2017
“Each week started with coached drills and then moved into a game situation so we could practice what we had just learned.” – Leah, 2017
BaseballSoftballUK’s London Development Manager Liz Knight says: “Volunteer coaches from the GLSML do a great job running Softball 101 over summer to allow new players a low-commitment way of getting involved in softball. Some players are brand new, some are returning after an absence, but the sessions are really well-balanced to ensure everyone gets a fair go. There has been a long history of teams forming from Softball 101 sessions and entering the GLSML – in fact, currently, a large percentage of teams in the GLSML lower recreational divisions have formed from Softball 101 sessions in previous years.”