How to select a baseball bat

Only a baseball player knows the value of his bat. There are stories of players who love their bats so much that they even sleep with them. They spend lots of time to keep their bats in ready-to-fight condition. It is important, therefore, to be very careful while selecting a proper bat.

Aluminium vs. wood bats

Baseball bats are made of two materials—wood and aluminium or aluminium alloy. It needs hardly to be mentioned that a wooden bat is heavier than an aluminium bat even if the aluminium is of cheaper quality. It is not easy to give a hard and effective swing or generate speed with a wooden bat. Wooden bats cannot wield the kind of power that the aluminium bats do.

Length, weight and drop

A good maple baseball bat is one whose length, weight and drop allow you to swing it comfortably. If you feel inconvenient handling it after a few swings, don't go for it. The lighter the bat, the more speed you can generate with it. A difference of mere one or two ounces in weight can make a huge difference in the swing.

A thumb rule to select a proper bat is to hold it by its handle and extend your arm so that you form an L with your body. Count 10 while you hold the bat at your shoulder level. If you feel tired, this bat is not for you.

Another important factor is the ‘feel' of the bat, which is a matter of individual choice. There are people who rip off the leather on the handle and replace it with a thin plastic tape. The idea is to make the handle as thin as possible. There are others who do exactly the opposite and make the handle much thicker than the original. They feel comfortable with the thicker handle.

If you are looking for custom baseball bats, you can visit www.xbats.com. The XBATs baseball bats are the finest bats chosen by the most discriminating Major Leaguer to the serious youth and amateur players.

Mark Alter, the author of this article, writes about the advantages of selecting a proper baseball bat. Want to know more about wooden bats and baseball bat? Still lots of things remain to explore.