Wouldn't that be trampoline effect instead of affect? Point is, I think that it is like metal cleats vs. molded cleats.......metal cleats will not turn your average high school kid into Roberto Clemente, they are more of a confidence boost than a performance boost.

 

You are correct. I realized that I misspelled effect after I had submitted my post; however, I disagree. IMO, a player will only have a sustained confidence boost if they appreciate a performance boost. I have seen very good hitting h.s. teams be reduced to nothing in wood bat tournaments. Good gear pays dividends.

Wow! Some of you guys have too much time on your hands. However, I think it is a safe bet that homeruns will be down and most likely so will batting averages. The biggest effect the bats will have is on marginal hitters who got a lot of bloopers, ground balls with eyes, and the big hop ball that bounces over the 3rd and 1rst basemen. They will be the ones who will struggle the most. Kids who hit line drives and hard ground balls up the middle will still hit well. More small ball will be played and teams who have problems with fielding bunts and slow rollers will be in for a long year.

I think all you have to do is look at the college stats for 2010 and 2011 for the differences it made.

I think all you have to do is look at the college stats for 2010 and 2011 for the differences it made.

 

2011 was the first year for BBCOR bats in college baseball. Not coincidentally, the single season ERA record was broken in 2011 by UCLA's Trevor Bauer.

Here are some interesting facts/stats from ncca.com on the new bats which are significant IMO:

 

 

Division I batting average, scoring and home runs per game in 2011 resemble the wood-bat 1970s more than they do recent years. Division I teams in 2011 averaged 5.58 runs per game, well off the record 7.12 in 1998 and below 6 for the first time since 1977 (5.83), which was just the fourth season of the aluminum bat in college baseball.

 

Home runs left parks at an average of .52 per team per game in 2011 compared with .94 last year and 1.06 in 1998 (also the peak year for that category). That resembles wood-bat days, too (.42 in the last year of wood in 1973, and .49, .50 and .55 in the first three years of metal).

 

Batting average in 2011 was .282, the lowest since 1976. Earned-run average, on the other hand, was its best (4.70) since 1980 (4.59).

 

FOR THE FULL ARTICLE, see below:

 

http://www.ncaa.com/news/baseball/2011-07-26/new-bats-are-hit-some

Batting average in 2011 was .282,

 

I think I read that the average for 2010 was about .300 . Big difference.

2011 was the first year for BBCOR bats in college baseball. Not coincidentally, the single season ERA record was broken in 2011 by UCLA's Trevor Bauer.

I should have thrown in "Look at the college stats comparisons" from one year to the next. I am was aware the change was in 2011, just forgot to throw that in.

OK, I'll bite - What is BBCOR?

 

Are they putting some mush in the center of the bat to reduce potency?

OK, I'll bite - What is BBCOR?

 

Are they putting some mush in the center of the bat to reduce potency?

 

It's the new bat performance standard replacing the older BESR rating. The NCAA started using it last season, and KY high schools this year. It dramatically reduces the "pop" of the bats, which of course reduces the speed of the hit ball. The changes in college ball were fairly dramatic, although the stats posted above don't necessarily reflect it.

 

The BBCOR bats appear to very closely resemble the performance of wood bats. In fact, many college players last season complained they would rather just use wood.

OK, I'll bite - What is BBCOR?

 

Are they putting some mush in the center of the bat to reduce potency?

 

Way it was explained to me from a bat manufacturer was that they put the wooden bat and the aluminum bat on one of those Iron Mike swing robots and if the ball traveled 360' with the wooden bat the aluminum bat needed to mirror that distance.

I have a question about the BBCOR bats. Are all wooden bats legal to use or do they have to have a BBCOR certification on them as well?

I have a question about the BBCOR bats. Are all wooden bats legal to use or do they have to have a BBCOR certification on them as well?

 

This rule is for non-wood bats.