Wood Bats

[briancurtin]

Originally Posted by TwoBits

The kids find out how good they really are.

people on here use the word "kids" to denote players of all levels of baseball, but in the event that you mean children that are below i'd say 15 - i dont think they need wood bat tournaments. sure, here and there its nice to hit with wood when you are little, but its just too much of a transition for a kid to go from aluminum to wood and play a week long tournament with. they arent strong enough in my opinion. maybe its just me, but when i was 12 or 14 or so, i absolutely sucked with wood bats in tournaments or messing around in BP. if you are talking about older age groups, then ignore my statment.

[TwoBits]

Originally Posted by briancurtin

people on here use the word "kids" to denote players of all levels of baseball, but in the event that you mean children that are below i'd say 15 - i dont think they need wood bat tournaments. sure, here and there its nice to hit with wood when you are little, but its just too much of a transition for a kid to go from aluminum to wood and play a week long tournament with. they arent strong enough in my opinion. maybe its just me, but when i was 12 or 14 or so, i absolutely sucked with wood bats in tournaments or messing around in BP. if you are talking about older age groups, then ignore my statment.

High school aged "kids" is what I meant. Can't say I've seen too many 12 year olds who can launch a 400' homerun even with an aluminum bat!

[RPatrino]

While I definitely miss the sound of a well hit baseball coming off a wooden bat, I'll have to say this. Artificial Turf Rocks!

I have only been able to work a small handful of games this season because of all the rain here in Northern California. The only games I know will happen are those for a local High School that has artificial turf. The only dirt on that field is the mound.

Bob P.

[briancurtin]

Originally Posted by TwoBits

High school aged "kids" is what I meant. Can't say I've seen too many 12 year olds who can launch a 400' homerun even with an aluminum bat!

alright then, we are on the same page. im a pretty young guy, so my 12 year old years arent too far behind me and i remember a wood bat tournament option coming to mind. i voted against playing in that tournament since hitting with aluminum is hard enough as a 12 year old. once you get to high school and kids can shave (the term "shaving age" comes to mind) then kids know how to hit with wood.

[smac1231]

I work in a JUCO conference that requires wood bats. Games are faster, more ground outs, pitchers aren't afraid to come inside. When a kid gets jammed, it's a broken-bat-out instead of a bloop single over the first baseman's head. When we check bats and hats before games, I'm seeing a lot of composite bats, to cut down the cost of replacement. There is nothing on this Earth like the smell of burning wood and leather on a foul tip when I'm behind the dish.

[hardball3b]

For info on the BEST composition bat available try www.baumbat.com

[SAump]

"Lighter and thinner equal higher and farther."

Harder and FASTER equal higher and farther, too.

[SAump]

I was merely expressing my opinion of the new hardwood bats that are being marketed out of Canada. Bats are rated by the number of wood grains along the barrel. The tree rings grow farther apart with age. Less than nine grains is optimum for Pro-ball and is usually found only in a more mature tree. One must be more selective prior to buying just any new bat.

Many older MLB players were also taught to "bone" their bats along the sweetspot of the barrel. Most want to trim the round circular part into an oval shape along the grain of the bat. The flatter oval surface is not detected along the sweetspot where the grain is supposed to compress into a nice {fatter} hitting surface. It is beleived that this treatement also extends the lifetime of a bat.

I can say that all those parents who are looking to replace a broken bat may look at the wood grain first and try the BONE on it. Now whether this is all player superstition or simple myth is another matter.