Great Baseball Bats:
Straight to the point baseball bat reviews and much much more…
Welcome to Great Baseball Bats!
Hi and welcome to my site. My name is Martin and I have been playing baseball since as long as I can remember. As a baseball player, I’ve been on a constant mission to find the best gear and especially the best baseball bats on the market. So I decide to start this website as a free source of information to help other baseball players get the best equipment for them.
Here on my website, you’ll find a number of resources to help you learn more about baseball equipment, from baseball bat reviews (and especially BBCOR bat reviews), to the best pitching machines, to how to take care of your equipment and much much more.
On the right you can find links to all the baseball bats reviews on this site and other interesting stuff. Below you’ll find a general review and guide to baseball bats, to help you choose the best bat for you, so read on…
What Is The Best Baseball Bat On The Market – What Baseball Bat Should I Choose?
Many people are always looking for straight answers but with baseball bats there aren’t any. Which is the best baseball bat depends on the person and is honestly not something I can tell you. You have to try out the different bats and find the one that feels best for you.
Don’t just buy the bat that others are using, for example, their bodies might be more bulky than yours and so they use an end loaded bat where a more balanced bat would suit you better. So take your time! A good baseball bat is expensive and you don’t want to waste your money. My advice is to talk to other players, read baseball bat reviews and before you buy any bat. Maybe try some swings with it first.
One thing you have to decide on is what kind of bat you want: wood, aluminum, composite or half and half. Here you’ll find an overview of the different types of bats and what their advantages and drawbacks are.
Wooden baseball bats
These bats can be seen mostly used in the Major Leagues where they are the only allowed bats. This is important to know for the players who aim high. If you have never used a wooden baseball bat before, it will by all accounts take some time to get use to. For the serious players this means that to get to the next level you need to train with wood.
Different Types Of Wood Baseball Bats
The popular types of wood used for baseball bats are ash and maple but you can also find other types of wood such as hickory wood and the more exotic one; bamboo.
Ash Baseball Bats
Ash Wood Baseball bats are commonly made from Northern White Ash. The wood is graded for quality with straight grain being the most important criteria. The wood is graded with Major League grade as being the best. Most of the ash bats you see are labeled or sold as Pro-Stock or another similar name is actually Minor League wood. Of course, there are other lower qualities; they are known as high school, trophy and retail.
Maple Baseball bats
Maple wood baseball bats are very popular even though they cost more than the ash bats, but if they are properly made by using the right material known as Rock or Sugar Maple, they tends to outlast ash baseball bats many times over. Most people agree that it is worth the extra money because they last longer, so in the long run they’re less expensive.
Some wooden baseball bats reviews and guides state that there are many inferior qualities of maple when compared to the good types of maple like rock maple and sugar maple.
Hickory Baseball Bats
Hickory wood baseball bats are not used by many players because they are much heavier than the ash and maple bats. But many baseball experts say that hickory bats are going to be a “next-great” thing in wooden bats. It’s some of the hardest wood you can get but its drawback is being heavy. However, new and improved methods of air kiln-drying lets the scientists remove more of the moisture which in turn means some removal of the weight. This will make the hickory baseball bat lighter but still hard.
Bamboo Baseball bats
This is another exotic material that is now on the market. Bamboo chutes are hollow so bamboo bats are made by pressing bamboo “strips” into billets, and then turning these billets into bats. One fun thing to know about bamboo is that it is extremely strong; it is stronger than oak, ash and maple. We will probably see many more bamboo bats in the future followed by a baseball bat review or two.
Aluminum Baseball Bats
Aluminum baseball bats were firstly introduced in the 1970′s and they would forever change the game of baseball except for the pros. Aluminum bats are lighter and stronger than wooden bats and because they are lighter you can supposedly generate more speed and hit the ball harder. For the baseball players this supposedly means they can hit a baseball significantly further than wooden bats. This is not just because the aluminum bats are lighter but also because of their “trampoline effect”.
What is the “trampoline effect”?
“The barrel of the bat essentially acts as a spring during the bat-ball collision. If the barrel spring is very stiff, then the ball compresses a great deal upon impact and loses a significant amount of energy in the process of compression and re-expanding. However, if the barrel of the bat is made softer, then the barrel compresses more, the ball compresses less, and the ball loses less energy during the collision. Furthermore, the energy which was temporarily stored in the barrel spring is returned to the ball and the ball speed is greatly increased after the collision.”
Most non-pro players generally choose aluminum or composite bats simply because they are better bats. One thing to keep in mind is that if you practice with only non-wooden bats, the transition can be difficult if you go pro.
Another good thing about aluminum bats is they generally won’t break like a wood bat. This is not entirely true as many baseball bat reviews state that the new high-tech models can crack or dent. Most aluminum baseball bats are also sensitive to low temperature so always follow the instructions from the manufacture.
Composite Bats
Composite baseball bats are the new type of bats on the Baseball scene. Experts say that they outperform aluminum bats when used correctly. This is the thing with composite bats; they take time to break in and needs to be broken in hitting good, leather cover solid baseballs. Another complaint seen in many baseball bat reviews is that they have poor durability but if you follow the directions of the manufacture this shouldn’t be a problem. Don’t use them in cold weather and rotate them as instructed.
Another thing stated in many reviews of composite baseball bats is the sound. But when the bat is properly broken in, the sound changes to sound more like a gun shot. With proper knowledge and practice a composite bat can, according to experts, make the average hitter a clean-up hitter.
Composite Bats VS Aluminum Bats
This is a matter of how you feel and the quality of the different bats. It is assumed that in most cases, a full composite bat is better than aluminum. There are advantages and drawbacks to each kind of bats. It all depends on what you are looking for in a bat.
Half and Half Bats
These bats combine the aluminum bat’s barrel with a composite handle. This gives the bat the flex of a composite bat and the durability of an aluminum bat. This makes for strong bat according to many baseball bats reviews but often with less “pop” than a full composite bat.
What To Think About When You Buy A Baseball Bat
When you have bought a new baseball bat, make sure to read the instructions. This will tell you how to treat the bat and in what conditions you can use it in. Also always keep the receipt; this is especially important with composite and aluminum bats. If there is any problem with the bat while it is under warranty, you will need the receipt when you send it to the manufacturer.
BBCOR Baseball Bats And BBCOR Bat Reviews
BBCOR Mark
An important thing to pay attention to when you buy a new baseball bat is if it is BBCOR approved. BBCOR stands for Bat-Ball Coefficient of Restitution and is a new rules for High School and College baseball bats. This new rule is designed to make non-wood bats even more “wood-like” in their performance.
All BBCOR bats can be easily identified by a BBCOR mark on the bat. A bat is required to be BBCOR-approved to be used intercollegiate play and high school associations throughout the country. If you want to use your bat in youth, high school or college play then make sure that the bat is a BBCOR baseball bat, reviews should also always tell you if the particular bat is BBCOR-approved.
If you have any questions, suggestions or feedback on Great Baseball Bats, please don’t hesitate to contact me. Feel free to browse around the website; on the right side you’ll find links to different baseball bat reviews, guides and other information. Enjoy…
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