AABC Rule Change: Connie Mack To Use Wood Bats

Just to add for the others, John.........this rule is for regional tournament and world series play only. The leagues can still do what they want.

This is great news.......

Pitching and defense has been a lost art in amatuer baseball.

WOW....

This is big news.

The leagues should adopt this rule also.

quote:

Originally posted by The Beast:
The leagues should adopt this rule also.

I bet they do.

The real question is how many Tiger players will be seen using DBAT's this summer.

Might be a good idea to invest in wood futures, I'm sure the price of wood bats just went up.

quote:

Might be a good idea to invest in wood futures,

It might be a good idea to invest in some hitting lessons.

Man, I chose the wrong week to give up giving hitting lessons!

watch the numbers go down all summer (which i believe is a good thing)... not that the law of average they wouldn't anyway because of wood vs. aluminum... but will see huge dips because 90%, in my opinion, of high school kids are all hands and arms swingers (aluminum bat mechanics)....

all this squish the bug, don't dip your shoulder, cast the hands to go get the outside pitch, swing level, hands to the ball is really gonna kill a lot of kids come summer time with wood in their hands...

JMO

"Don't dip your shoulder"

This one kills me! If you don't "dip" your shoulder, then how do you hit the low pitch and lift it in the air? I am battling this now with my kids that I coach. Luckily, I have lots of visual evidence to show them that dipping the shoulder is necessary.

Anyone who gives this advice, does not know much about hitting in my opinion.

ties right in to those that teach "swing level"... if you swing level how would you hit any pitch from just above belt down to knees....

drives me crazy as well....

Yeah, and aren't the pitchers trying to keep the ball down in the zone? That so-called level swing leads to lots of ground outs!

I hope everyone in my district teaches it. In fact, I totally endorse that type of swing and I think every HS coach in Texas should teach it!

BBI Connie Mack league and tournaments will use wood bats for 2009.
KG you were right.

Real friends would have let me know this a few months ago so I could shift my 401K into a bat company.

Now pitchers can throw inside again.

quote:

Originally posted by The Beast:
BBI Connie Mack league and tournaments will use wood bats for 2009.
KG you were right.

Pay close attention, I share all my secrets but you have to pay close attention.

quote:

Originally posted by Diablo con Huevos:
ties right in to those that teach "swing level"... if you swing level how would you hit any pitch from just above belt down to knees....

I think the intent (and I think you know this) is that the hitter is to swing level to the pitch. With the pitch approaching at a 'down' angle, then a hitter swings on the same plane as the pitch. Some people call this an uppercut swing. The effect is that the swing is level to the pitch.

Both you & FD know this. Mike Epstein has written several articles about as he explains the mechanics of rotational hitting.

I know a great Wood



I know a Great Wood Bat maker, custom bat's at a great price

Okay, I'm going to take a risk here and ask questions I'm betting many are also wondering. I may be up for ridicule, but here goes.

What's with all this relatively sudden fascination with wood bats? I'm old enough that I grew up using wood bats ('til around High School when we first began using alluminum, although sparingly). I'm a baseball traditionalist, so understand that aspect of using wood.

But, why are some (such as AABC CM, and I'm also hearing BBI will go this way at 18U) moving in this direction? I don't believe it's a safety issue (which has some merit).

Only a tiny fraction of kids at this age will play at the professional level where wood bats are used. If any play on, almost all will continue using metal in college. Do some believe that college coaches/scouts want to see kids swing wood? I don't think so, but maybe I'm wrong. I'd think they want to see them swing what they'll be using in college.

Seems to me to be a current "fascination," fad, or somewhat perception motivated (ie. tournaments/leagues like the way it sounds to be able to say they're using wood bats). By the way, I'm not against wood bats, just not understanding the movement.

Also, with an increase in wood bat implementation, will we see cost driven down? I can imagine a summer ball player going through multiple bats in one season. Many can't afford that.

Sorry if this is a topic already discussed previously to death, but I'll be interested to read some feedback.

Many folks will likely have more information on this than I do but I'm told from a very reliable first hand source that the discussion with the NCAA coaches of moving back to wood is gaining traction.
Does it get there? Who knows.

quote:

I think the intent (and I think you know this) is that the hitter is to swing level to the pitch. With the pitch approaching at a 'down' angle, then a hitter swings on the same plane as the pitch. Some people call this an uppercut swing. The effect is that the swing is level to the pitch.

dbg- i get the matching plane/paths... i am saying (and was actuall just saying it to FD) that 95% of coaches, below college level, don't say "swing level" meaning match planes... they say "swing level" as in level to the ground...

can you even count the number of times you have heard a coach instruct a player to "swing level" and then as he is saying that you see the coach "show him" by doing a swing that has a slight upslope?? Neither have I. I usually see the 45 degree downslope swing - let alone level...

hey, JMO....

my whole point was because of a lot of the "aluminum bat" mechanics in youth baseball, expect to see a huge slide in numbers for the elite summer teams (ones that will play in AABC leagues/post season)....

These were the changes voted on at the 2008 AABC Annual Meeting. The page numbers refer to the 2008 AABC Handbook.

• Page 5 - Change the number of teams to make a league from 4 to 6 teams.
  
• Page 17 Rule 203 - Delete "a game other than one in which a champion must be determined."
  
• Page 22 Rule 213 (d) - Add to end of paragraph " Once qualifiers are scheduled, they must be played, they cannot be cancelled less than 30 days prior to tournament starting. If not cancelled 30 days prior to the start of the tournament, the monies allocated to travel must be paid."
  
• Page 22 Rule 213 (e) - Change gate fee to $350.00 from $150.00
  
• Page 24 Rule 218 - Change to read "Any runner is out when the runner does not slide legally or attempt to avoid a fielder who has possession of the ball and waiting to make a tag or is in the process of fielding the ball. The ball is dead and NO runners shall advance. If the runner's slide or collision is flagrant, the runner shall be ejected from the contest."
  
• Page 25 Rule 221 - Add a new (d) to read: "The use of NOCSAE approved protection headgear (hard hat) must be worn by base coaches while in the field of play."
  
• Page 26 Rule 221- Change (d) to (e) to read: "In AABC Stan Musial, Connie Mack and Don Mattingly division tournaments, only wood, laminate or composite wood bats may be used. The bat must not exceed 42 inches in length and 2 3/4 inches diameter."
  
• Page 26 Rule 221 - Change (e) to (f) and eliminate Connie Mack, Don Mattingly
  
• Page 26 Rule 221 - Change (f) to (g) and eliminate "There is no differential" and add "There is no restriction with regard to the differential between length and weight."
  
• Page 26 Rule 221 - Add (h) "An altered or tampered bat will be subject to 6.06 (d) of Official Baseball Rules. Exception - If a bat is determined by the umpire to be merely dented or damaged, it shall be removed and a team warning issued. Each subsequent offense will result in the batter being called out.
  If the batter has reached base on a base hit and runners have advanced because of the hit, all runners shall return to their base occupied at the time of the pitch and the batter will be called out. The appeal must be made before the next pitch, play or attempted play by the defense."

So KG, I have a question.

If you were to, let's say, return to coaching youth baseball.....what size helmet would you require in the coaching box?

Hypothetically speaking, of course.

KG is returning to coaching in the Summer of '09, correct?

quote:

Originally posted by RETIRED GM:
These were the changes voted on at the 2008 AABC Annual Meeting. The page numbers refer to the 2008 AABC Handbook.

• Page 5 - Change the number of teams to make a league from 4 to 6 teams.
  
• Page 17 Rule 203 - Delete "a game other than one in which a champion must be determined."
  
• Page 22 Rule 213 (d) - Add to end of paragraph " Once qualifiers are scheduled, they must be played, they cannot be cancelled less than 30 days prior to tournament starting. If not cancelled 30 days prior to the start of the tournament, the monies allocated to travel must be paid."
  
• Page 22 Rule 213 (e) - Change gate fee to $350.00 from $150.00
  
• Page 24 Rule 218 - Change to read "Any runner is out when the runner does not slide legally or attempt to avoid a fielder who has possession of the ball and waiting to make a tag or is in the process of fielding the ball. The ball is dead and NO runners shall advance. If the runner's slide or collision is flagrant, the runner shall be ejected from the contest."
  
• Page 25 Rule 221 - Add a new (d) to read: "The use of NOCSAE approved protection headgear (hard hat) must be worn by base coaches while in the field of play."
  
• Page 26 Rule 221- Change (d) to (e) to read: "In AABC Stan Musial, Connie Mack and Don Mattingly division tournaments, only wood, laminate or composite wood bats may be used. The bat must not exceed 42 inches in length and 2 3/4 inches diameter."
  
• Page 26 Rule 221 - Change (e) to (f) and eliminate Connie Mack, Don Mattingly
  
• Page 26 Rule 221 - Change (f) to (g) and eliminate "There is no differential" and add "There is no restriction with regard to the differential between length and weight."
  
• Page 26 Rule 221 - Add (h) "An altered or tampered bat will be subject to 6.06 (d) of Official Baseball Rules. Exception - If a bat is determined by the umpire to be merely dented or damaged, it shall be removed and a team warning issued. Each subsequent offense will result in the batter being called out.
  If the batter has reached base on a base hit and runners have advanced because of the hit, all runners shall return to their base occupied at the time of the pitch and the batter will be called out. The appeal must be made before the next pitch, play or attempted play by the defense."

So KG, I have a question.

If you were to, let's say, return to coaching youth baseball.....what size helmet would you require in the coaching box?

Hypothetically speaking, of course.

Sorry, been gone on a bowhunting trip...

But to answer your question, If I was to return I would gain a staff to coach the bases for us. I would feel more comfortable being in the dugout for immediate decisions, player/coach communication, and all signals can go from dugout to coach to player.