Maple Bats….Passing the test of time & still going strong.

Maple Bats….Passing the test of time & still going strong.

It’s been about nearly 9 years since Barry Bonds broke the single season home run record while using a Maple Baseball Bat throughout the season. That magical season in baseball was the showcase year for Maple Baseball Bats. Although players like Joe Carter used Maple even as far back as in the late 1980’s,  maple never really took off until the 2001 season when Bonds crushed 73 home runs to break the single season homerun record in baseball. From that point on, maple surged into more and more hands in baseball…and maple hasn’t looked back ever since.

A lot of things in our society turn out to be fads, and never survive the trying times. Maple baseball bats are beginning to silence the critics who have been loud advocates against maple.  There have been multiple instances where maple has been the culprit of major injuries in baseball. A prime example was during the 2008 season when Pittsburgh Pirates hitting coach Don Long was hit in the face just below the eyes by a huge chunk of Nate McLouth’s maple bat during the eighth inning of a game at Dodgers Stadium. Witnesses say that chunk seemed to be about half of the bat. Just ten days later, another maple bat chunk flew out of the hands of the Colorado Rockies Todd Helton and flew into the stands and broke the jaw of a Dodgers fan.

A lot of players worried about the safety of their teammates, coaches and fans have even switched from Maple to Ash or Birch. Including a few seasons back, when Frank Thomas and Eric Chavez switched from Maple to Birch, and Jason Bay switched back to Ash from Birch.

A 2005 study commissioned by the MLB found that there was no difference in how fast the ball comes off a maple or ash bat. But still maple seems to give hitters a confidence that ash does not. Although the exact number of players who swing maple in the MLB is unknown, it is certain that it is a majority; with some reports estimating the number at 60 to 70 percent.

There also is undoubtedly a longer life span with Maple. Various studies have found that the average life span of a Maple Bat in the MLB is about a month, versus about a week long life span for Ash. So while there are concerns among MLB officials about the safety risks associated with Maple Baseball Bats, Bat Manufactures are working hard alongside MLB officials to create a solution to the safety risks; aside from prohibiting maple bats from baseball.

Throughout all of the issues and controversy and worries surrounding Maple Baseball Bats, the demand is still there, and the popularity is still growing. Maple bats may see some troubling times, but it seems like the new wood bat king is here to stay.

 

Written By,

Tyler Coughlin

VP of Operations MoZer Bats

Bamboo Baseball Bats….The New Cage Bat?

Bamboo Baseball Bats….The New Cage Bat?

Asia has again made their mark on Baseball in America. Bamboo Baseball bats have become increasingly popular among youth and amateur baseball players in the U.S. and across the globe for that matter. Bamboo bats have yet to receive the stamp of approval from Major League Baseball, and most people think that stamp of approval will not be coming at all.

There are a lot of people asking why Bamboo has yet to be accepted into the MLB? So let’s go over the main arguments keeping Bamboo on the outside of Major League Parks.

Here is a Major League Baseball Rule that addresses this particular issue….1.10

(a) The bat shall be a smooth, round stick not more than 23/4 inches in diameter at the thickest part and not more than 42 inches in length. The bat shall be one piece of solid wood.
NOTE: No laminated or experimental bats shall be used in a professional game (either championship season or exhibition games) until the manufacturer has secured approval from the Rules Committee of his design and methods of manufacture.

Bamboo bats are made by laminating a bunch of bamboo strips into a blank, and then turning the blank into a bat. Which makes the bat very hard to break, and obviously violates rule 1.10 (as shown above) which states that the bat shall be one piece of solid wood.

Although that rule seems to be a big part of why Bamboo Bats are not MLB approved, there seems to be a more popular argument used.  Bamboo bats are widely considered to be similar to composite bats based on the way they are made. Composite bats are also off limits in the MLB. Most experts believe that Bamboo will never receive Major League Baseball’s approval unless the MLB approves all composite bats.

So, now looms the bigger question. How will Bamboo Baseball bats survive in America? Well since Bamboo bats seem to be so durable, many youth and amateur players and teams are using them as Batting Cage bats. More coaches and players are catching onto the benefits of training with wood bats, even if they play in an Aluminum Bat league.  Hitting with wood forces the hitter to swing with proper mechanics, while aluminum often delivers good results even when improper mechanics are used.

Maple Bats, Ash Bats, and Birch bats all provide better power than Bamboo, but none of them provide the durability that Bamboo does. That means a perfect match for Bamboo Baseball Bats and
Batting Cages. A player or team can reap the benefits of training with wood, without having to continually purchase wood bats because of overuse. Bamboo bats are becoming a big part of the resurgence of wood bats in America. So in a game where so much has changed, wood is looking like the one constant that doesn’t plan on going anywhere soon.

Get Your Custom Bamboo Baseball Bat at www.mozerbats.com

Written By

Tyler Coughlin

VP of Operations

Why Hitting With Wood Bats Will Take Your Game to the Next Level?

Watching a high school team take batting practice can be difficult. Clink….Ping…..Clink…it is all wrong. An outside fastball pulled for a double off the wall or an away breaking pitch taking deep by the average hitting middle infielder.

Crack….Crack….you know you are in the company of real baseball players. The ball hits the ash, maple or birch bat and sends and echoing sound of massive proportions into the stands. You can turn your back to home plate and listen for the ground out or the ball that leaves the yard. When you miss judge a pitch you don’t get lucky with a hard hit ball, you break your bat and get a dribbler to the mound.

Wood bats have seen more popular days, being put aside due to longevity and costs. But all great hitters swing with wood at some point in the year. Wood bats make you work; they correct bad habits, create faster bat speed and make you find the sweet spot along with preparing you for the ultimate level of baseball.

Some say it is “one of the best feelings in the world” you feel nothing. You take a hard piece of wood and swing it at a 90mph fastball and feel nothing. When your timing is off or you swing at a bad pitch you feel it, like bees or an electric shock through your hands you know that you swung at a bad pitch.

Summer Jr College wood bat leagues and even the minor leagues are filled with players struggling to learn how to hit with wood. In a recent study it shows that players training with wood in the off-season raise their batting averages and hits by almost twenty percent. This is not saying that taking your little leaguer to the batting cages with a new wood bat will guarantee their mechanics improve, proper instruction is required. However, once the athlete is getting the proper instruction while swinging a wood bat, they will be able to identify when they make mistakes quicker.

Whether you’re a young athlete, select or high school ball player the benefits of training with a wood bat apply to everyone wanting to increase their strength, hitting mechanics and bat speed. So next time you are in the cages and you hear that sound…clink…ping…think about what you can be doing differently than the competition to take your game to the next level.

Get a new custom wood baseball bat today at www.mozerbats.com

Written By

Justin Moser

THE RISE OF BIRCH BASEBALL BATS

For over 100 hundred years, there has been a consistent king in the wood bat world. This one hundred year plus period has included many of the games most dominating diamond legends to ever set foot inside a batter’s box.  Legends that include the likes of Ruth, Cobb, DiMaggio, Mantle and Mays, just accompany hundreds of additional baseball folk hero like figures.  A century that has seen the game come to life, find its way, and blow winds of change that have altered the course of history in America. With every empire comes a fall, and some people feel the dominance of Ash bats in baseball is nearing an end. During the last ten years a new bat has emerged. Maple bats are now just as if not more popular than the traditional ash bat. While ash bats are flexible, they tend to break very easily and have not proven that they can withstand the test of time. On the contrary, maple is a very dense wood and has a longer life span. Recently, there has been an up-roar of controversy surrounding maple bats. A huge increase in multiple piece bat breaks have stirred up discussions of the safety risks and costs associated with Maple bats.

Enter; a new wood bat king.

Birch bats have started to become very popular among amateur and semi professional hitters. While birch bats can flex, they are still hard like maple and have flexible wood fibers similar to ash. Birch bats have proven to last longer than maple, and usually still manage to stay in a single piece when broken.

Some hitters say Birch is like their hybrid baseball bat. The golf world has seen the boom of hybrid golf clubs for the past few years. Birch is hitting the baseball scene looking like the culprit behind what looks to be a similar pattern.

This past year major league baseball has issued new standards for bat manufacturers producing dense woods such as maple and birch. Some see this as a step towards banning the use of maple bats throughout professional baseball. While birch bats must adhere to the same new standards that maple bats do, many baseball officials still consider Birch a safe and productive replacement for maple. Birch bats have also had a noticeably easier time adjusting to the new standards. Only time will tell what wood will come out on top, but like the history of the game has shown; a change is always right around third base.

Check out MoZer Birch Baseball Bats Today!

Written By

Tyler Coughlin