Carrying bat

I don't know specifically what problem they were trying to solve when they changed the rule this year, but my USSSA Director for this area told me there were several reasons they wanted to make this change. One, they wanted to keep the bat out of the play as much as possible (such as the scenarios you guys were discussing); Two, take it out of the batter-runner's hand as a potential weapon (my director's scenario: do you want to be face to face with a 6'6", 255 lb. former college linebacker with a bat in his hand????); and Three, it's a safety issue in many ways. He said there were others, but those are three that I remember.