You left out pitching from 17'6" closer
Beat me to it. Also, it's harder to hit a softball for distance than a baseball. Sure, it's harder to actually hit a baseball, but it's still harder to get comparable distances. If you hit a softball and baseball in the sweet spot with the same swing, force, etc., the baseball will go a lot farther.
Same goes with throwing a baseball vs softball. Equal force applied the baseball travels much faster and farther. Yes, fast-pitch runners have much shorter basepaths, but they also have to beat out throws from much closer in. And when you factor in base-stealing, fastpitch softball players can't fully release from the base until the ball reaches home plate...no taking leads.
Clearly, there are accommodations to make the sport more accessible for women, but the differences are often mitigated by the differing dimensions and rules guiding play.
FWIW, a 70-mph softball pitch feels like a 100-mph baseball pitch due to reduced reaction time. Elite D1 softball pitchers throwing a fastball riser are about the equivalent of a 110 mph fastball from a college baseball pitcher. How many college pitchers have you heard of that can throw as high as 110? Hell, how many pros can?
For hitters it's about reaction time, but also late-movement. Fastpitch softball pitchers can get more movement than baseball pitchers due to the windmill, underhand combined with the intense wrist snap on release. Yes, the softball is a bigger target, but when you factor in the rest, a case can be made that it might be more difficult to hit against a fastpitch softball pitcher than a baseball pitcher.
Another thing to consider when it comes to base-running...though baseball basepaths are 30' longer, with primary and secondary leads around 18-20 ft of that is already closed before the fastpitch softball player can even leave the base, On top of that, I imagine there is a good deal more momentum established by the baseball player than what the softball player can achieve when her release point doesn't begin until the pitch reaches the plate. They can establish a small amount beyond standstill takeoff by starting with one foot behind the bag before the pitch, then moving forward with that back foot across the bag to time it so that they release completely at the moment the ball reaches the plate. But even that is a risk, because if the ump decides you left the bag even an instant too early, the runner is out.
Tradeoffs, my friend. And watching fastpitch softball played at a high level can be very entertaining.
