User:MattoxMead4/History of Baseball Bats

History of Baseball Bats

Wood bats

The history of wood bats goes very far back into history. It has came along way and has innovated the game of baseball and has changed the game of baseball forever.

• A baseball bat is a smooth wooden or metal club used in the sport of baseball to hit the ball after it is thrown by the pitcher. By regulation it may be no more than 2.75 inches (7.0 cm) in diameter at the thickest part and no more than 42 inches (1.067 m) in length. Although historically bats approaching 3 pounds (1.4 kg) were swung, today bats of 33 ounces (0.94 kg) are common, topping out at 34 ounces (0.96 kg) to 36 ounces (1.0 kg).
• Tee-Ball bats are for the youngest age group, 5-7 years of age and are used in tee-ball and coach pitch leagues. They contain barrels 2-1/4 inches in diameter, and are 25-27 inches long. Weight is measured in weight drop (the length-to-weight ratio of a bat) which for heavier bats averages about 7, lighter around 13, and varies by brand and model.
• Because wood baseball bats were breaking, there was a demand for bats that lasted longer. And with that the aluminum bat hit the baseball scene. The aluminum bat has a higher "exit speed ratio", or the speed at which the ball comes off the bat, and if incorrectly fitted it can lead to problems swinging, and injury, and herein lies the debate. The ball coming off the bat at high velocities doesn't allow the pitcher to get out of the way in time. The other difference is that wood bats have a smaller "sweet spot" (area about 17 cm from the end of the barrel where the impact cannot be easily felt by the hands) and be a little heavier and denser. Whereas with the high levels of technology gone into making aluminum bats, the ball comes off such a bat at higher rates of speed. According to reviews, aluminum bat companies are making strides to make the alum baseball bats more like a wood bat, in terms of weight distribution, and less flex in the shaft creating a stiffer bat for the kids. That allows them to swing at the bat more like a professional. Barrel sizes with some of what are called "hot bats" are causing injuries too, but reviews indicate that companies are continuing to do a better job of monitoring and making the equipment more like a professional bat.

Wood baseball bats have changed to improve the strength and usability of them. Some wood bats nowadays have paint on them and sometimes designs on the to make them unique to each baseball player. Most brands of wood baseball bats have professional players names on them for their target market to kids and teens. Kids and teens want to be successful in their sports and if they can swing the same wood bat as their favorite Major League Baseball player that makes a wood bat brand more valuable to that kid or teen.

• A baseball bat is divided into several regions. The "barrel" is the thick part of the bat, where it is meant to hit the ball. The part of the barrel best for hitting the ball, according to construction and swinging style, is often called the "sweet spot." The end of the barrel is called the "top," "end," or "cap" of the bat. Opposite the cap, the barrel narrows until it meets the "handle," which is comparatively thin, so that batters can comfortably grip the bat in their hands. Sometimes, especially on metal bats, the handle is wrapped with a rubber or tape "grip". Finally, below the handle is the "knob" of the bat, a wider piece that keeps the bat from slipping from a batter's hands.

• Baseball bats are made of either hardwood or a metal alloy (typically aluminum). Most wooden bats are made from ash; other woods include maple, hickory, and bamboo. Hickory has fallen into disfavor over its greater weight, which slows down bat speed, while maple bats gained popularity following the introduction of the first major league sanctioned model in 1997. The first player to use one was Joe Carter of the Toronto Blue Jays. Barry Bonds used maple bats the seasons he broke baseball's single-season home run record in 2001, and the career home run record in 2007. In 2010, the increased tendency of maple bats to shatter caused Major League Baseball to examine their use, banning some models in minor league play.

High School and College Baseball Bats

• BESR was the baseball bat certification requirement for NCAA and high school baseball play between 1998 and 2011.
• BESR was implemented in 1998 to address non-wood bat performance. Through the early 2000’s under the BESR standard, bat companies perfected bats to pass the test but perform above it after the bat were worked in. By 2010 the NCAA banned all composite BESR bats after finding a considerable amount of them exceeded performance standards in play. For 2011 they implemented a new standard called BBCOR.
• We are currently immersed in a world of BBCOR, USA and U Trip bats. Proceeding each of those was a standard called BESR. Each of the tests associated with those bats certifications are better understood in terms of a safety test NOT a performance test. Too many, we think, confuse a high score on a certification test the same as overall bat performance.
• Granted, all the tests measure exit speeds in some fashion but none measure even most given conditions during field play. In fact, each of them only measure a single (pitch + exit) speed. BBCOR, as an example, uses only 136mph. The tests intend, and we think accomplish, a control for the safety of ball flight given a common impact condition. But they don’t restrict or measure performance at any other bat and ball speed conditions–which are many and varied. Hence the reason theses tests are better understood as safety tests not performance tests.
• From 1970-1973, the NCAA used wood bats in competition. What a crazy idea. In 1974, that changed with the use of aluminum. Until 1986, there was no weight limit on NCAA bats. Insane.
• After the 1998 season, the NCAA realized things were a bit crazy when pretty much every record was broken, and in August 1999, it adopted BESR to regulate the performance of composite and aluminum bats. This reduced the barrel size to 2.5” and mandated a -3 drop.
• This rule change did not solve every issue, especially at the youth level, as a few reported deaths occurred in the U.S. According to the Sports Science Laboratory at Washington State University, BESR differs from BBCOR, such that BESR was concerned with the exit speed of a non-wood bat and focused on length, as compared to BBCOR, which focused on a wood bat standard.
• BBCOR is in reference to a safety performance test, implemented in 2011, of NCAA approved baseball bats. Specifically, BBCOR is in reference to how elastic a stationary bat is when colliding with a ball traveling 136 mph. As the collision occurs, a bat which compresses more easily makes the baseball compress less. Less compression in the baseball means it retains more of its energy. More energy in a baseball means higher exit speeds. So a bat that compresses more easily will create a ball exit speed with higher velocity. (Hence the value of compression tests on bats). The more a bat compresses at collision with a ball the higher the BBCOR. For example, 1.000 describes a bat that takes on the full elasticity of the collision which keeps maximum energy in the ball.
• BBCOR standards require bats have no greater than a .5000 BBCOR score. Meaning, at least in my tiny brain, a bat cannot take any more elasticity than the ball does. (If 1.000 is 100% than .50 must mean half that, right?) The reason the NCAA chooses .500 BBCOR is to most closely replicate the natural coefficient of restitution (BBCOR) of hard wood bats.
• BPF is determined differently than BBCOR but has the same intent as a safety performance test. It is calculated by taking the ratio of a ball’s exit speed bouncing off a bat compared to the speed of the ball when bouncing off a brick-wall. USSSA allows the ball/bat bounce to be no greater than 15% faster than that of the ball/brick-wall bounce. This is represented as a 1.15 BPF rating. Or, said differently, a stationary BPF 1.15 bat will bounce a ball no grater than 15% faster than that same ball getting bounced off a brick wall (at the same speed).
• A 2009 NCAA press release admitted that 20 of the 25 bats tested at the CWS failed BESR testing; that is, they were on FIRE and launched missiles over 100mph off the bat. New technology and better materials created a new breed of weapons for NCAA and High School use. Titanium bats. Really? One bat by Slugger had an air bladder that compressed on impact. Totally insane. The trampoline effect was out of control.

BESR and BBCOR bats have came a long way from being too powerful, to not as powerful. Nowadays people think that BESR bats were cheating because of the exit velocity of the ball coming off the bat. In a sense it was dangerous for players to be swinging these bats because of the reaction time the players on defense would have to field the ball. This is why some changes had to be made to the bats used in high school and college baseball. In the end the change was made and made new required bats that could be swung by these players.

Another rule that was made with baseball bats was you can not have a bat with a white barrel. This is because the baseball is the same color as the baseball bat and was really hard to see the baseball coming off of the bat.

There you have it with this; you should now have known the history of baseball bats and how famous bats like the Louisville slugger came to be or how aluminum bats came into existence, and other improvements made on baseball bats along the year. Throughout baseballs life it has seen many innovations come and go.

Bibliography

• Back to the BESR - Bat Digest
• What is the history of Baseball Bats? - Baseball Rampage
• Baseball Bat History | Epic Sports
• Baseball bat - Wikipedia