Adult Wood Baseball Bat
Although the debate about banning metal baseball bats in youth baseball is not settled, high school and college players find themselves playing in wood bat summer leagues more and more these days. “It’s clearly a trend,” a coach told me last summer on opening day of the John Marzano Wood Bat Scout League in Philadelphia. “Kids know they need to do this, their coaches do too, and the scouts love it. Hitting with wood is a lot less forgiving than metal.”
All of this makes for a more diverse baseball bat collection in summer dugouts — from Cape Cod to Surprise, Arizona. And as the wood bat trend spreads to younger players, parents and coaches may want to know what the elite amateur players are using in tournaments like the World Wood Bat Championships held in Marietta, Georgia at the East Cobb Baseball complex.
In some ways you just have to look at the bats the pros are swinging. The two classics offered by Louisville Slugger, Derek Jeter’s C71 and Alex Rodriguez’s P273 are both guaranteed by the world’s top bat company to be made of pro-stock wood. But if you watch Ryan Howard or Albert Pujols, they may be swinging Marucci bats; and Barry Bonds usually hits with a Sam Bat. Chase Utley and Jimmy Rollins have been partial to MaxBats over the past several years. And during much of 2008 Manny Ramirez was doing his dirty work with an X-Bat. As you’d expect, then, Marucci, Sam Bats, X-Bats, and Max Bats can all be found in amateur dugouts.
But don’t let the pros be your only guide. There are only about 35 bat companies with bats approved and registered with Major League Baseball. Over 100 other companies make wood bats for amateur players. These companies tend to be small, primarily serving regional baseball communities. Companies like NYStix, Carolina Clubs, Bayou Bat Company, Hoosier Bats, and the Barnstable Bat Company serve independent league players, adult leagues, and local wood bat teams extensively. NYStix got a real boost last year making bats for New York City high school teams in their first year of play under the city’s new ban on non-wood bats. The company’s owner told me last winter that he was having a hard time keeping up with the demand.
Amateur players also like Old Hickory (made out of maple!), D-bats, and M-Powered bats. In addition, the more standard stock that can be found with Rawlings, Easton, and DeMarini are common — especially DeMarini’s composite wood bat wrapped in a fiberglass sleeve designed to help kids make the transition from metal to wood.
Who knows what bats will be popular next season. Zinger Bats out of Montreal is ramping up their marketing plans. Miguel Cabrera, Bobby Abreu, and Dan Uggla all used custom Zingers during at least part of last season. The influx of players from Asia has also been a boon to Mizuno. And when players get hot like Josh Hamilton did in the 2008 All-Star Home Run Derby, there’s no question that the bat he used will be on the top of every young hitter’s wish list (he swung an ash Louisville Slugger, Model C353; 34.5 inches and 33 ounces in weight; flame tempered with the special Smith finish).
In the end, the move to wood should keep young and old players alike online all winter long searching for just the right bat to start the new season with — maybe not as fun as playing, but certainly a useful past-time while we wait.
David Biddle has coached youth baseball for more than 15 years. Of the 33 teams he has skippered, eight have won league championships (from 9U to 14U). He also brought two teams to Philadelphia’s city championships (sadly, never to win). Mr. Biddle has taught hitting to more than six hundred young players since 1992. He writes the blog “Hitting with Wood,” and published an essay called “Pondering Baseball’s Purity” in The Philadelphia Inquirer in 2007.
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Akadema M629 Elite Professional Grade Adult Amish Wood Baseball Bat 34 inch $79.99 |
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2012 NEW Easton Pro Maple Composite 271 PCM271 Wood Adult Baseball Bat 32″ MP/BK $89.90 |
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Rawlings Adult Ash Wood Blem Baseball Bat ADIRA Pink Finish 33″ $24.95 |
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Rawlings Big Stick Adirondack Pro Ash Wood Adult Blem Baseball Bat ADIRA 32″ $24.95 |
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Rawlings Big Stick Adirondack Pro Ash Wood Adult Blem Baseball Bat ADIRA 33″ $24.95 |
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Rawlings Big Stick Adirondack Pro Ash Wood Adult Blem Baseball Bat ADIRA 34″ $34.95 |
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NEW MATTINGLY MVAA V-GRIP SELECT ASH ADULT WOOD BASEBALL BAT 33″ 30oz RT$69.95 $25.49 |
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NEW MATTINGLY MB 223 V-GRIP SELECT MAPLE ADULT WOOD BASEBALL BAT 32″ 32oz $89.95 $24.99 |
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NEW MATTINGLY MB 223 V-GRIP SELECT ASH ADULT WOOD BASEBALL BAT 32″ 31oz RT$69.95 $24.99 |
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Rawlings Pro Preferred 460M Adult Maple Wood Blem Baseball Bat Brown PPIRM 33″ $49.95 |
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Mizuno Custom Classic Maple Bat (Mahogany, 33) $59.99 Mizuno Wood Bats…In The Hands Of The Best! Mizuno Classic Maple Wood Bats feature: A unique design created by Mizuno’s master craftsman Isokazu Kubota who has hand-crafted wooden bats for Mizuno for over 40 years A balanced bat design for maximum swing speed Mizuno Custom Classic Maple bats are hand selected in Japan Made of hard maple Pro cupped end Used by Major League Baseball all stars (incl… |
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Mizuno Custom Classic Bamboo Bat (Natural, 33) $55.19 Mizuno Wood Bats…In The Hands Of The Best! Mizuno Classic Bamboo Wood Bats feature: A unique design by engineers with over 30 years of expertise in engineering bamboo bats Excellent training bat for extended bat life span Exceptional durability Hand selected in Japan from top quality bamboo Uses Mizuno’s exclusive microwave drying process to maximize consistency and performance Pro cupped end 90… |
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Mizuno Custom Classic Maple Bat (Cherry, 32) $59.95 Mizuno Wood Bats…In The Hands Of The Best! Mizuno Classic Maple Wood Bats feature: A unique design created by Mizuno’s master craftsman Isokazu Kubota who has hand-crafted wooden bats for Mizuno for over 40 years A balanced bat design for maximum swing speed Mizuno Custom Classic Maple bats are hand selected in Japan Made of hard maple Pro cupped end Used by Major League Baseball all stars (incl… |
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Akadema A529-34 Elite Professional Grade Adult Amish Wood Baseball Bat 34 Inch $49.38 Elite Professional Grade 34 inch black-finished Northern White Ash with unfinished handle Large 2 3/8″ barrel 1 1/8″ tapered handle large 2″ knob…. |
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mimulux Dark Fantasy Art – SLEEPING DEMON sleep woods forrest demon shedemon fantasy spirit dreaming bats mushrooms dreamland – Caps … |
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Louisville Slugger Adult Wood Bat $34.99 Ideal for high school, college, adult senior league, and minor league professional baseball, the Louisville MLB125BCB wooden baseball bat offers resin-filled barrel grooves to support and absorb ball impacts for greater durability…. |
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Louisville Slugger K100 All Purpose Wood Fungo Baseball Bat (36-Inch) $29.95 Natural finishAll purpose batWood bats are not guaranteed against breaking, chipping, checking, worn finishes, or worn tape grips…. |
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Mizuno Custom Classic Maple Bat (Mahogany) $60.00 The Mizuno MZM271 Classic Maple Bat is used by Victor Martinez. Hard Maple. Exclusive microwave drying process controls moisture for maximum consistency and performance. Cupped for balanced feel. 32″, 33″, 34″ lengths…. |