A judge in NY has upheld the decision to go to wood bats starting 9/1/07
The story is noted on the front page of YAhoo
Just came on
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I hope this starts a trend and spreads like wildfire!
Can you bring that trend to the Mid-Atlantic?
It's not that I'm against the metal bats, or worried about a safety issue...it's just that baseball was meant to be played with wood.
It's not that I'm against the metal bats, or worried about a safety issue...it's just that baseball was meant to be played with wood.
I agree with baseballguy. I guess I'm a tradionalist in my love for wood bats. Besides, I'm the father of a pitcher and 3-2 games beat 16-13 games any day of the week. Having said that, I'm not so sure today's wood bats are any safer than metal.. so many are shattering now.. seen pro games where mutiple bat parts are spraying out onto the field several times a game. How is this safer?
I sure hope that wood bats never get as expensive as metal.
Might have an effect on the price?
Tiny bug may end ash's long hitting streak silence the crack of ash bat
Sunday, July 15, 2007
By Don Hopey
Pittsburgh Post-Gazette
BROOKVILLE, Pa. -- At the BWP Bats factory, a one-story sheet metal-walled building roughly the size of a baseball diamond, hundreds of ash billets, solid 37-inch-long wood cylinders the diameter of fence posts, await their turn on the lathes.
Each cylinder will be shaved into the tapered shape of a baseball bat, then sanded, painted and lacquered to produce the kind of hitter's tool that, through more than a century of games, has filled the bat racks of the national pastime and launched countless baseballs into the sweet summer air.
Mike Gregory, vice-president of BWP Bats. -- "The bug is definitely a threat to the ash population, and the whole bat industry in general would change if the ash is lost."
Click photo for larger image.
Previous coverage:
$3 million in federal money to combat ash borer problem (7/11/07)
Residents asked to collect beetles imperiling ash trees (7/3/07)
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
But lately the strong blond hardwood has taken some knocks more damaging than a fastball on the trademark. First came aluminum bats in 1970, stealing most of the youth and softball markets. Then came Barry Bond's long-ball success using hard maple bats, launching a swing toward the darker, slightly heavier and denser wood in the major leagues.
Now, already behind in the count, ash bats could be struck out by a tiny, green beetle from Asia.
The invasive emerald ash borer, which has killed more than 20 million ash trees in five states, was found last month for the first time in Pennsylvania, where most of the best, bat-grade ash grows.
The discovery in Cranberry triggered an extensive, detailed, field survey that last week concluded that hundreds of trees in northern Allegheny and Butler counties are infested with the half-inch-long bugs. The survey also found strong evidence that the borers have been in the state undetected for more than a year and are spreading.
After the initial discovery by U.S. Department of Agriculture surveyors June 21, state parks and forestry officials immediately banned the transport of firewood anywhere in the state, and imposed a quarantine in Butler, Allegheny, Beaver and Lawrence counties to restrict the movement of all ash nursery stock, green lumber, and any other ash material, including logs, stumps, leaves and wood chips.
The state Department of Conservation and Natural Resources has posted the no firewood transport notice at its state parks and forests, and plans to police that directive in state campgrounds.
Those measures may slow the bug, but won't stop it.
The allure of maple
"The bug is definitely a threat to the ash population, and the whole bat industry in general would change if the ash is lost," said Mike Gregory, vice president of BWP Bats, a small manufacturer located just north of Interstate 80's Exit 86. BWP makes 40,000 bats a year, about 30 percent of them used in the major leagues by players such as the New York Yankees' Johnny Damon and the Minnesota Twins' Justin Morneau, the 2006 American League Most Valuable Player.
Although BWP uses hard maple to make about 80 percent of its bats, including those used by Mr. Damon and Mr. Morneau, the demand for ash bats is still strong because of their lower cost, Mr. Gregory said.. About 50 percent of major leaguers and an even greater percentage of minor leaguers still use ash bats, he said.
Industry giant Hillerich & Bradsby, which markets its bats under the Louisville Slugger brand, still uses ash for 80 percent of the 2.5 million bats it produces a year. The firm and its suppliers are watching the advance of the ash borer closely, said Rick Redman, a company spokesman.
"Our people get the northern white ash for our bats along the Pennsylvania-New York border, as has been the case for decades, and we are hoping its progress into that area will be arrested in some way," Mr. Redman said. "We're already making a lot of bats out of maple and some out of beechwood, and will continue to look at other kinds of wood too."
Brian Boltz, general manager of the Larimer & Norton wood mill in Russell, Warren County, one of three mills in Pennsylvania that Hillerich & Bradsby uses to produce ash billets for shipment to Louisville, said slowing the borer's progress through the state is probably the best that can be hoped for.
"I've talked to federal and state folks looking at the borer and neither had an optimistic view," Mr. Boltz said. "They really think the ash could be gone in the state, but they couldn't say whether that will happen in five or 10 or 15 years. But it could be gone."
Mr. Boltz said Larimer & Norton has a short-term plan that assumes the devastation of the state's ash trees won't happen quickly.
"The ash borers came through Ohio mainly using suburban areas where nursery plantings and the movement of wood hastened the spread," he said. "Its natural migration is only about 10 miles a year, so if it gets into a forest setting with a lot of trees for it to get into, we'll still have some time and there will still be some good trees."
But near the spot where the borer was first found along Route 19 in Cranberry, close by the Interstate 79 and the Pennsylvania Turnpike exchange, good ash trees are already in short supply. Sven-Erik Spichiger, an entomologist with the state Department of Agriculture, said hundreds of ash in 28 square miles of woodlands and suburban developments surveyed showed signs of infestation. State officials have also received reports of possible ash borer infestation from property owners outside the survey area that must still be checked.
What to watch for
Signs of infestation by the bright green Agrilus planipennis -- which usually kills a tree in two to three years -- include dead branches at the top of the tree, yellow leaves, wood****** holes, D-shaped holes in the tree bark and curvy trails made by larvae under the bark, and small branches emerging directly out of a tree's trunk.
The beetle is native to eastern Russia, northern China, Japan and Korea. It was accidentally imported into the United States in packing crates and was first discovered in Canton, Mich., near Detroit, in July 2002. It has since moved through Illinois, Indiana and into Canada, and been found in shipped nursery stock in Virginia and Maryland.
"We're not sure yet how the borer showed up here. Cranberry is along the interstate so the chances are firewood or cut logs were involved," Mr. Spichiger said. "But right now we have no absolute ground zero."
The U.S. Department of Agriculture has given the state an emergency grant of $3 million to conduct surveys and public awareness programs. Mr. Spichiger said the state Agriculture Department will immediately start surveying for the borer along all major roadways in the western part of the state, from Erie through Pittsburgh, getting out every mile to inspect the roadside trees.
No statewide tree inventory for ash exists, but most estimates say there are more than 3 million ash trees in the state, from 3 percent to 5 percent of the forest, with higher percentages along roadways and streams, in urban areas and through the state's northern tier counties.
Mr. Spichiger said the initial survey findings indicating the bugs have been in the state for a year or more preclude attempts to eradicate the borer. Such a strategy, tried unsuccessfully in Michigan, would involve the clear-cutting of thousands of ash trees. He said application of an insecticide, which must be injected into the trees roots annually, is not a viable option for large areas and is probably cost prohibitive even for individual property owners.
"We're hoping we can slow it down. There's no plan for eradication now," Mr. Spichiger said. "We're looking for adults and we're scrambling to find them while they're flying [and thus easier to see] through mid-July."
He said the state Agriculture Department is planning to hold meetings for tree-trimmers, mulch suppliers, firewood providers and nursery owners to educate them about the borer, how to recognize infestation and quarantine rules.
Mr. Boltz said his mill, 5 miles south of the Pennsylvania-New York border, gets about 25 percent of its ash from New York, and it's still unclear how the state quarantine will affect out-of-state suppliers. There's also concern that Pennsylvania suppliers, worried about a borer infestation of their woodlots, could flood the market.
Mr. Boltz said if the ash forests are lost, the bat market could turn to maple or some other wood to replace ash, but there are economic barriers. The going price for maple billets is three to four times the price of ash, a difference that has so far kept most of the maple in the hands of major leaguers.
Ironically, the threat to the continued production of ash bats comes at a time when many amateur baseball and softball leagues are moving away from metal bats and back to wood. New York City has banned aluminum bats for high school play, and Pennsylvania and New Jersey have been talking about similar aluminum bat bans for safety reasons. City and county sandlot leagues and over-30 baseball leagues are also turning back to wood in increasing numbers.
"The trend back to wood is there, but the ash supplies are being threatened," Mr. Boltz said. "A lot will depend on what we can do with maple and other woods."
No matter what, the crack of a bat on a baseball will never be the same.
First published at PG NOW on July 14, 2007 at 10:42 pm
Don Hopey can be reached at dhopey@post-gazette.com or 412-263-1983.
Tiny bug may end ash's long hitting streak silence the crack of ash bat
Sunday, July 15, 2007
By Don Hopey
Pittsburgh Post-Gazette
BROOKVILLE, Pa. -- At the BWP Bats factory, a one-story sheet metal-walled building roughly the size of a baseball diamond, hundreds of ash billets, solid 37-inch-long wood cylinders the diameter of fence posts, await their turn on the lathes.
Each cylinder will be shaved into the tapered shape of a baseball bat, then sanded, painted and lacquered to produce the kind of hitter's tool that, through more than a century of games, has filled the bat racks of the national pastime and launched countless baseballs into the sweet summer air.
Mike Gregory, vice-president of BWP Bats. -- "The bug is definitely a threat to the ash population, and the whole bat industry in general would change if the ash is lost."
Click photo for larger image.
Previous coverage:
$3 million in federal money to combat ash borer problem (7/11/07)
Residents asked to collect beetles imperiling ash trees (7/3/07)
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
But lately the strong blond hardwood has taken some knocks more damaging than a fastball on the trademark. First came aluminum bats in 1970, stealing most of the youth and softball markets. Then came Barry Bond's long-ball success using hard maple bats, launching a swing toward the darker, slightly heavier and denser wood in the major leagues.
Now, already behind in the count, ash bats could be struck out by a tiny, green beetle from Asia.
The invasive emerald ash borer, which has killed more than 20 million ash trees in five states, was found last month for the first time in Pennsylvania, where most of the best, bat-grade ash grows.
The discovery in Cranberry triggered an extensive, detailed, field survey that last week concluded that hundreds of trees in northern Allegheny and Butler counties are infested with the half-inch-long bugs. The survey also found strong evidence that the borers have been in the state undetected for more than a year and are spreading.
After the initial discovery by U.S. Department of Agriculture surveyors June 21, state parks and forestry officials immediately banned the transport of firewood anywhere in the state, and imposed a quarantine in Butler, Allegheny, Beaver and Lawrence counties to restrict the movement of all ash nursery stock, green lumber, and any other ash material, including logs, stumps, leaves and wood chips.
The state Department of Conservation and Natural Resources has posted the no firewood transport notice at its state parks and forests, and plans to police that directive in state campgrounds.
Those measures may slow the bug, but won't stop it.
The allure of maple
"The bug is definitely a threat to the ash population, and the whole bat industry in general would change if the ash is lost," said Mike Gregory, vice president of BWP Bats, a small manufacturer located just north of Interstate 80's Exit 86. BWP makes 40,000 bats a year, about 30 percent of them used in the major leagues by players such as the New York Yankees' Johnny Damon and the Minnesota Twins' Justin Morneau, the 2006 American League Most Valuable Player.
Although BWP uses hard maple to make about 80 percent of its bats, including those used by Mr. Damon and Mr. Morneau, the demand for ash bats is still strong because of their lower cost, Mr. Gregory said.. About 50 percent of major leaguers and an even greater percentage of minor leaguers still use ash bats, he said.
Industry giant Hillerich & Bradsby, which markets its bats under the Louisville Slugger brand, still uses ash for 80 percent of the 2.5 million bats it produces a year. The firm and its suppliers are watching the advance of the ash borer closely, said Rick Redman, a company spokesman.
"Our people get the northern white ash for our bats along the Pennsylvania-New York border, as has been the case for decades, and we are hoping its progress into that area will be arrested in some way," Mr. Redman said. "We're already making a lot of bats out of maple and some out of beechwood, and will continue to look at other kinds of wood too."
Brian Boltz, general manager of the Larimer & Norton wood mill in Russell, Warren County, one of three mills in Pennsylvania that Hillerich & Bradsby uses to produce ash billets for shipment to Louisville, said slowing the borer's progress through the state is probably the best that can be hoped for.
"I've talked to federal and state folks looking at the borer and neither had an optimistic view," Mr. Boltz said. "They really think the ash could be gone in the state, but they couldn't say whether that will happen in five or 10 or 15 years. But it could be gone."
Mr. Boltz said Larimer & Norton has a short-term plan that assumes the devastation of the state's ash trees won't happen quickly.
"The ash borers came through Ohio mainly using suburban areas where nursery plantings and the movement of wood hastened the spread," he said. "Its natural migration is only about 10 miles a year, so if it gets into a forest setting with a lot of trees for it to get into, we'll still have some time and there will still be some good trees."
But near the spot where the borer was first found along Route 19 in Cranberry, close by the Interstate 79 and the Pennsylvania Turnpike exchange, good ash trees are already in short supply. Sven-Erik Spichiger, an entomologist with the state Department of Agriculture, said hundreds of ash in 28 square miles of woodlands and suburban developments surveyed showed signs of infestation. State officials have also received reports of possible ash borer infestation from property owners outside the survey area that must still be checked.
What to watch for
Signs of infestation by the bright green Agrilus planipennis -- which usually kills a tree in two to three years -- include dead branches at the top of the tree, yellow leaves, wood****** holes, D-shaped holes in the tree bark and curvy trails made by larvae under the bark, and small branches emerging directly out of a tree's trunk.
The beetle is native to eastern Russia, northern China, Japan and Korea. It was accidentally imported into the United States in packing crates and was first discovered in Canton, Mich., near Detroit, in July 2002. It has since moved through Illinois, Indiana and into Canada, and been found in shipped nursery stock in Virginia and Maryland.
"We're not sure yet how the borer showed up here. Cranberry is along the interstate so the chances are firewood or cut logs were involved," Mr. Spichiger said. "But right now we have no absolute ground zero."
The U.S. Department of Agriculture has given the state an emergency grant of $3 million to conduct surveys and public awareness programs. Mr. Spichiger said the state Agriculture Department will immediately start surveying for the borer along all major roadways in the western part of the state, from Erie through Pittsburgh, getting out every mile to inspect the roadside trees.
No statewide tree inventory for ash exists, but most estimates say there are more than 3 million ash trees in the state, from 3 percent to 5 percent of the forest, with higher percentages along roadways and streams, in urban areas and through the state's northern tier counties.
Mr. Spichiger said the initial survey findings indicating the bugs have been in the state for a year or more preclude attempts to eradicate the borer. Such a strategy, tried unsuccessfully in Michigan, would involve the clear-cutting of thousands of ash trees. He said application of an insecticide, which must be injected into the trees roots annually, is not a viable option for large areas and is probably cost prohibitive even for individual property owners.
"We're hoping we can slow it down. There's no plan for eradication now," Mr. Spichiger said. "We're looking for adults and we're scrambling to find them while they're flying [and thus easier to see] through mid-July."
He said the state Agriculture Department is planning to hold meetings for tree-trimmers, mulch suppliers, firewood providers and nursery owners to educate them about the borer, how to recognize infestation and quarantine rules.
Mr. Boltz said his mill, 5 miles south of the Pennsylvania-New York border, gets about 25 percent of its ash from New York, and it's still unclear how the state quarantine will affect out-of-state suppliers. There's also concern that Pennsylvania suppliers, worried about a borer infestation of their woodlots, could flood the market.
Mr. Boltz said if the ash forests are lost, the bat market could turn to maple or some other wood to replace ash, but there are economic barriers. The going price for maple billets is three to four times the price of ash, a difference that has so far kept most of the maple in the hands of major leaguers.
Ironically, the threat to the continued production of ash bats comes at a time when many amateur baseball and softball leagues are moving away from metal bats and back to wood. New York City has banned aluminum bats for high school play, and Pennsylvania and New Jersey have been talking about similar aluminum bat bans for safety reasons. City and county sandlot leagues and over-30 baseball leagues are also turning back to wood in increasing numbers.
"The trend back to wood is there, but the ash supplies are being threatened," Mr. Boltz said. "A lot will depend on what we can do with maple and other woods."
No matter what, the crack of a bat on a baseball will never be the same.
First published at PG NOW on July 14, 2007 at 10:42 pm
Don Hopey can be reached at dhopey@post-gazette.com or 412-263-1983.
Hopefully Texas will adopt this legislation, in light of the death of a player from Grapevine HS last spring!!
Good find, deldad.
Nothing beats the sound of a wood bat meeting the ball perfectly.
Now a question for those who have seen or played a lot more baseball than I have. Is there a discernible difference in the sounds of the different type wood bats?
Nothing beats the sound of a wood bat meeting the ball perfectly.
Now a question for those who have seen or played a lot more baseball than I have. Is there a discernible difference in the sounds of the different type wood bats?
quote:Nothing beats the sound of a wood bat meeting the ball perfectly.
Wood bats,...YEAH!!!!!!
I too hope this trend spreads across the nation!
The ball comes off a wood bat just as hot when hit just right. But the thing is its alot harder to hit it just right with wood. So over the course of a game or season the fact is there are less hot shots. Alot less. Baseball was meant to be played with wood. It is so much better its not even funny. I pray for the day the metal bat is a distant memory and the sound of the ball coming off the wood is once heard again at every ball park. And the sound of the TING is a very distant memory.
I always liked the 'crack'of the bat better than that 'Tiiinnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnngggggggggggg'.
Most important, it should cut the time that the better players will have to spend in the minors getting used to using wood.
I wonder if 'wood bat' tournaments will go out of style. I guess only the name since they will all be wood bat tournaments.
I wonder if bats made of maple would have a larger 'sweet spot'.
Such a ting.
Most important, it should cut the time that the better players will have to spend in the minors getting used to using wood.
I wonder if 'wood bat' tournaments will go out of style. I guess only the name since they will all be wood bat tournaments.
I wonder if bats made of maple would have a larger 'sweet spot'.
Such a ting.
As you have imagined Quincy, a bat made from Sugar Maple (Acer saccharum) would have a 'sweet spot' from end to end.
We'll see how long it lasts. We went to wood bats in MA in 2003. It lasted one year. The expense issue trumped the safety concerns.
quote:Originally posted by Midlo Dad:
I hope this starts a trend and spreads like wildfire!
If it spreads like wildfire...they'll be no wood for bats and they'll be forced to stay with metal.
Quote from chairman of the Catholic High School Athletics Association in New York referenced in article on this thread: "The court struck out on this one," he said, "but city players are the big losers because they won't get to use the bat of their choice."
This quote was at the end of the article which does not seem to be a very persuasive position for metal bats. IMO this sure is not much of a LOSS!! Oh my, they have to learn how to hit with a wood bat, Oh the shame!!!
I too hope this spreads across the nation and also from HS to college!
This quote was at the end of the article which does not seem to be a very persuasive position for metal bats. IMO this sure is not much of a LOSS!! Oh my, they have to learn how to hit with a wood bat, Oh the shame!!!
I too hope this spreads across the nation and also from HS to college!
I understand that the metal bat maufacturers have appealed this decision again.
There's also legislation in the house in PA for banning metal bats. While I prefer wood bats, I don't want the government telling me what kind of bats the team will use. What do these people know about baseball? Where will it stop? How about pitchers throwing from behind L screens in games? Facemasks for infielders? Flak jackets for hitters to protect their chests? Do not let the legislature into baseball. Let them figure out public education, taxes and crime first.
TG,
I couldn't agree more. Our tax dollars should not be spent to have our gov't decide what bats we should use. Although I am in favor of the decision to use wood bats at that level, what will this do for colleges, nevermind the bat industry.
I couldn't agree more. Our tax dollars should not be spent to have our gov't decide what bats we should use. Although I am in favor of the decision to use wood bats at that level, what will this do for colleges, nevermind the bat industry.
This cost issue kills me. One metal bat is going to cost you around 300 bucks. You can get 6 wood bats for that. You can get 3 composite bats for that. The vast majority of kids do not play year round only during their rec season or HS season. The ones that play alot have a ton of bats anyway because that is what they do. I see these kids wearing 100.00 cleats , swinging bats that cost 300.00 that only last about a year anyway. They have gloves that cost 200.00 easy at least one some more. Cost is not an issue. I just dont buy that excuse at all. My son goes through 2 or 3 wood bats a year. If he played the HS season with wood maybe one or two more. I would still come out cheaper not having to buy a metal bat each year. Quit whining and learn to hit. The metal bat is for patsies that dont want to have to earn their way on base. Ban the metal for the sake of the game. Forget the safety issue if you want to. Use it if you want to. The game was meant to be played with wood. Do any of you honestly believe that a kid will not be able to play because he can not afford a wood bat? How many do not play now because they can not afford a metal bat?
May I say this with regard to wood bats---we use maple bats from RSP---we get 24 a year and use them at our showcases for BP and then for the tournaments we take part in from August to November
Last year we broke but 2 of the 24 and that is with an excessive amount of use---to me the $$$ chatter is erroneous--As Coach May states you can buy 6 good wood bats for the price of one aluminum bat and the aluminum bats, especially here in the weather of the Northeast are lucky to last a year not to mention that the aluminum bats seem to be breaking more frequently than ever before
BASEBALL WAS MEANT TO BE PLAYED WITH WOOD !!!!
Last year we broke but 2 of the 24 and that is with an excessive amount of use---to me the $$$ chatter is erroneous--As Coach May states you can buy 6 good wood bats for the price of one aluminum bat and the aluminum bats, especially here in the weather of the Northeast are lucky to last a year not to mention that the aluminum bats seem to be breaking more frequently than ever before
BASEBALL WAS MEANT TO BE PLAYED WITH WOOD !!!!
The price of ash and maple just went up. Wood bats are the way to go BUT at the demand of who? LEGISLATION? Becareful this may not effect baseball only there are plenty of other sports that they could poke there noses into. As for players with 300$$ bats that last a year, they also have guarnantee for at least that long, and can be replaced pretty much hassle free. Leagues should choose what is best for them, all situations are not cookie cutter. I have seen some teams where almost every player uses the same bat therefore the chances of replacement of that wood bat are higher and that could be a problem for teams and players who do not have alot of funding.Do to the fact that baseball may not be the primary sport at your school or in your town.Or maybe your town is just small. Lets "choose" to have the wood bat come back. Not be told.
I'm nervous when elected officials start deciding on equipment that can or cannot be used in high school sports. Is that what we need these good folks doing with their time?
Indeed there are cheaper wood bat alternatives available now than there were in 2003. Back then, virtually all maple bats were around $100 or higher. Now there are plenty of good bats available in the $50-$75 range.
Coach May, while I agree with you, most HS players do not intend to go further with the game and do not have the coaching available to learn to "hit correctly." As a result, they break a lot of bats. In 2003, we went through about 7 bats in the HS season. Also, the team supplied about 10, pretty much all of which were broken early in the season.
Coach May, while I agree with you, most HS players do not intend to go further with the game and do not have the coaching available to learn to "hit correctly." As a result, they break a lot of bats. In 2003, we went through about 7 bats in the HS season. Also, the team supplied about 10, pretty much all of which were broken early in the season.
something to think about,
there are alot of people for the wood bat, myself included. Saying that,if the metal bats are for "patsies" then DONT USE ONE! Remember you now have a choice which may not have much longer. Those who really and truly are All Wood, and feel that strongly about it can use all wood. You never know, someone watching could be very impressed by your courage to be different, using wood when everyone else is not, and for letting people see your ability. Who knows, it could catch on and the metal bat could fade away.
there are alot of people for the wood bat, myself included. Saying that,if the metal bats are for "patsies" then DONT USE ONE! Remember you now have a choice which may not have much longer. Those who really and truly are All Wood, and feel that strongly about it can use all wood. You never know, someone watching could be very impressed by your courage to be different, using wood when everyone else is not, and for letting people see your ability. Who knows, it could catch on and the metal bat could fade away.
While I'm very glad to see this move back toward wood, I'm not excited that its happening due to legislation and the courts.
Our summer teams have always been heavily slanted towards wood. During this summer's Connie Mack sectional playoffs, some people noted on a regional sports website that our team was a bit strange since we used wood bats while all the other teams swung metal. They couldn't understand how we could beat teams swinging metal. There are a lot of uninformed people out there who don't realize that what matters is learning to hit properly, much more than the composition of the bat you're swinging.
We go through a fair amount of wood every summer, and I wouldn't have it any other way. I don't mandate the use of wood, but do explain why we encourage our hitters to use wood. Now, most of them leave the metals bats at home even when we play metal bat opponents and our results end up just fine anyway.
It is fun to see the look on people's faces when they realize that we're swinging wood while they're swinging metal, and don't care!
Our summer teams have always been heavily slanted towards wood. During this summer's Connie Mack sectional playoffs, some people noted on a regional sports website that our team was a bit strange since we used wood bats while all the other teams swung metal. They couldn't understand how we could beat teams swinging metal. There are a lot of uninformed people out there who don't realize that what matters is learning to hit properly, much more than the composition of the bat you're swinging.
We go through a fair amount of wood every summer, and I wouldn't have it any other way. I don't mandate the use of wood, but do explain why we encourage our hitters to use wood. Now, most of them leave the metals bats at home even when we play metal bat opponents and our results end up just fine anyway.
It is fun to see the look on people's faces when they realize that we're swinging wood while they're swinging metal, and don't care!
06
If the players know how to hit then wood or aluminum it wont matter---if you can hit hit with wood you will hit even better with aluminum
If the players know how to hit then wood or aluminum it wont matter---if you can hit hit with wood you will hit even better with aluminum
I can't even believe there is still discussion on the wood bat - metal issue.
IMO, a player can only be considered an accomplished hitter (statistically speaking) if he swings a wood bat.
IMO, a player can only be considered an accomplished hitter (statistically speaking) if he swings a wood bat.
I actually dont like this legislation at all for a very selfish reason. I live in NY and can go into a modell's these days in the beginning of the season and get a good wood bat for very cheap. When this legislation goes through the supply of wood will dry up making it more expensive to get good wood. 
If other states do this, wood bats will become just as expensive as the metal ones are. Worse, they do break. The metal ones dent on occasion.
My two cents.
If other states do this, wood bats will become just as expensive as the metal ones are. Worse, they do break. The metal ones dent on occasion.
My two cents.
captlid
Nice profile!!!
Nice profile!!!
Hello;
In 1987, we started the Area Code games with wood bats. In our Goodwill Series with Japan [1983-2006], we used metal until this year.
My son and I have refused to continue the Japan Series unless they use wood. The major reason, is
it is a "false" indicator of a hitter's ability
and when I received that in the past three years, two Japanese HS pitchers were killed by a batted ball. Japan's answer is to place "boxers" style helmets on the pitchers.
Bob Hall, Cooperstown Hall of Fame umpire, who is a great friend, called me yesterday to request a sequel to our Goodwill Series event last August with the Japan National Team and our USA American High School team.
Bob and discussed my conviction that the metal bats used by both teams in the two games in Cooperstown and the 3 games in Los Angeles. These games, because of the Japan pitcher Saito were reported by 100 Japan media directly by satellite to 40 million of people in Japan.
To play a baseball game in Cooperstown Legends field and not use wood bats is
a disgrace to the history of baseball and the “Hall of Fame”.
During the game at USC in Los Angeles on the 2 September with an attendance of 1,700 people and sent by ABC-TV to 30 million viewers in Japan, a Japanese hitter with short “samurai” type swing [fine tuned with over 1,000 hours of 6 days a week batting practice contacted a 90 mph fast ball from an American LHP.
My eyes watched this ball travel back to the young pitcher at an “unbelievable” rate of 150 mph.
Our young pitcher, who has the ability to be a “high draft” in 2008, finished his follow thru with his glove “in front of his face” and caught this rocket fired from a metal bat swung by a very efficient batter.
In the audience were player agents [advisors], pro scouts and several lawyers. My reaction is to ban all metal bats from future Goodwill series events with Japan, China, Australia and USA teams.
In Sadaharu Oh’s book “a Zen Way of Baseball” page 176 it discusses the way of the sword fighter as a similar stroke to hitting a baseball. OH trained with the great sword fighters while playing with Tokyo Giants.
4,000 high school coaches, who have also learned from the teachings of the famous Oh and the history of the samurai, train the Japanese high school hitters.
Perfect practice results in a perfect swing for the Japan High School hitter. He does not need the metal bat to display his skill as a hitter. The American high school hitter will acquire this skill in professional baseball and he will surpass the Japan hitter, except for Ichiro and Matsui, who have used knowledge of pitchers and their Japan training to gain their “edge” as superior professional hitters.
Please everyone consider the use of wood bats to reduce the chance of serious injury!
Bob Williams
In 1987, we started the Area Code games with wood bats. In our Goodwill Series with Japan [1983-2006], we used metal until this year.
My son and I have refused to continue the Japan Series unless they use wood. The major reason, is
it is a "false" indicator of a hitter's ability
and when I received that in the past three years, two Japanese HS pitchers were killed by a batted ball. Japan's answer is to place "boxers" style helmets on the pitchers.
Bob Hall, Cooperstown Hall of Fame umpire, who is a great friend, called me yesterday to request a sequel to our Goodwill Series event last August with the Japan National Team and our USA American High School team.
Bob and discussed my conviction that the metal bats used by both teams in the two games in Cooperstown and the 3 games in Los Angeles. These games, because of the Japan pitcher Saito were reported by 100 Japan media directly by satellite to 40 million of people in Japan.
To play a baseball game in Cooperstown Legends field and not use wood bats is
a disgrace to the history of baseball and the “Hall of Fame”.
During the game at USC in Los Angeles on the 2 September with an attendance of 1,700 people and sent by ABC-TV to 30 million viewers in Japan, a Japanese hitter with short “samurai” type swing [fine tuned with over 1,000 hours of 6 days a week batting practice contacted a 90 mph fast ball from an American LHP.
My eyes watched this ball travel back to the young pitcher at an “unbelievable” rate of 150 mph.
Our young pitcher, who has the ability to be a “high draft” in 2008, finished his follow thru with his glove “in front of his face” and caught this rocket fired from a metal bat swung by a very efficient batter.
In the audience were player agents [advisors], pro scouts and several lawyers. My reaction is to ban all metal bats from future Goodwill series events with Japan, China, Australia and USA teams.
In Sadaharu Oh’s book “a Zen Way of Baseball” page 176 it discusses the way of the sword fighter as a similar stroke to hitting a baseball. OH trained with the great sword fighters while playing with Tokyo Giants.
4,000 high school coaches, who have also learned from the teachings of the famous Oh and the history of the samurai, train the Japanese high school hitters.
Perfect practice results in a perfect swing for the Japan High School hitter. He does not need the metal bat to display his skill as a hitter. The American high school hitter will acquire this skill in professional baseball and he will surpass the Japan hitter, except for Ichiro and Matsui, who have used knowledge of pitchers and their Japan training to gain their “edge” as superior professional hitters.
Please everyone consider the use of wood bats to reduce the chance of serious injury!
Bob Williams
Being able to hit with wood doesn't matter until a player becomes a pro prospect.quote:Originally posted by Toronto Cardinals:
I can't even believe there is still discussion on the wood bat - metal issue.
IMO, a player can only be considered an accomplished hitter (statistically speaking) if he swings a wood bat.
Bob I commend you for taking an international stand on wood. Your voice is one of great reason and experience. All here should take note.
Was that an American or Japanese "sword" that launched the 150 mph rocket? WOW! That is unbelievable! And scary too.
The game has really changed as a result of the metal bat, and I can't see anything that makes it better. Just the opposite. There is no good reason for metal bats at upper levels of the game. Use what the best use.
MELT THE BATS!
BTW the producer of the baseball tennis ad should be commended also for using wood bat sounds in that spot. I love that ad.
Was that an American or Japanese "sword" that launched the 150 mph rocket? WOW! That is unbelievable! And scary too.
The game has really changed as a result of the metal bat, and I can't see anything that makes it better. Just the opposite. There is no good reason for metal bats at upper levels of the game. Use what the best use.
MELT THE BATS!
BTW the producer of the baseball tennis ad should be commended also for using wood bat sounds in that spot. I love that ad.
that is one of the funniest commercials i have ever seen that didn't involve nudity.
I love the smell of wood in the morning... and noon, and night... here's one Kansas skipper hoping that wood will return to our game.