Wood Bats

[WhatWuzThatBlue]

Okay...I admit that I never played with an aluminum bat. My formative years held the glory of Louisville Slugger and Adirondack squarely in its grasp. My high school years were filled with memories of bats being broken like toothpicks on cold, Spring days. My parents didn't think it was necessary to pay for batting gloves, so I got fistfulls of bees nearly every game. I liked the sound of a ball coming off of a wood bat and never really catered to the hybrids as they came out. Even now, I work a few Fall wood bat tourneys and the clock turns back forty years.

The reason I wax nostalgic is that the Chicago Public School system is considering an all wood bat policy. They would like to institute this change beginning next Spring. The board justifies it because they feel that metal bats are teaching our youths very little. Now, the CPS is not rolling in dough and I know that each program will need a couple dozen bats to last the season. The economy of it is striking. Yes, a metal bat (don't call it aluminum, pops) costs a king's ransom, but so does a box of future kindling.

Do any of you work High School or college ball that mandates the use of wood bats?

[UmpJM]

WWTB,

Apparently Mass. tried it in the past:

http://www.usatoday.com/sports/preps...1-batban_x.htm

Also, there was a recent story in the Chicago Trib. about the Park Ridge Park District banning "large-barrel" bats at their fields and Schaumburg limiting metal bats to those with "wood-like" BESR ratings. The Tribune article also says North Dakota high schools will be banning non-wood bats starting next year.

http://www.chicagotribune.com/news/n...ationworld-hed

Deerfield holds a wooden bat tourney every summer that my team plays in.

JM

(Edited to reflect what the Trib article actually said instead of my faulty recollection of what it said.)

[Rich]

Originally Posted by WhatWuzThatBlue

Okay...I admit that I never played with an aluminum bat. My formative years held the glory of Louisville Slugger and Adirondack squarely in its grasp. My high school years were filled with memories of bats being broken like toothpicks on cold, Spring days. My parents didn't think it was necessary to pay for batting gloves, so I got fistfulls of bees nearly every game. I liked the sound of a ball coming off of a wood bat and never really catered to the hybrids as they came out. Even now, I work a few Fall wood bat tourneys and the clock turns back forty years.

The reason I wax nostalgic is that the Chicago Public School system is considering an all wood bat policy. They would like to institute this change beginning next Spring. The board justifies it because they feel that metal bats are teaching our youths very little. Now, the CPS is not rolling in dough and I know that each program will need a couple dozen bats to last the season. The economy of it is striking. Yes, a metal bat (don't call it aluminum, pops) costs a king's ransom, but so does a box of future kindling.

Do any of you work High School or college ball that mandates the use of wood bats?

No, but I assign/work a 44-team adult league in Wisconsin that is all wood bat.

http://hometalent.org
http://htua.org

--Rich

[DG]

Many years after my playing career was over my oldest son became old enough to play and I went out to buy him a Louisville Slugger, like I used to use. To my dismay, all the bats were aluminum, so I adjusted my thinking and bought him an aluminum bat.

These days the only games I work that use wood bats are the adult leagues, and the summer wood bat leagues for college players.

[tiger49]

In Ontario Canada all baseball after the age of 15 is Wood Bat.

[SanDiegoSteve]

I have worked the USABF 18+ traveling All-Star wood bat leagues, as well as for NABA 40+ wood bat league, which featured some former pros. I love the sound of the ash or the maple when the ball is struck solidly. It takes me back to my youth.

[illiniwek8]

This conference discussed wood bats after a pitcher took a line drive off his head and it shattered his face. I think it would be wise......the technology is getting too good.....time to get back to the naturals.....wood, leather, grass........that is baseball..........evens things out also.......teaches kids how to swing a bat the right way.....finding the sweet spot.......we have a little league in our area that has been all wood for the past 5 years.....they love it! Oh yeah......I sell wood bats too.......hehehe.....if anyone is interested......email me......

[big]

BTW... IMHO a wood bat ia made out of ONE piece of wood, not laminated or anything else. Anyone check the price of a high quality laminated bat lately? Kinda nulifies the point of wood when you allow composites & stuff... IMHO.

[briancurtin]

Originally Posted by WhatWuzThatBlue

Do any of you work High School or college ball that mandates the use of wood bats?

ive worked for two college teams that each have a team rule that they have to use wood in their fall games. its not a conference thing, just those two decide to use only wood in the fall.

[nickrego]

We have a local 16 - 18 Travel League that holds Wood Bat Tourney's.

It's great ! We get at least 20 broken bats per game on the first day...Why ?

Because parents think they can get a break, and go out and buy their kids a $30 wood bat, and have it survive an 85 mph fastball on the inside.

The Tourney's are usually Saturday and Sunday. After each Saturday game, we hear parents asking where they can go buy their kid a 'good' wood bat.

On Sunday, we only see a few broken bats, and a lot of broken checkbooks.

[TwoBits]

I umpire several wood bat tournaments a year at a complex in Missouri. IMHO, that is true baseball! Lots of low scoring games and run manufacturing. The kids find out how good they really are. When they see a 400' homer on TV, they think that's no big deal since they can do that, too (with aluminum, of course). Same kids has trouble getting it out of the infield with a wood bat!

[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.