Many Major League Baseball players use wooden bats that are made of white ash or maple. The wood used to make the white ash bats comes from Pennsylvania and New York. These bats are light and durable. Out of all the white ash trees that are harvested, only the best ten percent are used to make bats. These trees are usually around fifty years old when they are harvested. Maple bats are just starting to be used in the MLB. The advancement of technology has allowed this. Previously, maple bats were too heavy. Now, they can be made with less moisture making them weigh less. Recently there has been a controversy in MLB because maple bats were breaking and hitting people in the stands or base coaches. MLB has turned to science to try and make maple bats more durable. In the past, hickory bats were used, but they are very heavy. Some baseball bat manufacturers are experimenting with bamboo. These bats are made of bamboo strips put together and are very strong. MLB baseball players are very picky about their bats.
http://www.baseball-bats.net/baseball-bats/baseball-bat-materials/index.html
As an avid baseball fan, I have noticed or so it seems that more and more bats are breaking during a game than in the past. It can be a hazard if part of the bat goes flying into the infield or stands and injures a player or fan. Hopefully, with new technology, baseball bats will be made more durable to withstand breakage in the future. The art of designing a baseball bat from a tree is amazing and it would be interesting to see the process that goes into making the bats.
ReplyDeleteI'd a fan of the metal bats, I'm not sure the allownce in an MLB game but I played softball for years. I didn't like the sting that went along with it but as for accuarcy- the bats are great. As Kay above me said, the bats have been breaking alot these days. I've notices that, I dont watch many other games beside the ones the the Phillies play in but I have seen many broken bats last season. I don't understand why its so frequent.
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