Is the baseball swing taught the same as the softball swing?
Short answer is YES! Imagine if a professional baseball player was to switch to playing softball. Do you really think they would change their swing? Well what about the rise ball you say? The human body cannot create enough backspin on a softball to make the ball rise!
Just because the ball is let go at a low release point and ends higher doesn't mean the ball is rising because of backspin! If you throw a ball in the air is it rising because of backspin or because you aimed the ball upwards? A 'rise ball' sinks slower because of its trajectory at release NOT because the ball is rising because of backspin.
That being said a professional hitter or any hitter would change their timing not their swing mechanics switching from baseball to softball.
The goal of every hitter should be to match the plane of the swing to the plane of the pitch.
Hitting is trying to hit a round ball with a round bat, squarely! Whether the pitch is overhand or underhand, the goal is the same and so are the swing mechanics.
Don't Chase the Baseball Scholarship
The vast majority of college baseball players never get a 'full ride. They have 30 players on a roster and they have to split 11.7 scholarships for D1 and they have to split 9.5 scholarships at DII programs. Most kids in D1 get 25% scholarships if they get any baseball money at all. DIII offers no athletic scholarships. Make sure your kids get good grades, academic money is easier to get and college coaches love being able to give academic money to players!
Baseball Hitting Drill
Notice the rope going across the bottom of the baseball. That simulates the pitch angle from the mound to the catcher.
Notice the batter isn't 'chopping down' and crossing the path of the rope.
His swing is matching the same angle the pitch is coming in at.