There should be a rule that every team should have these bats available to them and until distributed they are delayed. When everybody starts launching home runs they’ll outlaw the bats.
Look the Yankees made those bats within the rules, there has been no change in shape for more than 100 years......but in Golf, Tennis, most every other sport there has been improvements in equipment.....all teams should be making these adjustments. DD
A competitive edge that has nothing to do with skillset but tools of the trade. If the Yankees have unlimited amount to throw at R&D and come up with a more efficient bat, every team needs to have access to that technology. MLB is already having a tough time convincing people LA and NY teams operate with parity (because they dont).
When favored teams do it, it's innovation. When those not favored do it, it's cheating and severely penalized. This is a greater inequity than the money. Both are troublesome though.
The bats violate the unwritten rules. There is a basic understanding of what a baseball bat is supposed to look like. Of course I feel similarly about the axe bat handle that several of our players have used in the past. I do think these bats will end up outlawed, but probably not until the offseason.
I haven't seen one up close, but from the pictures it looks like the circumference, diameter and surface area are distinctly greater. It will significantly change the game of baseball if players start using this bat. Strikeouts will plummet. MLB players are simply not going to whiff nearly as much with that much of an increase in surface area around the barrel. We used to train with ping pong balls and broomsticks. This is closer to a whiffle ball bat.
Where did you see that? Everything I heard was that the Yankees developed these bats internally and have seen nothing about whether they are patented by a particular company or not. Not doubting your expertise here. Also, do you know if each bat used in the big leagues is custom built for individuals?
I'm sure the rules are clear and only the interpretation is dependably fuzzy to benefit some and not others. Call me jaded and you'd be right.
Yeah, players dictate the specs of their bats (knob size, handle circumference, length, weight, where the barrel starts, etc) and most are incredibly particular about it. All the MLB rulebook says about bats is this: Rule 3.02 (a) The bat shall be a smooth, round stick not more than 2.61 inches in diameter at the thickest part and not more than 42 inches in length. The bat shall be one piece of solid wood. (b) Cupped Bats. An indentation in the end of the bat up to 1 1/4 inches in depth is permitted and may be no wider than two inches and no less than one inch in diameter. The indentation must be curved with no foreign substance added. (c) The bat handle, for not more than 18 inches from its end, may be covered or treated with any material or substance. Any such material or substance that extends past the 18-inch limitation shall cause the bat to be removed from the game.
Every team already has access to that technology. It no different than teams focusing on nutrition or training regimens or ideal spin rates or whatever else. Catchers have innovated with different glove types as well - also a tool of the trade. Teams routinely spend $150MM+ per year on payroll. If they don't want to spend a tiny fraction of that on optimizing bats, that's on them.
