China Softball League’s historic first season ends in Shaoxing as Zhejiang wins the title

China Softball League’s historic first season ends in Shaoxing as Zhejiang wins the title
07/12/2022
Nine teams participated in the newly created competition, playing 32 regular-season games each in two stages. The first stage was held in July, with the second played in November, both at the Shaoxing Baseball (Softball) Sports Culture Center.

The historic inaugural season of the China Softball League came to an end on 28 November at the Shaoxing Baseball and Softball Sports Culture Center, the venue for the XIX Asian Games. After a 162-game season, Zhejiang were crowned as China Softball League champions.

Nine teams participated in the newly created competition, playing 32 regular-season games each in two stages. The first stage was held in July, with the second played in November, both at the Shaoxing Baseball (Softball) Sports Culture Center. 

After the two rounds of competition, the top four teams qualified for the playoffs. Jiangsu and Zhejiang ended with the same record of 29 wins and three defeats. Liaoning secured third place with 23 wins and nine losses, while Shanghai won the final playoff spot with 16 wins and 16 losses. After the three-game series semifinals, Zhejiang swept the final series against Jiangsu to win the title.

“The successful holding of the first China Softball League means that Chinese softball has caught new opportunities for development,” said Dr. Yang Xu, the president of Chinese Softball Association. “Whether from the perspective of game format reform or competition quality, it reflects the success of the development of Chinese softball, and these two points directly meet the main demands in the competitive fields and market-oriented development.”

In individual awards, Wang Lan and Ren Min won the titles of Best Pitcher of 2022 and Best Offensive Player of 2022 respectively, with a prize of 200,000 yuan ($28,000) each.

As the first China Softball League ended, the first half of next year’s league is planned to be held in March, while the second half and playoff are expected to be held in November 2023.

China is ranked No. 9 in the WBSC Women's Softball World Ranking.