Baseball bats help to create core memories that impact us for life. The love of the game is why a collection of them or balls are hung on a wall forever. These are long lasting memories whether they are bad or good, we learn and grow from them. This starts as little as t ball all the way through college. You choose a bat with the thought in mind that it will hit hard and far. You research online and talk to other players, parents and coaches about their experience with different options and styles. You ask other teammates about how many hits they got and what kind of pop it has. Which bat is their favorite? You consider the price you want to pay; they range anywhere from $50-$500. Do you go basic or top of the line? How long will it really last? You chose the grip, the handle, the weight and length. You swing it in stores to test it out and then at home a million times before using it in a game. Did you make the right choice? The memories you're about to create could be your first hit, a double, a triple or even your first home run. Memories you’ll never forget. Your bat could even be the talk and most used bat in the dugout, if you let your team use it.
In my 8 years of playing baseball I have saved and collected every bat I have used. It’s kind of an obsession. Each bat holds a specific core memory of that certain season. Memories with teammates, coaches and homeruns. I display them proudly on my wall back home and will continue this tradition for the rest of my baseball career. I have collected many different brands and each one has its own individual style and pop. I have collected many different Louisville Sluggers, Rawlings, Marucci, Demarini and Victicus bats. I have broken a few as well and I still even display those proudly. They range in size from 30” to 33” and from a drop 5 to a drop 3 which is all I swing now. Once you hit high school regulations state you have to swing a drop 3 bat and it has to be a wooden or Composite bat.
My favorite bat is always a wood bat. I love the small handle and the crack it makes when it hits the ball. Some people used to say I was crazy because I would always swing my wooden Victicus against other players and it was like showing up to a gunfight with a knife. Only because the new aged bats that are composite have huge sweetspots built in to make the ball go farther and I actually had to use my strength and hit the ball correctly to get the same result. I will say though my first home run was hit with a composite bat called “the Goods” by Demarini. I absolutely barreled the ball up and it went exactly where I intended it to go. 350 feet well over the left field fence. This bat is actually still one I keep in my bat bag for goodluck, I pull it out sometimes at practice just for fun and someday it will join the wall of fame too.
“Wooden bats” are known for the old school way. A wooden bat can come made in a variety of different woods. Ash, Maple, Hickory and sometimes bamboo. I have always used Ash and Maple when choosing my wood bats. Ash wooden bats are very flexible and can cause a snapping effect when hitting the ball, they are lighter than other wood. Even the great Babe Ruth swung an Ash wooden Louisville Slugger through his career. He always said, "I swing with everything I've got, I hit big or miss big. I like to live as big as I can." He knew that you had to work to hit hard with wood. Then there is maple wood, it is a harder wood and makes for a harder hit for longer shots. The heavy hitter Barry Bonds loved and made a name for the Maple wooden bats in his day. He told Lisa Finn of ESPN, Baseball tonight,“I tried(using a maple wood bat) and I liked it. Ash wood is softer wood that has a tendency to split and crack easier. Maple gives you the opportunity that if you feel comfortable with it, you’ve got a chance of keeping it for a while.” It feels heavier than the Ash bats which makes a lot of players drop their hands when swinging it and sway away from using them I feel. One of my favorite things about a wood bat is the “Crack of the bat” sound they make when making contact with the ball. A lot of times this sound will make you think you have broken the bat which does actually happen quite often. You have to be sure to usually hit the ball with the bat label pointed up so that the grain of the wood is hit at its strongest point. I have broken about 5 wooden bats in my years of playing baseball. Wooden bats are what Major leaguers use in games. They are also used by amateurs and a lot of travel baseball players. They even have specific travel ball tournaments where you are only allowed to use wood bats.
“Composite bats” are a new age game changer in the world of baseball. Even with them not being allowed to be used in the MLB. The market for these bats is enormous. They come in many different styles and brands. Like “The goods” by Demarini, “The Meta” by Louisville Slugger and “Cat 9” by Maurucci to name just a few. These bats come in many different options as well, you can even customize a few. They are available all the way from a 26” length drop -12 to a 34” drop 3. Different lengths and sizes for all types of players. Colors, hand grips and even knob thickness can be a choice but that’s not all also the weight of the barrel. Some bats come end loaded. This means that the majority of the weight is controlled to the cap of the bat. This is for stronger hitters that can control their bat speeds through the ball but can give you more pop. There are also bats that are even loaded which means the majority of the weight is targeted to the center of the bat to give a smaller batter the ability to whip it around and make good connections. This will also help if the pitcher is throwing harder the batter can get the bat around quicker. Composite bats are made for distance and explosiveness. They have what some call the trampoline effect and have a rebound motion where the ball jumps off the bat. They are made more flexible as well to make a larger sweet spot for you to hit the ball and have it travel farther. They also come with a larger barrel than your typical wooden or old aluminum bats. These bats now are like coming to a knife fight with a machine gun some would say. There is one downfall though. Composite bats have a tendency to not last as long. They can become a “Dead” bat or the inner barrel will break loose and become no longer legal to use in a game. However, I love my bat, “The Goods” it’s what I hit my first homerun with and still keep it in my bat bag. It’s an end loaded bat and does an amazing job of popping the ball out for a double 85% of the time and those are odds I’ll stand by any day at practice or a game.
To play baseball is a love I can’t explain ever since I was young. It’s why I have saved every bat I’ve ever owned and display them proudly on my wall. They remind me of all the friends that have turned into family through the years. Deep inside the grain of a wood bat are irreplaceable memories and a sound that I will never forget or get over. The determination to hit every single ball thrown at me as hard as I can and as far as I can, sometimes swinging out of my shoes. Just like Babe Ruth said, “I swing big. I swing with everything I’ve got and I either hit big or miss big” and I feel this same way. I want to use the best bat on the market and get the best possible result. Some coaches ask me to stop swinging for the fences but I can’t help it. I want the ball gone and gone for good. I now use my reliable Ash Victus bat consistently and when I break it I buy another one. It’s required in the majors to use a wooden bat so I make sure I am working with one now. To hit a rounded ball with a round bat all while squaring it up seems impossible but obtainable with hard work and the Victus has the flex of the barrel and sound I love. They hold the # 3 spot with approximately 15% of MLB players using the Victus bat including players like Bryce Harper and Fernando Tatis Jr. The Victus bat has also made a name for itself with its exceptional designs and lightweight feel making it a huge target for young players leaning towards a wood bat to buy over the composite bats on the market today.
When back home no one quite understands the concept of keeping broken bats. “Why do you keep the ones split in half?” My friends all ask when they see my collection or “why not just throw them away? You already bought a new replacement.” They don’t understand that all of those bats were broken doing something pretty extraordinary to me. In fact, I actually remember every single time they broke and how I broke them. Whether it was the excitement from the dugout hearing them cracking and the “oh, snaps,” I would hear from all my teammates. Then of course there was my dad, “another one, son.” They all hold a special place in my heart and mind. Then there’s the broken ones, those that I keep for other sentimental reasons. Like my first bat ever given to me by my parents or my homerun bat I will never get rid of. I appreciate them all and they bring back a lot of happiness when I think about the years of baseball and the excitement in all their handles. To me those are the definition of core memories, memories with special emotional value that I will never forget. Including times with coaches and teammates when we won and lost championships and games. Thrilling doubles and triples that were hit to help boost the amount of runs batted in and just the right time. Sometimes helping us to win the game. These were tools that increased a batting average and eventually caused colleges to take a look and make offers. My greatest accomplishments have come from using a bat. They were all used to help get me to where I am today and where I strive to be. As I continue to make my collection grow, so will the memories. Eventually the new bats will have a place on many more walls to come.
I leave you with this in mind. Baseball is like a box of chocolate. You really never do know what you're going to get at the plate. The box is the pitcher's mind holding all the right flavors for the perfect pitch. A piece of chocolate, “the ball,” the deliciousness to make them swing or watch it go by. What pitch and what placement all up in the air until it crosses the plate and you decide to take that chance on which flavor you see and decide you like. The screwball, curveball, slider and changeup. All beautiful creations made to change the love of the game. Will it be Inside or outside, high or low? They throw them to get the hit or strike out they want. A ground ball, fly ball or initiate the bunt. The hustle at the plate. The unknown mind of a pitcher, catcher and coach. The right timing for the perfect ball and exact swing with the perfect bat. Baseball is the unknown with unlimited possibilities just like in the box of chocolate.
Works Cited
Photo Fig.1, www.primesportsmw.com, “BBCOR demo bats”, 2024
Photo Fig.2, www.Links to an external site.demarini.com, “The goods: Demarini”, 2022
Photo Fig.3, https://www.closeoutbats.com/victus-vibe-pencil-vcbvibp.htmlLinks to an external site., “Victus pencil” 2024
Pro Athletes, Inc, .www.justbats.com/blog/post/wood-bats-the-pros-useLinks to an external site.. “ Most used bat MLB” last updated 2000-2024
Bonds, Barry, www.espn/baseballtonight.com, Bonds,Barry, May 2001
Ruth, Babe, www.baseball-almanac.com/quotes, Ruth, Babe, last updated 1999-2024
*Attaching MLA formatted copy as well
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