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Top Tips for Buying a Youth Baseball Bat

Do you look forward to your little leaguer to grow into an all-state athlete? Well, the bat a youth swings can be of huge help or hindrance when it comes to developing sound swing mechanics that’ll indeed propel them to the next higher level. Whether he or she is a developing middle school player or little leaguer, you must make sure that you get him or her the right bat.

Buying the best big barrel bats is subject to an array of considerations. Plenty of regulations and rules related to bat materials and sizes utilized to manufacture baseball bats exist. As a buyer, you must also consider the size of the player; how comfortable he or she will be on the pitch with the particular bat on hand.

The following are the top tips for buying a youth baseball bat:

Baseball Bat Weight

In addition to materials, youth wood bats also are available in an array of weights and lengths. That simply means that youths of all sizes and ages can find the appropriate size. When in the market for the best youth bat, weight and size are the most important considerations you need to make.

For instance, heavy bats might cause a youth to turn their wrist or drop their shoulders. That will result in a slowed bat speed as well as less contact with a ball. Often, heavy bat swings for youths are akin to him or her chopping at the ball. Swinging bats that are extremely heavy causes players to be poor at their swing techniques.

An extremely light bat isn’t good either. It prevents a youth from developing the right swing technique.

Therefore, always ensure that you purchase the right bat in terms of weight.

Baseball Bat Length

Longer bats give youths greater length thus allowing them to hit balls on either side of the plate. Nevertheless, longer bats can be heavier. The additional weight might slow you down. Just like you should be extremely cautious with weight, the same should happen with length. You must swing bats of various lengths in order to decide which length best suits you. The ideal combination of weight and length helps the youth reach his or her peak performance.

Baseball Bat League Requirements

Virtually every league has its own bat restrictions and requirements. For instance, college and high school requirements demand for certified BBCOR bats.. To avoid expensive surprises, ensure that you know all league requirements prior to going for bat shopping.

Baseball Barrel Diameter

When it comes to barrel diameter, the rule of thumb is for players 12 or below should utilize barrels with a diameter of 2 ¼’’. That’s the standard barrel size for the Little and Dixie Youth Baseball League. While that might be the case, some travel teams and league use larger 2 ¾’’ barrels. Both college and high school players are restricted to maximum barrel diameters of 2 5/8’’.

Baseball Bat Materials

When in the market for a youth baseball bat, you can choose from three types of materials. These are wood, composite, and aluminum. Wood bats tend to be less forgiving compared to aluminum or composite. Additionally, they need more precision during contact in order for one to hit the ball further. Wood baseball bats also make it extremely easy to determine the style, length, and weight of bat you need to choose.

They’re potentially more long lasting unless they’re broken because of a miss-hit. The following are the key points of aluminum bats:

  • They have a larger sweet pot
  • They boast greater ball speed off the bat
  • Aluminum bats feature increased bat speed since they’re lighter
  • There’s no doubt that these bats are the best for novices as they’re easy to get comfortable use when playing.

After looking at the aluminum and wood baseball bats, let’s now look at the main features of composite youth baseball bats:

  • Composite tend to the lightest of all thus allowing power hitters to achieve their potential with every swing
  • They are considered to be more durable compared to aluminum
  • The cost more in comparison to aluminum bats
  • These bats stand out as one of the most popular choice for softball players

Conclusion

Selecting the ideal bat is one of the most essential decisions you need to make in the game. The best youth baseball bat is of the correct length, weight, size, and material. Additionally, it must be within your budget. In other words, you don’t have to break the bank to buy a bat. You should have a limit in terms of cost.

Fortunately, the huge developments in technology have provided players with an array of options to select from. For this reason, to choose the ideal bat, you must do some intense homework. Simply put, when shopping for the best bat, never be in a rush. Take time and you’ll certainly land the best one.

Ryan maintains his best interest in providing the public with the useful information about baseball. He is an enthusiastic blogger having many years in valuing baseball and other related sports products. His determination and talent in baseball products show off in his baseballthing.com.

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Kyle Winters

Wednesday 26th of July 2017

You are absolutely right, there really are a lot of factors that you have to take into consideration when deciding on what kind of bat to buy. The material in particular seems like it would be the biggest point of debate over what kind of bat to buy for a youth. Based on your article, I'd imagine that a wooden bat might be a bit better for kids with some experience playing the game, while an aluminum one would really help kids who are just joining up.

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