Softball Series worth watching

One of my favorite sporting events of the year starts today: the Women’s College World Series. For those of you who aren’t familiar with college softball, I ask you this: Are you a serious baseball fan? Because if you are, you’ll love the Women’s World Series, when college softball is played at its highest level.

A lot of the little things serious baseball fans appreciate about baseball are enhanced in softball. Teams manufacture runs in softball, with even the best hitters being asked to bunt regularly. You don’t see that in Major League Baseball or college baseball any more. Defense matters more in softball; since the games are shorter (seven innings instead of nine) and lower-scoring, it’s more likely that one error can kill you and one great play can save you. Fewer innings also means that games go quicker, so you don’t see games pass the three and four-hour mark like you see in baseball. Also, getting a run or a lead early pays more dividends with fewer outs needed to win the game.

The World Series format itself makes the tournament extremely entertaining. An eight-team, double-elimination structure is used until only two teams are left. They play a best-of-three championship series starting on Monday. Each day is loaded with compelling games, as four games are scheduled for today, Saturday and possibly Sunday, with two games on Friday. Elimination on Saturday is special in itself as all four games that day are elimination games ““ lose and you’re out. And all of the games this year are televised on either ESPN or ESPN2, channels that people with basic cable can easily access.

What’s different is the pitching. Complete games are extremely common in softball, and the nation’s best pitchers (most of whom are featured at the World Series) can pitch on consecutive days if needed, sometimes even pitching two games in one day. Pitchers have even pitched in four elimination games over two days at the World Series. Unlike baseball ““ which I love, but it can be frustrating when teams use several pitchers over the span of a few innings ““ the bullpen is only used in softball if the pitcher gets roughed up. There are no closers, set-up men, mop-up men or lefty specialists.

I’m not the only one who thinks this is exciting. Last year, the first game of the softball championship series drew higher ratings than hockey’s Stanley Cup Finals.

UCLA isn’t in the World Series this year (for the first time since 1998) but the tournament field is still compelling. Three teams from softball’s elite conference, the Pac-10 are in (Arizona, Arizona State and Washington) and a couple of teams from a part of the country that isn’t usually known for softball in Northwestern and DePaul.

Before Michigan won the championship in 2005, no team east of the Mississippi River had ever won the title, but there is more parity than ever in softball now. Northwestern reached the championship series in 2006, losing to Arizona. DePaul, who beat Oklahoma in the Super Regionals, is the only real underdog in the field.

The sport’s best player is in the World Series again in Tennessee’s Monica Abbott. Her statistics for the season are ridiculous, as she has gone 46-3 with a 0.65 ERA, striking out 649 hitters in 314 1/3 innings. Abbott is the NCAA’s all-time leader in strikeouts, shutouts and wins, but has yet to win a championship, or even make it to a final.

So if you have some free time over the next week, tune into the Women’s College World Series. You’ll thank me later.

E-mail Quiñonez at [email protected].