I have a new hate for oversized fields

[InsidePitch]

I agree and DD will agree about Fly balls both giving and taking her share of outs that way. I was just hoping for one of those happy accidents this year. Now I have to make sure she isn't swinging for the fence next week when it's 200' down the line.

 

[James Smith]

We played on a field with 180 foot fences, I asked the HC about it and she said there are no hard and fast rules about the fence distance. There is a 30 – 40 mph blowing up to LF/CF field. Kid on our Team hit a line drive over the CF fence, took a second to get out of the park.

What I heard down from me was: “Finally!” I would assume this was her 1st home run.

Bad news is I do not think the ball a player on the other Team has landed yet, I think it is in orbit.

 

[MsDinosaur]

I hate it when the ball skips under temporary fencing for a ruled-double when it's one of our girls hitting, but I love it when it's the other team. :-D

With regular permanent fences, I've seen a lot of 220'. That's fairly standard.

 

[InsidePitch]

The WCWS is played on a 200' field down the line and that is since 2010 when it was moved back from 190. 200' would appear to be a standard.

Added. Deep center is 220 so somewhere between the pole and center field DD may have hit one over the fence and then again maybe #44 with the good glove snags it just above the fence.

 

[guero_gordo]

We play at one complex with 300+ foot fences and it's artificial turf. Sometimes they use portable fences at 200 or so, but if they don't anything that gets by the OF is an HR.

We had a C clear the bases on a throwdown in a place like that.

 

[SCDad]

Line drives in the gaps are the goals. Home runs are happy accidents. At 18u fly balls are outs.

-W

Not really. Home runs, are just that, home runs. They are far from accidents.

Sure the goal is a line drive. But home run hitters like to get the ball up too.

Power hitters are judged by HR's. I like 220', it separates the men from the boys, and lets the power hitters get more hits in front, as they are usually played deep.

 

[cuzmail]

If my information is correct. The college fields are a 200' minimum.

 

[SoCal_Dad]

If my information is correct. The college fields are a 200' minimum.

For 6' fences, it's 190' in LF/RF and 220' CF. These were only highly recommended minimums in the past, but the rule was just changed to establish future requirements for new construction and institutional fields with a 4' fence.

Regarding Fence Distances (Rule 2.10)
…For all new construction after 2016, it is required that the fence be 6 feet or higher and be a minimum of 190 feet in left and right fields and 220 feet in center field. By 2017, an institutional field with a 4-foot fence must be a minimum of 210 feet in left and right fields and 230 in center field and it is highly recommended that a municipal field with a 4-foot fence used by the institution be at those same distances…
RATIONALE- THE FIRST CHANGE ABOVE IS TO SPECIFY THAT THE HEIGHT OF THE HOME RUN FENCE BE AT LEAST 6 FEET FOR ALL NEW CONSTRUCTION AFTER 2016. THE SECOND CHANGE IS TAKING WHAT WAS A HIGHLY RECOMMENDED FENCE DISTANCE FOR A 4-FOOT FENCE AND MAKING IT A REQUIRED DISTANCE FOR AN INSTITUTIONALLY CONTROLLED, EXISTING FIELD WHILE LEAVING IT AS A RECOMMENDATION FOR EXISTING FIELDS USED BY (BUT NOT OWNED BY) AN INSTITUTION.