Baseball Showcase Articles

How to Chose a Wood Bat:

There are numerous bat companies today that make both ash and maple wood bats for players of all ages. It's become quite a business and due to the variety of companies participating in the market place it has become more difficult to determine which bats are truly worth the money. Here are a few things to consider when hunting for a wood bat. If you are considering buying a wood bat from a retail location such as a Sports Authority, Dicks Sports, Target, etc. odds are you are getting the bottom of the barrel. Either ash or maple, the bat you purchase from these locations are from left over billets or those that don't meet professional standards. Most of the time they are cheaper, but be aware that you are certainly getting what you pay for. Be careful of companies that do not have their own relationship with a wood (billet) supplier. These companies will order the left over wood from large bat companies such as Louisville, stamp their logo on the bat and look to sell them at standard wood bat prices. Again, you get what you pay for and these bats will mostly likely not last. So you're wondering where to get a legitimate wood bat ... find a company that has their own wood supplier, preferably in the NE or NW (harder wood), and a company that all they do is make wood bats.

Such companies would include:

1. Old Hickory Bat Co.
2. Louisville Slugger
3. Carolina Clubs
4. Marucci Bats

Lastly, you'll need to decide whether you want to purchase a maple or ash wood bat. Maple bats tend to last longer, because as they are hit with they do not chip or fray. Maple bats will show seam marks and indentations that some wood bat experts believe will make the bat stronger over time. Yet a rumored down fall to maple is the tendency to break frequently in colder weather. Maple also tends to be more expensive than ash, so if price is a concern you may lean towards ash. Now, when choosing an ash bat look at the number of grains in the barrel of the bat. The more grains, the closer they will be together and the softer the wood. The less number of grains the harder the bat. It is often more difficult to land a professional grade ash wood bat than a maple.

--by Ryan Schade/Former Minor League Player-Florida Marlins