condition of balls

[HugoTafurst]

OK, I take back what I said about seeming to not have the problem with poorly covered balls, that I noticed last year.

Just finished a 3 day tournament and the balls (Diamond High Flyer) were absolutely terrible. Starting with new balls had to retire at least 2 or three per game.

Last year when we were having troubles, I thought part of the reason was that the quad fields had a lot of cement around them.

This past weekend, the fields were converted 90' baseball fields with a lot of grass between the foul lines and the fences as well as behind home plate. Consequently way fewer balls went out of play than I see when playing at the typical softball complex.

[PandaBear]

I've noticed it too, and also in that other similar game that uses a smaller, white ball with a similar cover and stitching.

The cover layer is so thin that the average chain link fence that forms the average backstop or fence just cuts right through.

On average, we have been going with 5 balls for a game, 3 or 4 new, and 1-2 best used late models, and if 1 or 2 are halfway decent by the end (those good late models for the next game), it has been a good day.

Given what is being charged for a box of balls, I can understand why whomever is paying the bill is grumbling about having to provide so many, and also why they are being made with such a flimsy cover, ensuring a healthy market for the obscenely priced product.