Expert: Jack Elliott - 12/15/2008

Question
Hi Jack,
My son is a freshman this year and will be playing for the high school in the spring. The school uses only wooden bats and I want to get him one for Christmas. He's been playing since T-ball and has always been drafted to the older teams, so he's a pretty decent ball player. He's never owned his own bat though, so this will be a huge surprise. Since the wooden ones do break,I want to get the most for my money. Any Advice? Thanks, Kim

Answer
Hi Kim,

This is an interesting trend in baseball where I am seeing more and more teams start to use wooden bats again.  As for your question, probably the strongest wooden bats on the market are maple bats.  Barry Bonds uses these kind and they are growing in popularity.  The only problem with these bats is they tend to be a little heavier.  A heavier bat can lead to a slower bat speed so opinions vary on this topic.  

I understand your concern about wooden bats that break; however, there isn't really a whole lot you can do to avoid this.  I would anticipate that he will go through a number of wooden bats no matter what type of bat you choose.  Instead, of just recommending a particular kind, I would have him try out a few different types of bats and see which one feels the most natural to him.  This will do more for his hitting than anything else.  Also, you can add some baseball tape to the sweet spot of wooden bats used only in practice to give it a little more protection.  This won't keep it from breaking, but it can help lessen the impact.  

As far as brands go, I am partial to Louisville Slugger; however, if you want to find a brand that he will really want and want to keep it a surprise, I suggest talking with the parents of some of the other players and see what they use.  If you pick from this list, you will most likely find one that he will be very happy with.    

Hope this helps,
Jack Elliott
http://www.baseballtrainingtechniques.com