Wood Bats in the NCAA? (****: SectionBNole)

[Prope]

Is there any discussion/chance that NCAA Baseball will switch to wood bats?

Just wondering..

[fquaye14ten]

doubtful. there are myriad reasons why this will never happen

a.) cost
b.) sponsorship
c.) interest in the sport

[fquaye14ten]

sorry. i know i'm not b-nole. but i have a mild knowledge of ncca baseball (GO DIAMOND HOGS!!!!!)

[Prope]

doubtful. there are myriad reasons why this will never happen

a.) cost
b.) sponsorship
c.) interest in the sport
Wooden bats cost more than aluminum?

Sponsorship, the bane of college athletics

As far as interest goes - how many people would really notice?
sorry. i know i'm not b-nole. but i have a mild knowledge of ncca baseball (GO DIAMOND HOGS!!!!!)
No, it's totally cool. I'm just wondering if there is a drop-off your first year or so with a switch and that might make them change their minds.

[fquaye14ten]

wood bats break

agreed

a lot---aluminum=much more offense

[Prope]

Alright, as far as I'm concerned my question is answered.

Closed.

[fquaye14ten]

i want to hear nole's take on this...i think there's something i'm leaving out

[Prope]

Probably


Open.

[OkStateSox]

As far as interest goes - how many people would really notice?

College fans would most definitely "notice". This is an issue that has been debated for decades. I think the opponents of aluminum bats look at the safety of pitchers as their number one concern along with the ability for college hitters to make the jump up to the minor leagues.

http://www.kettering.edu/~drussell/bats-new/NCAA/BattingAvg.jpg

http://www.kettering.edu/~drussell/bats-new/NCAA/StrikeOuts.jpg

After the BESR safety standards of 1999 college baseball will never go to wooden bats by the way. College baseball without the "ping" is just single A ball.

[Timmy D's]

Aluminum bats need to be banned even at the high school level. Period!!! The ball travels so damn fast off an aluminum it is scary. I saw 2 guys I played w/ in college get almost all their teeth knocked out from them, and that was light years ago. Now ya got Demarini, and the likes makin these ultra light/ ultra strong bats w/ whip action. The bat speed itself is insane, but the main thing is the recoil off these things, it is just plain scary. Cost factor is a joke!!!!W/ a wood bat costing lets say $40-$50 each, the aluminums these teams are using are $200+ each. So yes the wood will cost more in the long run when they break, BUT ya cant put a price on a kids life. Colleges, high schools can cut costs else where as to that they can afford to buy wood bats. And I'm talking Ash bats, not the new maples from Canada that are splintering all over the Majors right now, those need to go as well, but that is a whole other topic. I can remember when I was a kid in little league, they outlawed the 2 piece aluminum bat, cause some pitcher in Texas had the handle end of the bat pierce his chest plate, and killed him instantly. For those that dont know what that was, it was a rubber handle that slid over the shaft of the aluminum bat, serving both as the grip, and the knob as well. So unfortunately it will take another occurence of something like a death to maybe finally have this pass legislation, but that's the way the slow wheels grind here. So soon you'll see a pitcher, or charging 3rd basemen thinking bunt is on, get killed w/ a line drive that splits his friggin head wide open. The ban is LONG OVERDUE IMHO!!!!!

[SectionBNole]

I really doubt you will see wood bats in college baseball any time soon. To my knowledge there isnt much discussion about it at this time.

It seems that college baseball almost tries to market the fact they use aluminum bats, especially when you see commercials for games and they almost always have the sound of the ping in em.

This past February, FSU traveled to my home town of Clearwater to take on the Phillies in an exhibition game. They were given the option of using either type and chose wood. Tony Thomas actually went deep on the first pitch of the game with the wood bat. However, other hitters really struggled.

As for my preference, I say keep the aluminums. I havent really heard of too many injuries as a result of using them.

[Prope]

I'd say ESPN did the most marketing. I remember a 'ping' commercial concerning the CWS.

[SectionBNole]

Well, regardless of who did it, that seems to be the pitch.