The article sure could use a picture.

Edit: now that I realize from the article its 16" circumference it's less surprising, and I can imagine what it would look like. The title should mention it is circumference.

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js2 5 days ago | parent | next [-]

Second sentence in the second ("Game Play") section:

> Game play for 16-inch softball is mostly consistent with standard softball game play. In contrast to standard, or 12-inch (30.48 cm) softball, it is played with a ball 16 inches (40.64 cm) in circumference.

FWIW, softballs by are sold by their circumference, so it would be unconventional (and unwieldy) to change the page title to "16-inch circumference softball". And I mean, it should be obvious.

(I agree a photo would help and wiki pages are easy to edit, but I looked for a creative commons licensed 16" softball photo and couldn't find one.)

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joemi 5 days ago | parent | next [-]

I don't think "it should be obvious". The world we live in is one where caber tossing, curling, boxing, cheese rolling, quidditch, and sepak takraw (to name just a few) are all sports. So "softball with a 16-inch diameter ball" really isn't so unbelievable of a concept that it should be obvious that it doesn't exist.

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gwbas1c 5 days ago | parent | next [-]

One of the things I like about Hacker News is that, when someone throws around a vague sports term, there's a massive discussion to just figure out the heck they are talking about.

Reminds me about this thread about goats: https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=32191140

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fsckboy 4 days ago | parent | prev | next [-]

i'm not going to get on a soapbox if i can't understand a caber toss, curling, cheese rolling, qudditch or sepak takraw headline, and but i will climb that tallest soapbox in the middle of three and complain if headlines are all so unwieldy that i can glean all the info i don't know about every sport

also, a "16-in circumference softball" article still wouldn't even be allowed into the EU as it's not metric.

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dylan604 5 days ago | parent | prev | next [-]

a softball with a 16-inch diameter ball would really be unbelievable. A basketball is less than 10 inches, so imagine something ~2x the size of a basketball being swung at with a bat.

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wredcoll 5 days ago | parent | next [-]

Yeah, that's why we clicked on the link.

A softball like 10% bigger isn't that interesting.

	▲	dylan604 5 days ago \| parent [-]
		if that was the only difference. the fact the ball is designed to get softer the longer it is played makes it so hits at the start of a game are different than at the end. fielders would learn this and change tactics based on that. normally, when the ball goes flat during a game, it is replaced. that in and of itself made it interesting to me as a standout feature.

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gwbas1c 5 days ago | parent | prev [-]

I played kickball as a kid; as a clumsy nerd it was a lot more fun.

I don't remember ever using a bat with a kickball, other than for laughs. It would work, though.

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5 days ago | parent | prev [-]

[deleted]

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docsaintly 5 days ago | parent | prev [-]

I would agree with "should be obvious" if this was a sports news website :D. Sorry, sometimes us nerds need more context or a title will seem misleading / clickbait-y.

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gwbas1c 5 days ago | parent | prev | next [-]

I clicked around https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=h4qCVWejYrA to see people playing and holding a "16 inch softball". It took me awhile to realize that it's the circumference too.

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bigwheels 5 days ago | parent | prev | next [-]

100% agree. In case it's helpful, here is the best image I was able to find: https://live.staticflickr.com/54/128223579_34056fb847_b.jpg

That's a pretty, uhm, big ball. I imagine it'd be highly entertaining to see the Savannah Bananas play with these 16 inchers!

https://nypost.com/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2023/08/NYPICH...

https://thesavannahbananas.com/

	▲	docsaintly 5 days ago \| parent [-]
		Thanks. That is indeed massive.

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Cthulhu_ 4 days ago | parent | prev [-]

I wouldn't mind seeing 16" diameter softball now. It'd be like a gym ball.