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Posted

Is anyone else troubled by this article?

 

An American Legion team lost a player several years ago because of a line drive off an aluminum bat. Since that time they only play teams that use wooden bats. Now, they have been suspended from league play because the refused to play against a team who refused to drop the aluminum.

 

Anyone else think this is wrong?

 

linky

Posted

Actually they should have refused to play anyone using softballs (I'm guessing it's a softball league) because that's what killed the guy, not the bat.

Posted

The league should have stepped in beforehand to either ban aluminum bats, or ban these gentlemen's agreements that coerced all the other teams to bow to one club's wishes.

 

I'm sorry the team went through that tragedy a few years ago, but I don't think there's any conclusive science yet that shows balls off aluminum bats are more lethal than from wooden bats. I've never heard of a similar incident in collegiate baseball.

Posted
I don't think there's any conclusive science yet that shows balls off aluminum bats are more lethal than from wooden bats. I've never heard of a similar incident in collegiate baseball.

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:P

 

Balls coming off the bat at 100mph vs. 80mph? There's a huge difference when you're the pitcher 30 feet away trying to get your glove in front of your face.

 

Why aluminum bats perform better than wooden bats

 

The purpose of this document is not to argue for or against aluminum bats. The controversial topic of safety and the metal versus aluminum debate is something I would like to stay away from, especially since I have nothing significant to add to the discussion. Instead I would like to look at the physics of baseball bats and investigate the scientific data to support the claim that metal bats perform better than wood bats. In other words, I simply want to provide an explanation, backed up with experimental evidence, why it might be possible for a metal bat to outperform a wood bat.

 

Reasons why aluminum bats are better, and more dangerous:

 

1. Aluminum bats can be swung faster

2. Aluminum bats have a "trampoline" effect which can transfer more energy to the ball, drastically increasing exit speed.

3. Aluminum bats have wider sweet spots

4. Aluminum bats don't break

Posted
4. Aluminum bats don't break

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Yes they can, I have seen one break, of course it was a softball bat hitting a regular baseball, but intead of splinter and shattering like a wooden bat, it just broke and bent back

Posted
Yes they can, I have seen one break, of course it was a softball bat hitting a regular baseball, but intead of splinter and shattering like a wooden bat, it just broke and bent back

822180[/snapback]

 

Yeah, I've seen one break because it was used in cold weather. It didn't shatter or bend, it just had a chip on the surface and made a real 'dud' sound afterwards. The bat had no pop left at all and was totally useless after that.

 

Also, for the record, a lot of softball leagues limit the types of bats you are allowed to use, with the hope of avoiding incidents where pitchers are seriously injured. Still, I can never see myself pitching. That schit is brutal.

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