Composite - Alloy e-Letter

In this issue:

-                        Article: “Baseball Bat Ban For 2011 Season”

-                        HIGH SCHOOL BASEBALL BAT BLOWOUT

-                        Coming This Week - Highlights

-                        Thanks For 10 Years

-                        Jersey Seeds Baseballs & Softballs

-                        Current Store Hours

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Baseball Bat Ban For 2011 Season

 High Schools and Little League Bat Ban Begins This Year

3/19/11

The high school and Little League bat rules change has got most everyone pretty confused. Players, parents, coaches, and umpires cannot keep up with all the legal and illegal bats. The testing and re-testing, BESR, BBCOR, ABI, and the BPF. Forget about the endless debate over non-wood bats versus wood bats. That’s a book in itself. Hopefully after you read this you’ll be educated about the latest bat bans in the baseball world for 2011.

The confusion had already began after last season when the National Federation of High Schools (NFHS) banned all composite barrel bats for use in high school play going forward.  

Remember the key words to note in both Little League and high school play are “composite barrel”. There’s been a lot of confusion on this. There are several 2-piece bat styles that incorporate a composite handle with an alloy (aluminum) barrel and these are perfectly legal on either level. These are the bats causing a lot of the confusion. The understated markings on a composite barrel bat that states its composite does not help as they are usually too small to read especially when mixed in with the unique graphic design of each model bat. One easy test if it’s a cool day is to just put your hand around the barrel of the bat(s). Metal conducts cold but composite material does not. Compare a bat you know is a composite to the one in question. If the one barrel in question feels colder, it’s an alloy barrel.

It’s confusing especially for coaches and umpires, not just players and parents. I heard that last week at an umpires meeting the umpire-in-chief in the Bergen County Area told all his umpires that the Easton Surge was illegal. The Surge is a 2-piece bat with a composite handle and alloy barrel. The weekend brought on mass confusion with players and parents. Luckily it was still March and these were all scrimmages.

On January 1, 2011, Little League had banned all composite barrel bats pending re-testing of their already in place bat performance factor (bpf) standards. The re-testing would be called “ABI” which stands for “After Break In”. Composites are known for getting better after use.

Picture above shows an example of composite barrel Little League baseball bats. The Easton Omen and the DeMarini CF4 are legal. The Louisville Slugger Z1000 and the Rawlings 5150 are not legal for Little League play.

Aside from the bad timing of it all, here are some facts you should know. I have been told by people that they are buying bats even now from businesses or online sites that they were not told about the ban when buying the bat. This is an unacceptable and unscrupulous business practice. You should be told by the salesperson up front about this. All the staff in any store you shop in should notify you of this.

 Picture above shows a group of Little League bats that are all legal because they are alloy (aluminum) barrel bats.

 As far as the ban goes on both LL and high school, all bats that have been re-submitted have now completed being re-tested. Many passed the test and were brought from the banned list to legal status by being re-tested. Of all the high school bats that were banned, all but one major manufacturer’s bats came off the banned list.

Pictured above is an illegal high school composite barrel bat, the Easton Speed.

Some manufacturers opted not to pay for the re-testing on some models. That would render that model illegal for game play.

One very important major factor in play here is that if your town does not play under the Little League charter, than your bat is not illegal unless that independent or other organization follows Little League’s lead. Initially many did follow LL and banned the comps. Most recently, a few have came off that stance and went their own way allowing composites. 

If you are in the market for a bat and think composite is the best, think again. For example, under the new bat certification in softball, the better aluminum bats are better performers than the best composite bats. Out of the wrapper under the new certification, composite bats are not permitted to perform as well as alloy bats. This is due to the fact that composite bats will improve on average 3 mph (ball off bat speed) over the break-in period of the bat. So if a composite bat begins at the new mark of 94.5 and increases 3mph post break-in, it ends at 97.5. The rules state 98mph is the max mph or the bat is illegal. A good alloy bat on the other hand begins at 98mph out of the wrapper. The alloy bat will only go down from there with repeated use over time, so the governing softball body (ASA), doesn’t mind alloy bats starting out at the top max.

 Purchasing considerations:

-          You can get a couple years out of a composite bat, but do you want to sacrifice some performance for the first part of a season or an entire season?

-          Will you move up in bat size the next year?

-          Do you usually but a new bat every year?

-          Are you playing for sure next year?

-          Where are you playing next year – are the bat rules different?

-          Are the bat rules changing next year even at your same level which will make the current bat illegal?

 The next new bat certification standard for high schools next year is called “BBCOR”, which colleges started this year. This one is a whopper as it has caused mass confusion among the high school ranks. College is now playing with it so they are settled in with their new rule. All bats that have been used the past 10 years are now illegal for college play for 2011 and same for high school in 2012! You read that right. All bats that are now the “-3, BESR” stamped bat you have become familiar with will be illegal for high school next year. The stamp on the bat must be the “BBCOR” stamp for 2012. It is a rectangular stamp with those letters. If you’re in high school, enjoy the last season of hitting with the hot bats and have fun watching the balls fly!

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HIGH SCHOOL BASEBALL BAT BUH-LOWOUT!!! – Take advantage of next year’s rules change now by grabbing an unprecedented low price on all BESR -3 bats now. All pricing is NOT per original price, but per the already marked down LOWEST sticker price. Prices start at $27.99! Sorry, we cannot hold any bats and all sales are final on BESR bats. Let us help you select the right bat for you and get the best price while doing so!

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COMING THIS WEEK – HIGHLIGHTS - Among the varied products coming in over the course of the week, the highlight might just be Marucci Bats. The Marucci Cat 5 for Little League and BBCOR -3, and the Marucci legendary wood bats - the bat of Albert Pujols.

 Also in last week and almost sold out already was Anderson Bats – a premium alloy in the Rip-It class. The Rocketech and Nanotek for Fastpitch Softball, Little League, and Slowpitch Softball. The hot pop alloy of alloys. No confusion here – like Rip-It the bats hit better than or equal to the new composites.

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THANKS FOR 10 YEARS – Time sure flies and we’d like to thank you for 10 years of continued success. Look for some 10^th anniversary celebrations and specials throughout the season! At Bergen Batting Center we’ve always prided ourselves on staying current on which bats hit best. We tell our players the facts about bat performance and also what are currently banned bats. We do not condone business practices in our industry otherwise. Our staff will inform you prior to the sale about your new bat’s performance. We appreciate your support entering our 11^th year!

 College players - we have BBCOR bats in stock.

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JERSEY SEEDS BASEBALL AND SOFTBALLS – Coaches - Compare balls and you’ll see not only do you save money over the big brands, but you can get a quality ball. The SB-111-Y softball is an 11” softee ball for the younger girls just starting out. It is the best for the instructional girls to get used to and have safety in mind.

 Coaches - the Jersey Seeds OLB10 baseball which has been the practice ball (and summer game ball) of choice for years for many teams and leagues in the area. The new version has seams virtually identical to the Wilson A1010. Not only that, the ball now has an approved NFHS stamp for high school game use. Plus, the ball has a tighter winding than the A1010 which is amazing to me. Nothing compares at $25.99 doz. and you have no shipping fees as well if you pick up at the store. Get ‘em while we have stock as these sell out every year.

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BASEBALL EQUIPMENT HEADQUARTERS
3 New Bridge Road
River Edge, NJ 07661
201-525-1888
www.bergenbattingcenter.com
Indoor Batting at its Best!