December 6, 2017
MVHS Baseball Parents,
Just a few thoughts on baseball bats; I know Christmas is around the corner.
Practice wood/composite bats are provided for all 4 MVHS Baseball teams. I strongly encourage their use, especially in colder weather, to help prolong the life of the more expensive game bats.
Players (Parents) are responsible for providing game bats. Team game bats are not purchased since the varied preferences of all the players can not be met. We have had lengthy discussion about this at past Diamond Club Meetings. I tell the players that they are not expected to share their bat if another player wants to use it. That said, many of them do share bats – which is OK so long as the owner of the bat has provided permission. It is important for players and parents to discuss bat sharing – For example, “How will we handle matters if your bat breaks while being used by another player,” and “How will we handle matters if you break another players’ bat.”
A couple of my thoughts on baseball bats:
a) Bats must be BBCOR certified. BBCOR stands for Batted Ball Coefficient of Restitution - basically restricting how hard the ball will leave the bat. I believe all bats that are minus-3 will be BBCOR certified; but just check to be sure. High School Bats must be no more than -3 (difference between length and weight) - this may be a change for freshmen as I believe they could use a -5 bat last summer.
b) "How big a bat should I swing?" is a frequent and good question. In general, my opinion is that smaller is better. If heavier and longer was better, all players would swing a telephone pole. Look at the pros, they "Dominate the bat!" - meaning they can clearly control the bat. It's better to swing a bat that is a little shorter/lighter to insure they can swing it quickly and with good mechanics. Every year that goes by now, the pitching is getting better and faster. Most varsity high school players will swing a 32 or 33 inch bat. Younger high school players, then, anywhere from 30 to 33 inch could be appropriate depending on their size and strength. Again, being able to “Dominate the Bat!” is a good concept to keep in mind when selecting a bat.
c) Bats are obviously unbelievably expensive. With this expense in mind, in my opinion, it's OK to buy a bat that may be just a little big this year, choke up on it slightly this year, and then it will still be an appropriate size for the following year. There are obviously many brands of bats out there. While the overall weight of a bat will be the same (-3) across different brands for a certain length, the weight distribution may vary slightly from bat to bat, and they can all feel a little different. Selecting a bat that the player feels comfortable in swinging is obviously important. And, while I'm sure all players would love to have the latest and greatest version, there is nothing wrong with last year’s model that many times is significantly cheaper; how much better can this year's model be than last year’s?
d) Stating the obvious, but how the player uses the bat (mechanics, approach, etc.) is far more important than what brand of bat the player is swinging...