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HS player is using  2018 33/30 Easton Hybrid. Loves it. Still takes BP with a wooden bat, as he has for years now. 

14U player started out using a two piece Louisville 718 -5 USA bat, but has dropped it for his brother's old 2016 32/29 Velo. He likes the balance a lot more, and seems to be hitting better with it. Ball seems to be  faster off the bat, and there doesn't seem to be any less distance. He also likes the feedback of the one piece metal. The USA -5's aren't very popular. Most kids have them, but are using a BBCOR instead.

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2017 Rawlings Velo 33/30 6’ 180”.  Son loves the balance and has good pop.  Good and bad is that it is a 1 piece on purpose.  If you hit the sweet spot you don’t lose power from the connector but if you mishit it you will get stung for immediate feedback.  Kinda like a metal wood bat.  A lot of college players swing metal barreled bats, either 1 or 2 piece.  Most often seen bats, Marucci, Voodoo, LS metal barrels, Easton metal barrels.  

AD2018 posted:
Big Taco posted:

Ok, here's a question: Why do most college players use bats with metal barrels but a lot of high school players use bats with composite barrels? Is metal better vs composite? why?

I don't believe composite bats are permitted in College.

Composites are legal as long as they are BBCOR. To answer the OP, though, since BBCOR was implemented, composites have no clear advantage over one piece alloys.

Big Taco posted:

Ok, here's a question: Why do most college players use bats with metal barrels but a lot of high school players use bats with composite barrels? Is metal better vs composite? why?

I believe that in this regard, as with about 90% of choices that adolescents and young adults make, the #1 influence on decision-making is the actions & opinions of their peers.  If the best power hitter on the team gets that idea that a certain bat is hot, that spreads to the rest of the team, whether it's true or not.

Last edited by JCG
57special posted:

HS player is using  2018 33/30 Easton Hybrid. Loves it. Still takes BP with a wooden bat, as he has for years now. 

14U player started out using a two piece Louisville 718 -5 USA bat, but has dropped it for his brother's old 2016 32/29 Velo. He likes the balance a lot more, and seems to be hitting better with it. Ball seems to be  faster off the bat, and there doesn't seem to be any less distance. He also likes the feedback of the one piece metal. The USA -5's aren't very popular. Most kids have them, but are using a BBCOR instead.

Quoting myself;

Just finished talking to my Senior HS'er, and he said he's never been so happy with his bat situation. He's had a(BBCOR) 2015 Easton S1, 2016 Velo, Easton Z core (two), and finally a Easton Hybrid. Uses his Louisville wood as much as he can in practice and wooden bat tournaments. Is looking forward to using Sambats in college...they have a very good rep.

 

14U just hit a triple 325' on the fly up here in the cooler air of the upper midwest with  the Velo referenced above. I can't see him hitting any further unless it gets hot and humid...he's 145 lbs. soaking wet. I was going to buy a new Velo, which is supposed to be more or less the same as a 2016, but at this point I don't think I would be able to get him to swing it. The Louisville drop 5 USA bat is just gathering dust at this point.

Big Taco posted:

Ok, here's a question: Why do most college players use bats with metal barrels but a lot of high school players use bats with composite barrels? Is metal better vs composite? why?

One-piece aluminum bats are stiffer and generally more end-loaded. Taking advantage of those characteristics requires more strength. There's definitely a macho component with college players and aluminum. Composites are "soft" (they don't sting your hands as much.)

Before BBCOR, composites would continue to soften and provide a greater trampoline effect after "breaking in." However, BBCOR testing forced the design of these metals to be changed so that they only softened up so much and that, at even it's most optimum, the bats would still meet BBCOR standards. With those changes, composites lost their trampoline effect advantage over one piece alloys and no longer display greater capabilities after a break in period than they do out of the wrapper.

MidAtlanticDad posted:
Big Taco posted:

Ok, here's a question: Why do most college players use bats with metal barrels but a lot of high school players use bats with composite barrels? Is metal better vs composite? why?

One-piece aluminum bats are stiffer and generally more end-loaded. Taking advantage of those characteristics requires more strength. There's definitely a macho component with college players and aluminum. Composites are "soft" (they don't sting your hands as much.)

The Rawlings Velo BBCOR is about the most balanced, non end loaded bat you can find. Even the older ones w/o the composite end cap.

BishopLeftiesDad posted:

Rawlings Wood Composite. Just showed up on the door step the other day. Hit what should have been a triple, ifbhe had watched his coach instead of the ball. He was out at third. #badbaserunning. 

had to check your location on your bio, we played against a kid like this this weekend in GA.  Fast kid, but out at third.  

57special posted:
BishopLeftiesDad posted:

Rawlings Wood Composite. Just showed up on the door step the other day. Hit what should have been a triple, ifbhe had watched his coach instead of the ball. He was out at third. #badbaserunning. 

sort of a, "yes, yes, yes.....noooooooooo!" moment?

His mother and I knew as soon as he rounded second that it was a done deal. But yes you are exactly right. It was all fun anyway

 

CaCO3Girl posted:
BishopLeftiesDad posted:

Rawlings Wood Composite. Just showed up on the door step the other day. Hit what should have been a triple, ifbhe had watched his coach instead of the ball. He was out at third. #badbaserunning. 

had to check your location on your bio, we played against a kid like this this weekend in GA.  Fast kid, but out at third.  

Thanks, However if my kid was playing at that level now it would be completely unfair. He would literally be a man among boys. He graduated college in 2015...

BishopLeftiesDad posted:

Rawlings Wood Composite. Just showed up on the door step the other day. Hit what should have been a triple, ifbhe had watched his coach instead of the ball. He was out at third. #badbaserunning. 

In our last game, a kid hit a double off the fence in center with a brand new Marucci hard maple bat.  I was thinking if he had swung metal it would've been a HR.

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