No more metal bats in NYC

[XZero771679666304]

they should let the pros use aluminum bats during the HR derby. Imagine how far Ortiz or Dunn could hit a ball with aluminum.....600-700 feet?

 

That would be great until a line drive homer killed a spectator. :shock:

[UK1679666180]

I'm hoping more Illinois conferences use wood, the quicker they would do this, the better. I seen a kid on Sunday take a comebacker off his right hand and with wood, probably would not have hit him since the batter was jammed on the pitch.

 

As far as schollies and draft status, Raisin mentioned the draft and why scouts would prefer wood bats. There are many HS players/programs that use wood bats during batting practice and in the offseason as a sort of overload program to get ready for the season.

[Vinestal]

This is great, I hope it starts a trend. Id love to see them ban aluminum bats everywhere on every level. College would sure be more interesting if they used wood bats, they would basicly be very similar to the minors then.

 

Indeed. That's basically why baseball is the only major sport that has that "intermediate" level i.e. the minor leagues.

 

even though hockey has fallen by the wayside, they have the CHL/ECHL (AA), and the AHL (AAA). Though player development is tons different in hockey.

 

Yeah, I don't think more wood bats is suddenly going to make college baseball more popular and minor league obsolete. I don't see how olemiss can back up his claim.

 

Are you kidding? Wood bats would make a huge difference. Ive never seen a college baseball game (in person), aluminum bats are the main reason for that. The difference between wood baseball and aluminum is huge to me. "ping" does not invoke baseball memories for me. Not to mention the gigantic advantage it give the hitters. They can foul off certain types of pitches all day long, with the wood bat they would probably K on. I guess my love of pitching is one of the reasons I loathe the metal bats. The collge game is almost comical to me. Id probably go see alot of college games if they used wood. I think alot of other people feel this way. Just my 2 cents.

[Transmogrified Tiger]

They can foul off certain types of pitches all day long, with the wood bat they would probably K on.

 

You're going to have to explain that one to me.

[jersey cubs fan]

This is great, I hope it starts a trend. Id love to see them ban aluminum bats everywhere on every level. College would sure be more interesting if they used wood bats, they would basicly be very similar to the minors then.

 

Indeed. That's basically why baseball is the only major sport that has that "intermediate" level i.e. the minor leagues.

 

even though hockey has fallen by the wayside, they have the CHL/ECHL (AA), and the AHL (AAA). Though player development is tons different in hockey.

 

Yeah, I don't think more wood bats is suddenly going to make college baseball more popular and minor league obsolete. I don't see how olemiss can back up his claim.

 

Are you kidding? Wood bats would make a huge difference. Ive never seen a college baseball game, aluminum bats are the main reason for that. The difference between wood baseball and aluminum is huge to me. "ping" does not invoke baseball memories for me. Not to mention the gigantic advantage it give the hitters. They can foul off certain types of pitches all day long, with the wood bat they would probably K on. I guess my love of pitching is one of the reasons I loathe the metal bats. The collge game is almost comical to me. Id probably go see alot of college games if they used wood. I think alot of other people feel this way. Just my 2 cents.

 

If you've never gone to college baseball games before, I'd bet heavy money you won't go to many in the future if they changed. Regardless, even if a couple people do share your feelings, and actually do follow through, that won't do anything to minor league baseball, or college baseball, overall. The notion that minor league baseball only exists as an intermediary between aluminum and wood is what I'm taking issue with. Minor league baseball exists because players take time to develop, baseball is not a heavy physical game (ie, dominated by youth), and because enough people support it financially to maintain all those teams. The aluminum bat came about in the 70's, minor league baseball started long before that.

[UK1679666180]

I don't think wood bats would bring alot more people to college games, especially in conjunction to minor league games. It might bring some, but overall that diff. would be minimal.

 

I hate aluminum probably more than anyone in here, but more fans isn't high on the list.

[UK1679666180]

They can foul off certain types of pitches all day long, with the wood bat they would probably K on.

 

You're going to have to explain that one to me.

 

There are some situations where they are late and able to get the lighter bat into the zone at the last second and foul it off as well as the improved bat control can also foul off a pitch.

[Transmogrified Tiger]

They can foul off certain types of pitches all day long, with the wood bat they would probably K on.

 

You're going to have to explain that one to me.

 

There are some situations where they are late and able to get the lighter bat into the zone at the last second and foul it off as well as the improved bat control can also foul off a pitch.

 

So a switch to wood means the hitter changes the weight of the bat he swings? That seems counter-intuitive to me.

[Derwood]

my guess is that the bat companies are giving WAY too much money to little leagues, high schools and colleges for them ever to go away (without legal actions, a la NYC)

[Ding Dong Johnson]

They can foul off certain types of pitches all day long, with the wood bat they would probably K on.

 

You're going to have to explain that one to me.

 

There are some situations where they are late and able to get the lighter bat into the zone at the last second and foul it off as well as the improved bat control can also foul off a pitch.

 

So a switch to wood means the hitter changes the weight of the bat he swings? That seems counter-intuitive to me.

 

ditto

[Derwood]

They can foul off certain types of pitches all day long, with the wood bat they would probably K on.

 

You're going to have to explain that one to me.

 

There are some situations where they are late and able to get the lighter bat into the zone at the last second and foul it off as well as the improved bat control can also foul off a pitch.

 

So a switch to wood means the hitter changes the weight of the bat he swings? That seems counter-intuitive to me.

 

ditto

 

he'll have to switch if he enters pro baseball, so why wouldn't he want to be using the correct equipment his entire baseball playing life rather than having to make an adjustment if/when he is signed to a team?

[Ding Dong Johnson]

They can foul off certain types of pitches all day long, with the wood bat they would probably K on.

 

You're going to have to explain that one to me.

 

There are some situations where they are late and able to get the lighter bat into the zone at the last second and foul it off as well as the improved bat control can also foul off a pitch.

 

So a switch to wood means the hitter changes the weight of the bat he swings? That seems counter-intuitive to me.

 

ditto

 

he'll have to switch if he enters pro baseball, so why wouldn't he want to be using the correct equipment his entire baseball playing life rather than having to make an adjustment if/when he is signed to a team?

 

Why choose heavier bats when switching from aluminum?

[XZero771679666304]

They can foul off certain types of pitches all day long, with the wood bat they would probably K on.

 

You're going to have to explain that one to me.

 

There are some situations where they are late and able to get the lighter bat into the zone at the last second and foul it off as well as the improved bat control can also foul off a pitch.

 

So a switch to wood means the hitter changes the weight of the bat he swings? That seems counter-intuitive to me.

 

Not really. When I played, I liked the outer half of the plate, so I used a longer bat. Now if I wanted to use a 35" bat and an aluminum one was, say, 30 ounces compared to 33 or 34 ounces for a comparable wood bat, I'm going use the aluminum one. This is going to allow me to get the bat to the ball much more quickly on inside pitches that I wouldn't be able to with a wooden bat of the same length.

Edited April 24, 2007 by XZero77

[jersey cubs fan]

They can foul off certain types of pitches all day long, with the wood bat they would probably K on.

 

You're going to have to explain that one to me.

 

There are some situations where they are late and able to get the lighter bat into the zone at the last second and foul it off as well as the improved bat control can also foul off a pitch.

 

So a switch to wood means the hitter changes the weight of the bat he swings? That seems counter-intuitive to me.

 

ditto

 

he'll have to switch if he enters pro baseball, so why wouldn't he want to be using the correct equipment his entire baseball playing life rather than having to make an adjustment if/when he is signed to a team?

 

Similar length aluminum bats are lighter than wood. A mandatory switch to wood would have to result in heavier bats (slower swings), unless they wanted to go from a 33-34 inch bat to a 29 inch.

[UK1679666180]

They can foul off certain types of pitches all day long, with the wood bat they would probably K on.

 

You're going to have to explain that one to me.

 

There are some situations where they are late and able to get the lighter bat into the zone at the last second and foul it off as well as the improved bat control can also foul off a pitch.

 

So a switch to wood means the hitter changes the weight of the bat he swings? That seems counter-intuitive to me.

 

It all depends at what level, many wood bats are -3 (31 ounces and 34 inch length for example), many HS and colleges require a similar rating. Youth bats are crazy as far as ounces/length.

 

The same reason why a hitter would overload train with a heavier bat is the same reason why they add weight when they're in the OD circle.

 

The main thing that separates a wood bat and an aluminum one is the length of the sweet spot, it's about 2X as big on the aluminum. If I was a HS coach, I'd want my hitters practicing with wood.

[Transmogrified Tiger]

They can foul off certain types of pitches all day long, with the wood bat they would probably K on.

 

You're going to have to explain that one to me.

 

There are some situations where they are late and able to get the lighter bat into the zone at the last second and foul it off as well as the improved bat control can also foul off a pitch.

 

So a switch to wood means the hitter changes the weight of the bat he swings? That seems counter-intuitive to me.

 

It all depends at what level, many wood bats are -3 (31 ounces and 34 inch length for example), many HS and colleges require a similar rating. Youth bats are crazy as far as ounces/length.

 

The same reason why a hitter would overload train with a heavier bat is the same reason why they add weight when they're in the OD circle.

 

The main thing that separates a wood bat and an aluminum one is the length of the sweet spot, it's about 2X as big on the aluminum. If I was a HS coach, I'd want my hitters practicing with wood.

 

So if Wood bats are mostly -3, then there'd be no difference since -3 is the standard in aluminum bats(unless you're at kiddie levels like you mentioned).

[OleMissCub]

Yeah, I don't think more wood bats is suddenly going to make college baseball more popular and minor league obsolete. I don't see how olemiss can back up his claim.

 

Ummm....that wasn't my point at all. Not sure where you got that I was trying to suggest that it would make college baseball more popular and minor league obsolete.

 

My point was that it would make some of the stronger conferences more akin to the minor leagues from a scouting perspective. Most MLB scouts already equate the SEC and Pac-10 baseball to AA.

 

I said nothing of fan interest.

[UK1679666180]

As far as? Strikeouts, there's minimal.

 

As far as the sweet spot and being able to get something on the ball if you're jammed compared to wood as well as the end of the bat, there's a huge difference between the two. The ball just jumps alot further and quicker off of aluminum.

[jersey cubs fan]

Yeah, I don't think more wood bats is suddenly going to make college baseball more popular and minor league obsolete. I don't see how olemiss can back up his claim.

 

Ummm....that wasn't my point at all. Not sure where you got that I was trying to suggest that it would make college baseball more popular and minor league obsolete.

 

My point was that it would make some of the stronger conferences more akin to the minor leagues from a scouting perspective. Most MLB scouts already equate the SEC and Pac-10 baseball to AA.

 

I said nothing of fan interest.

 

You said it's the only reason the minor leagues exist.

[UK1679666180]

Yeah, I don't think more wood bats is suddenly going to make college baseball more popular and minor league obsolete. I don't see how olemiss can back up his claim.

 

Ummm....that wasn't my point at all. Not sure where you got that I was trying to suggest that it would make college baseball more popular and minor league obsolete.

 

My point was that it would make some of the stronger conferences more akin to the minor leagues from a scouting perspective. Most MLB scouts already equate the SEC and Pac-10 baseball to AA.

I said nothing of fan interest.

 

That's not true at all, rare collegiate talents like Price and Prior, maybe could be at AA level when starting out.

 

If that was the case, every starter from the SEC and Pac-10 would get drafted.

[OleMissCub]

They can foul off certain types of pitches all day long, with the wood bat they would probably K on.

 

You're going to have to explain that one to me.

 

There are some situations where they are late and able to get the lighter bat into the zone at the last second and foul it off as well as the improved bat control can also foul off a pitch.

 

So a switch to wood means the hitter changes the weight of the bat he swings? That seems counter-intuitive to me.

 

It all depends at what level, many wood bats are -3 (31 ounces and 34 inch length for example), many HS and colleges require a similar rating. Youth bats are crazy as far as ounces/length.

 

The same reason why a hitter would overload train with a heavier bat is the same reason why they add weight when they're in the OD circle.

 

The main thing that separates a wood bat and an aluminum one is the length of the sweet spot, it's about 2X as big on the aluminum. If I was a HS coach, I'd want my hitters practicing with wood.

 

When I played with aluminum in college I used 34/31. In my wooden bat summer leagues I also used a 34/31. It felt a little heavier but not much.

 

And you're right about the sweet spot. Definitely bigger with aluminum.

[OleMissCub]

Yeah, I don't think more wood bats is suddenly going to make college baseball more popular and minor league obsolete. I don't see how olemiss can back up his claim.

 

Ummm....that wasn't my point at all. Not sure where you got that I was trying to suggest that it would make college baseball more popular and minor league obsolete.

 

My point was that it would make some of the stronger conferences more akin to the minor leagues from a scouting perspective. Most MLB scouts already equate the SEC and Pac-10 baseball to AA.

I said nothing of fan interest.

 

That's not true at all, rare collegiate talents like Price and Prior, maybe could be at AA level when starting out.

 

 

Ya, I guess the scouts that came to nearly all our games were just talking out of their ass. And I didn't say that them being comparable means that you could start out at AA, it just means that they equate your ability in the SEC to how you would likely fare in AA.

 

If that was the case, every starter from the SEC and Pac-10 would get drafted.

 

Most do. At least in the SEC.

 

The college game isn't a joke and I think it's ridiculous that you think it is "comical".

 

Look at what one of my teammates is doing right now for the Smokies in high A for the Cubs. Mark Holliman: 21 scoreless innings, 16k's, only 3bb. You don't think he could succeed in AA?

 

One of the other starters I played with in college: Matt Maloney, 2006 in high A for the Phillies: 16-9, 2.03, 168ip, 180k's.

 

My cousin that I graduated with is playing SS in AAA for the Twins right now and is hitting .333

Edited April 24, 2007 by OleMissCub

[UK1679666180]

Did they go right to AA or did they start out at Short-season or Low-A?

 

If a scout said that SEC baseball was just as good as AA baseball, they're lying, the level of play and the talent isn't that good.

 

Odds are that they started lower than AA and took 2 years to get to AA, there's a reason why it takes about 2 years for a college player to get to AA from the time they drafted.

 

There might 2-4 players on each Pac 10 and SEC team that make it to and past AA and that's stretching it.

[OleMissCub]

Did they go right to AA or did they start out at Short-season or Low-A?

 

I didn't say it means you can start out at AA. It meant that scouts equate what you are able to do in the SEC to how you would likely fare in AA.

 

If a scout said that SEC baseball was just as good as AA baseball, they're lying, the level of play and the talent isn't that good.

 

You didn't play in the college game so you don't know what the scouts talk about and what they look at. The level of talent depends on what team you are looking at.

 

There might 2-4 players on each Pac 10 and SEC team that make it to and past AA and that's stretching it.

 

Ok...my last year playing

 

3rd year, Matt Tolbert, SS, AAA Twins

3rd year, Seth Smith OF, AAA Rockies

2nd year, Stephen Head, 1B, AA Indians

2nd year, Brian Pettway, OF, High A Blue Jays, hitting .314

1st year, Mark Holliman, P, High A Cubs, 21 scoreless innings

1st year, Matt Maloney, P, High A Phillies, 180k's in 168ip last year

2nd year, Barry Gunther, C, High A Giants, hitting .310

1st year, Eric Fowler, P, High A Blue Jays

2nd year Anthony Cupps, P, High A D'backs

1st year, Chris Coghlan(1st rd pick), 3b, A Marlins

1st year, Tommy Baumgardner, P, A Rockies

1st year, Mark Wright, OF, A Mets

 

That's 12 guys. I'm sure most will make it at least to AA.

[treebird]

eventually making it to aa isn't the same as already being aa caliber. this isn't hard.