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Started By
Message
USA Baseball bats, and kids baseball in general
Posted on 4/17/18 at 11:41 am
Posted on 4/17/18 at 11:41 am
This is my kids first year playing Mustang, which is part of Pony baseball. I went to buy him a bat, and only “USA Baseball” bats are allowed.
I bought him a $50 bat, and it sucked. Now I’ve bought the $70 Easton, and it still kind of sucks. Then I do a little research, and evidently this is by design for these bats. They want them to play more like wooden bats.
Wtf, how long has this been going on?
Also, Easton makes a $160 Beast X bat that’s approved. Any experience with that one? Does it actually have a little more pop?
In general, I want to half-sincerely apologize to all the travel ball parents I’ve judged in my head over the years, because now that my boy is showing a little aptitude for playing ball, I find myself having to consciously tell myself to not be so serious about it.
For those of you that have been through this, how did you stay balanced?
And are high school baseball teams now almost solely comprised of former travel ball kids? If so, is that just a function of most of the talented kids playing travel ball?
I’d hate to preclude my kids from having a shot at high school ball.
I bought him a $50 bat, and it sucked. Now I’ve bought the $70 Easton, and it still kind of sucks. Then I do a little research, and evidently this is by design for these bats. They want them to play more like wooden bats.
Wtf, how long has this been going on?
Also, Easton makes a $160 Beast X bat that’s approved. Any experience with that one? Does it actually have a little more pop?
In general, I want to half-sincerely apologize to all the travel ball parents I’ve judged in my head over the years, because now that my boy is showing a little aptitude for playing ball, I find myself having to consciously tell myself to not be so serious about it.
For those of you that have been through this, how did you stay balanced?
And are high school baseball teams now almost solely comprised of former travel ball kids? If so, is that just a function of most of the talented kids playing travel ball?
I’d hate to preclude my kids from having a shot at high school ball.
19
Posted on 4/17/18 at 11:43 am to uway
Holy hell dude is this your first time being around baseball?
Posted on 4/17/18 at 11:43 am to Mr. Hangover
No. Why?
Posted on 4/17/18 at 11:47 am to uway
I’d imagine part of having the bats “suck” on purpose is a line drive off a high powered aluminum bat to the pitcher’s head is dangerous. The weaker bats allow for more reaction time and less velocity.
Posted on 4/17/18 at 11:49 am to uway
quote:
And are high school baseball teams now almost solely comprised of former travel ball kids? If so, is that just a function of most of the talented kids playing travel ball?
My nephew made his high school team as a 9th grader and has only ever played rec ball.
Posted on 4/17/18 at 11:49 am to TheWalrus
quote:
Message
USA Baseball bats, and kids baseball in general by TheWalrus
I’d imagine part of having the bats “suck” on purpose is a line drive off a high powered aluminum bat to the pitcher’s head is dangerous. The weaker bats allow for more reaction time and less velocity
Yes, exactly, but it seems extreme. It will be interesting to see how it plays out in the games. The outfielders will be playing shallow, I’d guess.
It doesn’t even make a ping sound.
Posted on 4/17/18 at 11:51 am to uway
quote:
I bought him a $50 bat, and it sucked. Now I’ve bought the $70 Easton, and it still kind of sucks. Then I do a little research, and evidently this is by design for these bats. They want them to play more like wooden bats.
Wtf, how long has this been going on?
This has been going on since at least 2010. That is when colleges mandated BBCOR bats, not sure about high school and youth baseball. The BBCOR bats were created to limit the trampoline effect off the bat and is just slightly higher than a wooden bat. And it makes a lot more sense for youth baseball with the pitching mound being just 50 feet away from home plate as opposed to 60'6" for high school and on up.
This post was edited on 4/17/18 at 11:53 am
Posted on 4/17/18 at 11:52 am to uway
quote:
I bought him a $50 bat, and it sucked. Now I’ve bought the $70 Easton, and it still kind of sucks.
Its not the bat.
Posted on 4/17/18 at 11:53 am to Mr. Hangover
USA stamped bats are terrible. My son is 7 and has 9 older cousins. Thus this is the 1st time we have had to buy a bat. He can pick up any of the 15 hand me down dead bats and hit it farther and with more pop than his new USA stamped bat. Also, they dont weigh what they say they weigh. Best of luck
Posted on 4/17/18 at 12:01 pm to lsufball19
I found a write up on litteleague.org and it’s definitely a new standard for this year. No 2017 bats can be used in practice or games.
They officially are saying that safety is not the reason for the change.
It’s for the “integrity of the game.”
I think a lot of people will be surprised at how weak the bats are.
They officially are saying that safety is not the reason for the change.
It’s for the “integrity of the game.”
I think a lot of people will be surprised at how weak the bats are.
Posted on 4/17/18 at 12:10 pm to trusaint
USA bats suck and so do the leagues that adopted them this year, forcing parents to pay full retail instead of getting one of last year's bats for half price.
There is no need for dead bats except under Little League rules that stupidly still have 12 year olds playing on a 60 foot diamond.
I do like the bigger barrel, though, resulting in more contact and fewer strikeouts.
Louisville Slugger makes the best USA bats, IMO. Rawlings are pretty solid, too. The DeMarinis are kind of meh. Eastons are very disappointing. Was not able to demo any of the Mizunos.
If you want something decent and relatively inexpensive (under $100), I recommend a Louisville Omaha or Rawlings 5150. DeMarini Voodoo One, Louisville Solo 618, or Rawlings Velo are a step up from there. Those are all one piece bats. Louisville 718, Rawlings Quattro, or DeMarini Voodoo Balanced if you want a 2 piece but now you are talking $250+.
There is no need for dead bats except under Little League rules that stupidly still have 12 year olds playing on a 60 foot diamond.
I do like the bigger barrel, though, resulting in more contact and fewer strikeouts.
Louisville Slugger makes the best USA bats, IMO. Rawlings are pretty solid, too. The DeMarinis are kind of meh. Eastons are very disappointing. Was not able to demo any of the Mizunos.
If you want something decent and relatively inexpensive (under $100), I recommend a Louisville Omaha or Rawlings 5150. DeMarini Voodoo One, Louisville Solo 618, or Rawlings Velo are a step up from there. Those are all one piece bats. Louisville 718, Rawlings Quattro, or DeMarini Voodoo Balanced if you want a 2 piece but now you are talking $250+.
Posted on 4/17/18 at 12:15 pm to uway
The USA bats are complete garbage and it's all a money grab that the leagues and bat manufacturers are all in on. It has zero to do with player safety. If it did, they could just change the ball. A move that would not cause millions of people to unass hundreds of dollars on a new bat every few years.
Posted on 4/17/18 at 12:16 pm to Speedy G
quote:
Speedy G
Awesome post. Much appreciated, thanks
What’s your opinion on travel ball vs rec ball and the implications for high school ball?
With good coaching in rec and practice at home, is that good enough? I’m basically looking for some validation, because I can’t put my 9 year old in travel ball anyway.
This post was edited on 4/17/18 at 12:23 pm
Posted on 4/17/18 at 12:21 pm to Boudreaux35
quote:
Its not the bat.
Yes. Yes it is. USA Bats are absolute garbage. Wood has more pop as at least wood has a sweet spot.
Posted on 4/17/18 at 12:24 pm to uway
This post is all Over the planet. AND THE MAP!!
Posted on 4/17/18 at 12:28 pm to Tiger Ryno
Come on Ryno, contribute something. Be the best poster you can be.
Posted on 4/17/18 at 12:31 pm to uway
quote:
What’s your opinion on travel ball vs rec ball and the implications for high school ball?
With good coaching in rec and practice at home, is that good enough? I’m basically looking for some validation, because I can’t put my 9 year old in travel ball anyway.
I don't know. My oldest is only 11 and plays travel and rec (league rules). We are in the northeast, where things are likely less intense. There are year round regional programs, but most "travel" teams are just rec all star teams.
I will say, though, that if you are interested in joining a travel team, sooner is better, b/c it gets harder and harder to break into a new team as their roster becomes more established.
Posted on 4/17/18 at 12:33 pm to uway
quote:
What’s your opinion on travel ball vs rec ball and the implications for high school ball?
What is your definition of travel ball?
Tournaments have become so prevalent, I think it's flat out stupid to travel more than an hour or so for one (obviously depends on where you live). We are in OKC and there are AA thru Majors tournaments every weekend between here and Tulsa. No reason to ever really go further than that.
My son is on a team that plays rec, but also about 1-2 tournaments a month. They use the rec ball as more of a practice (they also have traditional practice during the week). So they see plenty of competition without it breaking the bank for parents.
My opinion regarding HS ball is that it doesn't mean a flying flip what team you were on at age 12. It matters whether you're a good ballplayer or not. And that can easily be accomplished without playing every weekend all year round all over the place.
Posted on 4/17/18 at 12:52 pm to uway
quote:
I’d hate to preclude my kids from having a shot at high school ball.
You think this garbage is going to stop him from playing HS? Good grief.
Posted on 4/17/18 at 12:55 pm to starsandstripes
Sadly I waited till age 4 to get my son started in organized ball. He has raw talent but he will Never catch up With the travel Ball kids now no matter what I do. It's my fault.
This post was edited on 4/17/18 at 12:57 pm
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