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Originally Posted by Deepsouthblue
I talked with a past president of ASA yesterday about banned bats. He was picking up a Miken Freak to have tested to see if it had been altered. There were tool marks on the end cap, and a pitcher had been struck in the face with a batted ball off of this bat and hospitalized. (He is o.k., but was in the hospital about two days.)
According to him, the bat was probably an Ultra that had been painted to look like a Freak by Miken. He theorized the bat was probably already made (but unpainted) when the Ultra was banned and Miken painted it to be a Freak so they could sell it to more customers. This particular bat was an old Miken Freak that had the 2000 stamp on it. I'm sure there are more out there like this one.
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I have a hard time buying this theory. If Miken had painted the bat, there would be no markings on the bat or end cap, no need for it unless the player who owned the bat was not happy with how hot it already was. Miken has been one of the leaders in bat control, so I find it hard to believe they would jeopardize their standing and business by violating any agreement with the softball associations.
If this is found to be true, that is just the tip of the iceberg. Someone better have a load of money for the lawsuits by sanctioning bodies, leagues, teams and players and that would just be on the civil side. I would think there could possibly be criminal charges raised againt Miken and all associated companies.