Submitted by Bryan Kay, Apr 30, 2007 22:32

Mr Armour,

While you make a good point that there would be some costs involved with switching to wood bats, I think your math is way off base. Let's say that it will cost $10,000 per player, per season for wood bats (as you claimed in your post). That would mean that it would cost $200,000 for wood bats for the team (of 20 players). Now, let's say that a normal wood bat costs $100. And say you play 3 games a week for 7 weeks (your typical spring season) and a couple of double headers to make 25 games (to make the calculations easier). If it costs $10,000 per season per player for bats, that would mean that each player would have to go through 100 bats a season. If a player gets 4 at bats per game, that would mean that they would have to break a bat in every at bat to make your figures plausable.

Today, aluminum bats cost anywhere between $250 and $375 depending on the model. The bat companies are making the walls so thin that they only last a season or two at most. As soon as they are dented, they can no longer be used in the game. This is not a rule put in by coaches, but by the leagues, because it causes safety concerns by using a defective equipment. You can get a good maple bat (stronger than ash) for around $100. They also make "composite" and baum bats that are also more durable. So you can get 2-3 bats for what it costs for an aluminum bat, and if you take the time to teach the kids how to PROPERLY hit with a wood bat, it will last just as long as an aluminum one.

The alumnimum bats have become a real issue in the youth game. While the number of injuries might not be more with aluminum bats (according to the Rick Redman from Louisville Slugger) it's the intesity of the injury that is greatly increased with aluminum bats. The ball just jumps off the bat, with what some call the "trampoline effect". This shortens the time players have to react to the ball coming at them, which results in a greater chance of being seriously injured. I think the switch to wood is a good idea, and contrary to your suggestion, it won't cost much more than playing with aluminum bats.

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