Debate Still Rages – Metal Bats or Wood Bats?
We have extensively detailed the metal vs. wood bat debate among youth league baseball. (See our blog posts: here and here, just as two recent examples). Each time we post about the subject, we get contacted by people who want to tell their side of the story.
Now a newspaper in Arkansas reports that teams in the area are seriously questioning whether they should switch from wood to metal bats. The Fayetteville Observer’s article creates what I would view as a terrifying depiction of what goes through the softball coach at a local college.
Miguel Justiniano, who coaches at Fayetteville State, says that he knows when his third baseman moves closer to the plate to field a bunt, he had better be right about the batter bunting, because a line drive down the line could have a devastating impact.
As far as the Broncos coach is concerned, metal bats make playing third base in softball one of the most dangerous positions in all of sports. But that's behind the pitchers, who stand only 43 feet away and must react to balls traveling more than 100 miles per hour."One day, when we have a death, everything will change," Justiniano says. "Do we need to wait for someone to pass away before we know this is harmful? I'd rather be safe and cautious than wait for something to happen."
Nevertheless, despite the acknowledgment that metal bats appear to be dangerous, it is interesting that none of the coaches interviewed for the article appear ready to advocate for a switch back to wood bats. The author does, however, note that the NCAA’s regulations on metal bat safety are imminent:
The NCAA has taken multiple steps to regulate metal bats. After USC beat Arizona 21-14 in the championship game of a 1998 College World Series that featured plenty of home runs, the organization adopted the BESR (ball exit speed ratio) standard in 2003.Those regulations made bats heavier, shrank barrels and ensured that balls came off bats at the same top exit speed as wooden bats (97 mph). But the NCAA and state high school athletic associations will take further steps over the next couple years to continue making metal bats act more like wood ones.
Starting in 2011, the NCAA will make baseball teams use bats that meet BBCOR (Bat Ball Coefficient of Restitution) standards. High school baseball will follow suit in 2012, and bats with the BESR stamp will no longer be legal.
