New ASA Bat Standard

[IRISHMAFIA]

http://www.asasoftball.com/about/getStory.asp?nid=317

Here it is, the press release from ASA concerning the recertification of bats.

I had suspected that if they didn't do anything by July 1, they would wait until next year.

Well, they are waiting until next year and we are going through the whole certification process again.

Please stow all bags, secure your tray and bring your seatback to an upright position, it's going to be a bumpy ride!

[Tap]

Kudos to ASA for not banning anything new as Championship Play and other playoffs/tourneys are coming soon. Whatever the standard for 2004, that's fine -- everyone can adjust by then. A July ban would have been very problematic for a lot of players, leagues and umpires.

It will be interesting to see where the performance line is drawn when the new standard is applied -- i.e., which bats are out and which bats are in for 2004.

[IRISHMAFIA]

Originally posted by Tap
Kudos to ASA for not banning anything new as Championship Play and other playoffs/tourneys are coming soon. Whatever the standard for 2004, that's fine -- everyone can adjust by then. A July ban would have been very problematic for a lot of players, leagues and umpires.

It will be interesting to see where the performance line is drawn when the new standard is applied -- i.e., which bats are out and which bats are in for 2004.

I think the lawyers made this call. Any bats banned this year would have not been as devastating as last year as most of those that would have been dumped are already banned at the local level.

Besides, the bats which they are talking about are the ones the players have been calling to be banned since April.

[CecilOne]

1) "Manufacturers will need to submit their bat models for approval under the new standard. If a bat model satisfies the new standard, then the manufacturer will be offered a license agreement and the model will be approved for ASA Championship Play in 2004 and beyond. If a bat model fails to satisfy the new standard, or is not submitted for approval under the new standard, then that bat model will not be allowed in ASA Championship Play in 2004 and beyond. A list of the “banned bats” will be developed and will be posted on the ASA website as manufacturers submit their bats for approval. "

As I read it, ASA will somehow find out every bat model made and every bat model added after 1/1/04 and ban it until it is tested. That would mean the banned bat list would change frequently and unless it is more informative than the current one, will be a continued pain.

2) What about the new bats ASA has approved with no certification seal, that may or may not be on the approved list? It's really annoying to carry an 11 page list on the field, try to keep it dry, look up every bat you haven't seen that week, etc.

[Edited by CecilOne on Jul 1st, 2003 at 02:38 PM]

[Dakota]

It was the bat manufacturers who were submitting carefully selected bats to ASA for certification, and then manufacturing hotter bats - bats that do not meet the ASA performance standard.

It was the bat manufacturers who designed bats that pass the performance standard when new but with use will exceed the standard.

Given the chaos in the bat market created by the manufacturers, and given that in slow pitch in particular, we now have pitchers wearing hockey goalie style head gear, ASA had to do something to protect the players and the game.

The ASA certification mark means that the bat of this model submitted by the manufacturer passed the ASA tests and that the manufacturer certifies that the bat sold at retail would also pass if tested.

It is the second half of that statement that has turned out to be not true - and it is the bat manufacturers who must bear 100% of the blame for that situation, including unhappy customers, long lists of banned bats that umpires must deal with, and all of that.

The ASA does not control bat manufacturing. If the manufacturer puts the ASA stamp on their bat, it is the manufacturer's obligation to produce bats that meet and continue to meet the ASA performance standards.

The bat is illegal because it will not pass the bat performance test. The mark is a certification that it will pass. The mark does not make the bat legal. Its performance makes it either legal or illegal.

Again: bat manufacturers have been fraudulently (IMO) putting certification marks on illegal bats.

ASA had to act because manufacturers were placing certification marks on illegal bats, or were manufacturing bats that become illegal with use.

In order to crack down, something had to change. I say good for ASA. It's going to be messy for a while, but don't forget - the manufacturers knew exactly what they were doing. They were manufacturing and selling illegal bats.

[CecilOne]

I agree and didn't mean to say otherwise, just lamenting the complications on the field.