DO YOU WATCH MLB BASEBALL? HAVE YOU WATCHED ANY MAJOR LEAGUE GAMES LATELY? IF SO, YOU MAY HAVE NOTICED A "STRANGE PHENOMENON - "FLYING BATS", and I don't mean the animal kind.
I've been watching the Pittsburgh Pirates a lot this season, especially as they've gotten to "the stretch" run that has qualified them for a one-game "wildcard" playoff - this one next Tuesday, at home against the Reds.
GO BUCS! (As in "buccaneers".)
I AM ALARMED at the number of broken bats as a result of the baseballs being hit!! It's an unusually high number, compared to earlier in the season!
SO I'M ASKING "WHY?". HOW OFTEN HAS THIS HAPPENED THROUGHOUT THE LEAGUE?
Here are some possibilities:
l. Are the batmakers using "inferior woods"? Louisville Slugger, and Hillerich and Bradley, I'm talking to you! (Or has the league changed or experimented with other batmakers?)
2. Is the cooler weather affecting the composition of the wooden bats?
Do they have a tendency to "snap" when the wood is colder?
3. Is it maybe that the bats are becoming "stressed" from overuse? Get my point here? If a player's favorite bat or bats are seeing a number of visits to the plate, and hitting a high number of balls, both "fair" and "foul", is this taking it's toll on each bat? Think about it. Could be.
MY FEAR IS THAT SOMEBODY IS GOING TO GET HURT WITH THE TOP END OF A BAT FLYING INTO THE FIELD OF PLAY - AND EVEN SOMETIMES "INTO THE STANDS"!!
Granted, most of them don't go too far, and often they fly off harmlessly into "foul territory", but in the past few days I've seen them go as far as out near an infielder, and ONE EVEN MADE IT TO SHALLOW OUTFIELD!
I do remember one game a few months back when a spectator, who wasn't "spectating", received a blow from a broken bat flying at her! I hope she is okay.
HOW LONG BEFORE A PLAYER, WHOSE LIVELIHOOD DEPENDS ON HIS STAYING IN THE GAME, IS SERIOUSLY INJURED BY ONE OF THESE INCIDENTS? I pray that it never happens, but ......................?
HERE ARE MY SUGGESTIONS:
1. Test the bats more thoroughly at the factory before they are shipped.
2. Do an "extreme test" on random bats from each production.
3. Assign serial numbers to each bat, and have their "times-at-bat" recorded, including foul balls hit, and "retire" each bat after a maximum number of batted balls is reached!
4. Use the "retired" bats for batting practice, or donate to an appropriate civic program, where the youth are unlikely to exert enough force on them to create any problems. OR AUCTION THEM OFF FOR CHARITY!
5. CHANGE THE COMPOSITION OF THE BATS! Is there a stronger wood or "wood composite" that would perform suitably and with more longevity - with a minimum danger of "exploding" or breaking?
6. Your idea(s) here:
That's my take. I TRUST THAT THE LEAGUE OFFICE HAS TAKEN NOTICE OF THE SITUATION, AND IS TAKING STEPS TO RECTIFY THE PROBLEM - BEFORE IT'S "COSTLY" TO A PLAYER OR FAN!!
P.S. I remember growing up, that we were always told to "put the printing on the back, away from the hitting surface". Still true? Are these players not heeding to this axiom? Is it because they don't have to pay for them?
I've been watching the Pittsburgh Pirates a lot this season, especially as they've gotten to "the stretch" run that has qualified them for a one-game "wildcard" playoff - this one next Tuesday, at home against the Reds.
GO BUCS! (As in "buccaneers".)
I AM ALARMED at the number of broken bats as a result of the baseballs being hit!! It's an unusually high number, compared to earlier in the season!
SO I'M ASKING "WHY?". HOW OFTEN HAS THIS HAPPENED THROUGHOUT THE LEAGUE?
Here are some possibilities:
l. Are the batmakers using "inferior woods"? Louisville Slugger, and Hillerich and Bradley, I'm talking to you! (Or has the league changed or experimented with other batmakers?)
2. Is the cooler weather affecting the composition of the wooden bats?
Do they have a tendency to "snap" when the wood is colder?
3. Is it maybe that the bats are becoming "stressed" from overuse? Get my point here? If a player's favorite bat or bats are seeing a number of visits to the plate, and hitting a high number of balls, both "fair" and "foul", is this taking it's toll on each bat? Think about it. Could be.
MY FEAR IS THAT SOMEBODY IS GOING TO GET HURT WITH THE TOP END OF A BAT FLYING INTO THE FIELD OF PLAY - AND EVEN SOMETIMES "INTO THE STANDS"!!
Granted, most of them don't go too far, and often they fly off harmlessly into "foul territory", but in the past few days I've seen them go as far as out near an infielder, and ONE EVEN MADE IT TO SHALLOW OUTFIELD!
I do remember one game a few months back when a spectator, who wasn't "spectating", received a blow from a broken bat flying at her! I hope she is okay.
HOW LONG BEFORE A PLAYER, WHOSE LIVELIHOOD DEPENDS ON HIS STAYING IN THE GAME, IS SERIOUSLY INJURED BY ONE OF THESE INCIDENTS? I pray that it never happens, but ......................?
HERE ARE MY SUGGESTIONS:
1. Test the bats more thoroughly at the factory before they are shipped.
2. Do an "extreme test" on random bats from each production.
3. Assign serial numbers to each bat, and have their "times-at-bat" recorded, including foul balls hit, and "retire" each bat after a maximum number of batted balls is reached!
4. Use the "retired" bats for batting practice, or donate to an appropriate civic program, where the youth are unlikely to exert enough force on them to create any problems. OR AUCTION THEM OFF FOR CHARITY!
5. CHANGE THE COMPOSITION OF THE BATS! Is there a stronger wood or "wood composite" that would perform suitably and with more longevity - with a minimum danger of "exploding" or breaking?
6. Your idea(s) here:
That's my take. I TRUST THAT THE LEAGUE OFFICE HAS TAKEN NOTICE OF THE SITUATION, AND IS TAKING STEPS TO RECTIFY THE PROBLEM - BEFORE IT'S "COSTLY" TO A PLAYER OR FAN!!
P.S. I remember growing up, that we were always told to "put the printing on the back, away from the hitting surface". Still true? Are these players not heeding to this axiom? Is it because they don't have to pay for them?
