I saw the new BBCOR bats in action last night. I was very impressed with the pop these bats have, compared to the hype of preseason notions. What are your thought's. I saw several hard hit balls, 320-350'. Balls hit hard to the opposite field. I did think some fly balls that seemed to be hit hard, kind of died, and didn't carry quite as far. Over all, better than I expected, and talking with the coach, he gave them a thumbs up. On a side note, I did see a new bat break last night during the game. :thumb:

I saw the new BBCOR bats in action last night. I was very impressed with the pop these bats have, compared to the hype of preseason notions. What are your thought's. I saw several hard hit balls, 320-350'. Balls hit hard to the opposite field. I did think some fly balls that seemed to be hit hard, kind of died, and didn't carry quite as far. Over all, better than I expected, and talking with the coach, he gave them a thumbs up. On a side note, I did see a new bat break last night during the game. :thumb:

 

 

If you can hit, you can hit with a broomstick in your hand. The sound is different, and it is only going to eliminate most of the cheap hits. You won't see as many homers, but good hitting teams will still hit.

We will now be able to identify the good hitters vs those that let the bat hit for them.

We will now be able to identify the good hitters vs those that let the bat hit for them.

 

The good hitters have always been easy to identify. The old bats didn't make bad hitters suddenly good, and able to hit a dominant pitcher. You still had to be able to square up on the pitch, have good command of the strike zone, good mechanics etc. Yes, they did get hitters a few extra hits here and there for those who could consistently put the ball in play. The difference will be in the power numbers, and those couple of cheap hits the old bats gave you, which means a few less base runners per game, and consequently a few less runs scored per game.

The good hitters have always been easy to identify. The old bats didn't make bad hitters suddenly good, and able to hit a dominant pitcher. You still had to be able to square up on the pitch, have good command of the strike zone, good mechanics etc. Yes, they did get hitters a few extra hits here and there for those who could consistently put the ball in play. The difference will be in the power numbers, and those couple of cheap hits the old bats gave you, which means a few less base runners per game, and consequently a few less runs scored per game.

 

 

That all sounds good to me.

I think they will ultimately be safer.. Less bullets up the middle, fewer third basemen getting rockets their way.. These new bats are very comparable to a wooden bat. If a kid has the size, strength, and ability, they'll still be able to go yard. For the most part I think the idea with the new bats was safety, not to eliminate "cheap hits"

I'm not against this change at all, I agree with others that good hitters are still going to hit and your average hitters might lose a few cheap hits. But, I saw Miguel Cabrera from the Tigers take a vicious bad hop grounder below the eye and that was from a wood bat obviously. There are still going to be some rockets hit up the middle and third basemen will still need to be on their toes, because if a strong kid makes solid contact the ball is going to travel. If it saves one kid, it's worth it.

I am a little concerned about the number of these new bats breaking. I have heard of 3 in the NKY area so far this season and witnessed one of them. It is my understanding that they are breaking off at the handle. Are these just "defects" and if so, why are there so many defective bats? I question the safety of the new BBCOR bats.

I am a little concerned about the number of these new bats breaking. I have heard of 3 in the NKY area so far this season and witnessed one of them. It is my understanding that they are breaking off at the handle. Are these just "defects" and if so, why are there so many defective bats? I question the safety of the new BBCOR bats.

 

I'd be interested in hearing which brand and models these were. BBCOR does not mandate a common construction method, so there should be no reason all BBCOR rated bats are breaking. Logically speaking, it should be a design, manufacturing or durability related issue with one or more manufacturer or model, and not something directly attributable to the BBCOR rating itself.

A couple impressions:

 

1) A movement of hitter's spray charts away from their pull side towards their opposite side. The ball doesn't appear to spend as much time on the bat as before, so it seems to be harder for the kids to pull the ball.

 

2) A definite reduction in HR's by average size & strength players. The only HR's I've seen so far have been by physically very large players. I've seen a couple instances where average size kids put very good swings right on the screws that would have easily been out last year, but fell 10 yards short this year. Kids of average size and strength will have/are having a much more difficult time hitting it out IMO.

The good hitters have always been easy to identify. The old bats didn't make bad hitters suddenly good, and able to hit a dominant pitcher. You still had to be able to square up on the pitch, have good command of the strike zone, good mechanics etc. Yes, they did get hitters a few extra hits here and there for those who could consistently put the ball in play. The difference will be in the power numbers, and those couple of cheap hits the old bats gave you, which means a few less base runners per game, and consequently a few less runs scored per game.

 

Unfortunately, some hitters that I've seen were living off of the cheap hits. The sweet spot seems to be much smaller leaving less room for error, less forgiving overall. Line drives have turned into weak ground balls. Deep fly balls have turned into pop-ups. Yes, those that can truly hit wil hit but those that were relying on that extra pop will live in the world of ground balls to short.

I am a little concerned about the number of these new bats breaking. I have heard of 3 in the NKY area so far this season and witnessed one of them. It is my understanding that they are breaking off at the handle. Are these just "defects" and if so, why are there so many defective bats? I question the safety of the new BBCOR bats.

 

I haven't seen any break, though I have seen a few caps come off the Rip-It, which seems to be one of the most popular. I have seen a few bats break (all at the handle) over my almost 30 years in the non wooden bat era (I started using aluminum at 13 in 1983), so I don't think it's unusual that a few of the BBCOR bats have broken. I don't think they are any less safe than a normal aluminum bat in terms of breaking, and certainly safer than wooden bats that splinter. All around, with lower exit speeds, these bats are safer, and a good thing for the game.

With bats breaking in 70 and 80 degree temps like we have had this year. What will they do in the colder temps we normally have. I to have seen 7 or 8, nonwood, bats break over the years. That's 500 to 600 games, maybe more, high school and summer ball games. None of those, that I'm aware of, were new bats. I don't have a problem with the safety element of the new bats, that's a good thing. My concern is the cost to replace these bats if they are breaking at a higher rate.