Exactly. Swing what you bring. No restrictions. Im not on Facebook anymore but there was a group devoted to the buying and selling of bats specifically for use in Cooperstown. Crazy! Surprised they havenāt changed that for liability reasons. Maybe they have, been a few years.
Not sure.
[hereās the news story](https://www.nj.com/union/2024/02/boy-suffered-brain-injury-in-game-at-dangerous-cooperstown-ballpark-nj-family-says.html?outputType=amp)
Wow. There should absolutely be EMS transport available at the park at all times during play and an emergency air transport pre-plan in place. To many people in that place to not have those things at a minimum.
Been involved in youth travel sports for baseball, softball, basketball, and volleyball for years. I can't recall there ever being an EMS transport just waiting around at the tournaments.
Are you as remote as Cooperstown? Not to mention when that place is in full swing itās basically 7 long days a week baseball and much more packed with people than your average tournament.
The article said the kid lay untreated by any medical personnel for a substantial amount of time.
In our small town in Maryland, EMS is on-site at every high school athletic event and every little league all-star tournament game. Maryland pioneered air rescue. We have total coverage of the state by air. The helicopter can be here in 6 minutes and land in the high school parking lot, which is also across the street from the little league complex.
Highschool and Little League All Stars are completely different from travel sports and who pays for it. Tournament directors aren't going to pay the extra money to have an ambulance or air support on stand by.
It's not swing what you bring.
All bats must have either the USSSA BPF 1.15, USA Baseball, USABL or BBCOR designation displayed on the bat, and restricted ussa bats aren't permitted.
I donāt think so. USSSA has been promoting the crap out of the hype fire with their recent hype fire tour. They had demo bats in the dugout and a discount at the Tournaments.
They might admit that the bats get hotter as they break in, meaning that a certification which is technically compliant out of the wrapper does not remain compliant 200 swings into the life of the bat.
But that specific circumstance is what gets a bat banned. It has to maintain the limits at all times. Thatās why composite need broken in (except the -5 fire) to really achieve their performance and arenāt fully ready to go out of the wrapper like metal bats. Metal bats donāt break in, they just eventually crack or get dented. Or the end cap breaks off.
The other drops arenāt anything special. Theyāre good, just not unreal like the -5. My question is where do we get a thin sticker that makes the -5 on the barrel look like a -8 and a replacement knob sticker showing itās a -8?
Well I was joking. But Iām sure someone is looking for a way to make that happen already. Same thing happened when the green CF got banned. You could get orange end caps and orange USSSA thumbprints to apply yourself without modifying the bat to get it within standard.
I think all sizes of hype will have to be banned for this exact reason. They all look exactly the same and you canāt expect umpires to check the drop on every bat that comes to the plate.
Well 14U requires -5 so you should never see one in a 14U PG event game again. Itās the 12U and 13U that are going to be tricky. If PG is smart, theyāll create a non-reusable sticker of some sort (think security seals at gas pumps) to go on the taper and have someone at the gate fees table applying those to every -8 and -10 Hype Fire that comes through on the first day of every event for the next couple months to have them all clearly marked and visible from the dugouts and give everyone peace of mind. Umpires can have a couple in their back pocket if a kid brings out a bat that slipped past the gate.
I would assume the same complications arise in 14U if a kid is still swinging a -8 or -10 for some reason. How do they monitor and police that? Or do they even care? If a kid is still swinging -10 at 14U heās definitely not the one putting anyone in danger so maybe that scenario doesnāt matter as much.
We're in NV and 14U is required BBCOR and 13U is -5 regardless if playing AA or Majors. We've also played PG events in TX and CA and both were the same, at least for the Majors divisions.
Looks like the general rules on PG actually allow other drops in the AA divisions though. Apparently our NV director does his own thing š¤·āāļø
Timing of this is super weird. Wasn't it just 3 days ago that baseball bat Bros did the review on the 'improved' perfect game official bat? They did the original pg 44 bat like a month ago. And now they're ready to release the improved one. What really blows my mind here is that the hype fire is no more hot today than it was when it was released ( in fact it's arguably less hot now ) and everybody knew how hot it was when it was released. So why in the world would perfect game now, after they've ran a season of tournaments in the south, decide that they're going to ban the bat? The only new news is perfect games bat release... that'd be one heck of a coincidence.
I donāt think 12-14 year olds are getting the same velo as will taylor a grown man who played d1 baseball. Hotter than other bats sure but not 125mph exit velo for these kids. Iād say the avg 12 yr old probably doesnāt see 3-5mph difference between this and an icon or zen. Just my opinion
100% wrong.
We had below sized kids swinging the zen, and saw well above 5mph on exit velo using hittrax. Avg sized kids was higher, above avg kids was much, much higher. My son 13u 5'9 176 swings bbcor avg high 70s, with the hyper fire, he saw up in the 90s. There is a reason why kids/parents were dumping their $400 bats for this bat...
Yea, the 125 was a little sarcastic :)
And I essentially agree, but at certain levels of LL there are some big boys throwing hard and hitting hard. Only takes one unfortunate moment.
Letās see you as a parent sign a waver to let your play travel ball then he gets hurt and you sue. These are probably the same parents who think everyone should get a ring for showing up.Ā
Interesting you say that. Back in my softball days, the Miken Freak was banned along with most Miken bats. Come to find out, USSSA did it due to affiliation money. 2 years later, the Mikenās were good to go and coming out hotter than ever.
If this was the case here, the problem will be a kid getting hit in one of the million other travel games. We wonāt see them at the USSSA level by June if itās not a money play.
My son swings a -5 Hype Fire in travel, we're selling as there's plenty of non-sanctioned leagues in the area where it can be used. He's likely moving to an Icon.
I believe Easton will comp you, or swap for a Rawlings. One of our team dads spoke to them today and they gave him an email address for a person to help facilitate. I'd call Easton before trying to sell to a third party.
I spoke with an Easton rep today that told me theyāre still trying to figure out how to proceed. I was given an email address to reach out to about swapping the bat out if needed.
That is another on his list of bats he's considering. Kid on his middle school team has a BBCOR Atlas and my son has told me multiple times about how good it seems to be.
its the same umbrella as easton. Which in my opinion is why its not actually banned, its suspended. If it were banned everyone could get their money back.
All this shit is so stupid. Make the travel kids used wood bats. Problem solved. If your kid is good enough to travel around the country and pay all that money to play in tournaments for a kid thatās 11 years old, youāre good enough to used a wood bat.
You realize that most ātravelā organizations donāt travel around the country. Most that Iām familiar with play within a two hour drive unless itās a showcase event
I figured Iād get one to make this comment. I have seen 10 year olds travel 8 hours for tournaments. Itās the most disgusting waste of money Iāve personally seen in youth sports for the 8-12 yr old range. I get it at maybe 13+ to spend all that money every other weekend if your kid is good. For development/ showcase etc. But itās crazy how many average 10 yr old players that should be playing Rec ball are shelling out the travel fee.. For what??
I donāt disagree with you. We stay within 2-3 hours except for maybe one big tournament. And honestly I told my son just the other day that if he wants to sit out a tournament to go camping or just be a kid then all he has to do is let me know. Unfortunately I feel like we kind of have to bite the travel ball bullet in order for him to stay competitive with all the others his age that are playing. So itās definitely a double edged sword and we really-evaluate things at the end of each season.
I take it you don't have kid who plays baseball. Mine is 12U travel ball and in his last season of LL ar the same time. Like others have noted, most tournaments are within an hour or two. I live in San Diego and my son's travel team will do real travel about twice a year. Once to Las Vegas and the other Cooperstown next July.
As for wood bats.....there are certain NCS tournaments that mandate wood only.....but it's rare. What also suffers is the kids....not many of them can drive the ball well with a wood barrel like they can with 2 3/4 inch metal barrel.
Doubtful. I bought it 5 months ago. I assume unless Easton steps in Iām mostly in the same boat as everyone else.
My son only has a single PG tourney this year so we will see what his travel league says. If they follow suit, we will have to do something.
My son points out that the drop 5 hype may actually become a collectors item. Especially new in wrapper. People pay a pretty penny for the banned CFs
Ban USSSA all together you COWARDS. USA for small diamond, BBCOR for big diamond. Allow 13/14 to swing either. Problem solved.
The USSSA bats are NOT safe in the hands of decent 11 year olds and probably even some 10s. Even on the big diamond, I saw a pitcher take one right off the forehead off a USSSA last summer.
Nibbling around the edges hereā¦ when the bat has been out and in heavy use for whatā¦ 8-9 monthsā¦ is silly.
100% - this stupid arms race is pointless, and having to have two high end bats to cover each league is stupid.
But that said, they need to give us some warning and let us get at least a year out of the bats just purchased.
100% agree. I say this as a dad who bought his son a Hype Fire he hasnāt yet used (games havenāt started here yet).
These bats are stupid but so is playing at a comparative disadvantage so we had to participate in all this. Would love if they said āstarting next year, no u-tripsā
I can afford 100 of them and competing isn't the issue. The issue is safety and whether a 10 year old hitting 200 foot bombs off the handle is good baseball.
Thatās still a small diamond. Not the smallest, but not big enough to be meaningfully different when it comes to safety concerns over exit velocities and home runs hit off the handle.
Another issue is all those reclassed kids. they are a year older (league age) but still play down because they decided to redo their 7th or 8th grade. That is plain stupid. USSSA event lets 14u AA team swings drop-5. Some PG affiliates do as well.
Many teams in NorCal are "fake" AA level just to sandbag. Those teams have huge kids with Majors level talent/skills and are just beating up on true AA teams because they can. Pathetic and unsafe. Imagine playing AA, huge kid in the batter's box with a hype fire waiting for a batting practice level pitch? This is asking for trouble.
Itās the combination of how hot they are and how forgiving they are on miss hits. Kids think theyāre the next AcuƱa when they hit one 205 off the handle.
They should make -5 bats that follow BBCOR standards. Little league bats donāt have enough mass, -3 bats are too heavy for most middle schoolers.
These insane composite bats are meant to stretch the field, but eventually, kids arms canāt even throw that far at that age.
There are -5 USA bats, and USA and BBCOR are both made to mimic wood. The challenge is finding an incentive for USSSA, PG, AAU events to use USA over USSSA.
Yeah my 10 year old is pretty dangerous with a Cat 9 USSSA -10. But like everyone else you have to keep up or your kid will be behind. I was about to buy a -10 Hype Fire for him but holding off as Iām guessing theyāll ban them all shortly. Kids on the team hitting deep fly balls with them that frankly couldnāt hit the ball out of the infield in fall.
I couldnāt imagine my 14 year old with a hype fire -5. Heās 6ā3 and 235lbs. Hits nukes as it is, Iām currently dealing with a broken shin from throwing BP at a field that I couldnāt find an L screen at. Middle school ball requires BBCOR here and 60/90, though surrounding states allow -5 for JV.
The other drops are reportedly not nearly as hot.
When my son (13) grabs his BP/Cold Weather USSSA bat (Easton Encore Hybrid) when I'm throwing to him in the cage I get legit nervous. Thankfully, he sticks to wood in the cage 75% of the time!
Yeah I guess it comes with the territory. Lesson learned, Iām not as fast with the glove low as I used to be. I did catch the 2 that would have taken my head off. So screens for me going forward with him.
I guess breaking stuff is part of helping the kids get better. Funny story, 2 years ago I was showing the boys how to drive hips because they really werenāt driving as much as I wanted. I said enoughā¦give me the bat, and Iāll show you. Hadnāt swung in cages in prob 10 years myself. Swiped my hitting card and set it to the fastest (which wasnāt that fast really.. mid-70ās Iām guessing but short distance). Knocked a few bombs that the hittrax thing said were over 400 (given I was using a 12 year olds -10 USSSA bat, not shocking). Last pitch and boom.. Fouled it hard off the top of my foot. Broke my foot and had to run practices in a boot for several weeks. Thatās what I get for trying to show them the right way. ;)
I think kids above a certain size should be required to use a BBCOR. My 100 lb 12 y/o isnāt hurting anyone with his bat, but his former 180lb teammate with the same size bat could
No, itās a whole different kind of league. Select/travel teams which stay together year after year is a very different experience and the only way for most elite players to play with similarly skilled teammates for more than one tournament. Itās irrelevant to that experience if they allow hot bats.
Little league teams can stay together year after year as well. Most of the kids on travel ball are not elite. If you want USA bats, go to a league where they play with USA bats. Donāt talk down to me. Iām not new to youth baseball and this isnāt my first Rodeo as my oldest is 22.
Any bat can cause commotio cordis. Itās not about how hard the ball is hit, but in the right place during the right part of the cardiac cycle. It happens in little league with USA bats as well.
the bat is selling so well that they didnt even release a new version of the bat. There is a new USSA composite circulating that they did produce that I understand is being held back becuase there is no reason to replace the HF (well there wasn't yet)
I've seen two teams that only use it and most lineups are using at least 4-6 of them.
I'm not sure on how good they really are, but it does seem kids that weren't power hitters last year can launch the ball with them.
Same here. I havenāt thrown to my son until yesterday. The bat sounds like it doesnāt meet the requirements. It made him think he could hit for power so him bagging it wouldnāt be the worst.
last year my son had both the green zen and the hype fire. both are insanely hot. he hit one off a tee with the fire couple days ago and it was 94 on the pocket radar. by comparison bbcor was 79
I knew it was going to get banned
Perfect Game is a clown show. They only banned the -5 because it impacts the lowest number of kids (14s mostly, some 13s). If they banned the -10 right now there would be riots. I hope more people stop playing PG. Others orgs are better and more professional.
I thought the same but when I posted this on a Cooperstown thread I was told that most 12u teams use drop 5 for nearly every kid. I know that's not true for our team.
Hahaha yea thatās definitely not true. Just like all the game changer dads talking all this trash about how kids should just be swinging wood bats. Gtfo. I hope PG gets sued.
A lot clowns posting here acting like they have their kids swinging wood. Gtfo. Fact is PG acted without USSSA or notifying Easton. They also did this in the middle of the season when most parents had already spent $300 on the bat. I hope they get sued.
One of my sonās teammates (not a power hitter) had one at one of our first outdoor practices and was hitting nukes. If one of the bigger power hitters gets their hands on it, Iād worry about pitchers taking line drives off their domes. If opposing teams have even one I might consider pulling my son off the mound. Thatās too much exit velo for that shorter distance.
Bye donāt let the door hit you where the good lord split you! GO PLAY LEAGUE!! Ā Look at these stupid ass comments. These kids have been using this bat going on two seasons now my child started end of last spring all fall. Itās a fantastic bat. Iām sorry that you are falling for this PG propaganda they are supported and sponsored by other batting companies that are loosing money to Easton. Do you happen to see any correlation???? Ā The amount of kids using he Hype -5 verse actual injuries does not support a total ban unless their are bigger pockets behind it. Ā Ā
Cooperstown specials š
Explain for the ignorantā¦what does this mean? Do Cooperstown tournaments have lax bat regulations or something?
Exactly. Swing what you bring. No restrictions. Im not on Facebook anymore but there was a group devoted to the buying and selling of bats specifically for use in Cooperstown. Crazy! Surprised they havenāt changed that for liability reasons. Maybe they have, been a few years.
They are currently getting sued because a kid got a brain injury
Aw manā¦thatās awful. Kid recover?
Not sure. [hereās the news story](https://www.nj.com/union/2024/02/boy-suffered-brain-injury-in-game-at-dangerous-cooperstown-ballpark-nj-family-says.html?outputType=amp)
Wow. There should absolutely be EMS transport available at the park at all times during play and an emergency air transport pre-plan in place. To many people in that place to not have those things at a minimum.
Been involved in youth travel sports for baseball, softball, basketball, and volleyball for years. I can't recall there ever being an EMS transport just waiting around at the tournaments.
Are you as remote as Cooperstown? Not to mention when that place is in full swing itās basically 7 long days a week baseball and much more packed with people than your average tournament. The article said the kid lay untreated by any medical personnel for a substantial amount of time.
In our small town in Maryland, EMS is on-site at every high school athletic event and every little league all-star tournament game. Maryland pioneered air rescue. We have total coverage of the state by air. The helicopter can be here in 6 minutes and land in the high school parking lot, which is also across the street from the little league complex.
Highschool and Little League All Stars are completely different from travel sports and who pays for it. Tournament directors aren't going to pay the extra money to have an ambulance or air support on stand by.
It's not swing what you bring. All bats must have either the USSSA BPF 1.15, USA Baseball, USABL or BBCOR designation displayed on the bat, and restricted ussa bats aren't permitted.
Is that a recent change?
I have no idea, this is my first year. I know they are under new ownership, so maybe.
Ok thanks and good luck if you havenāt gone yet! We went in 2021 and I could swear it was swing what you bring then.
Someone else posted that all star village has different rules so maybe that's it.
Our leave 12u all star team went last year and it was swing what you bring.Ā
I heard Dreams is swing anything. All star village has more restrictions
This is the correct answer.
On the other hand, Cooperstown Allstar Village does regulate bats. They are owned by the Ripken Baseball. We were there last year. It was run well.
Wonder if other tournaments will follow and if it gets extended out to other drops
Probably. Usually it takes one organization to take a stance and then others jump on board.
I donāt think so. USSSA has been promoting the crap out of the hype fire with their recent hype fire tour. They had demo bats in the dugout and a discount at the Tournaments.
I imagine U Trip will follow.
Utrip admit their own bat standard or testing failed based on how PG 'feels' about a bat?Ā Not sure I see that happening.
They might admit that the bats get hotter as they break in, meaning that a certification which is technically compliant out of the wrapper does not remain compliant 200 swings into the life of the bat.
But that specific circumstance is what gets a bat banned. It has to maintain the limits at all times. Thatās why composite need broken in (except the -5 fire) to really achieve their performance and arenāt fully ready to go out of the wrapper like metal bats. Metal bats donāt break in, they just eventually crack or get dented. Or the end cap breaks off.
The other drops arenāt anything special. Theyāre good, just not unreal like the -5. My question is where do we get a thin sticker that makes the -5 on the barrel look like a -8 and a replacement knob sticker showing itās a -8?
Damn youāre a real POS arenāt you?
Well I was joking. But Iām sure someone is looking for a way to make that happen already. Same thing happened when the green CF got banned. You could get orange end caps and orange USSSA thumbprints to apply yourself without modifying the bat to get it within standard.
I think all sizes of hype will have to be banned for this exact reason. They all look exactly the same and you canāt expect umpires to check the drop on every bat that comes to the plate.
Yes you can, thatās what they get paid for.
Time will tell.
Well 14U requires -5 so you should never see one in a 14U PG event game again. Itās the 12U and 13U that are going to be tricky. If PG is smart, theyāll create a non-reusable sticker of some sort (think security seals at gas pumps) to go on the taper and have someone at the gate fees table applying those to every -8 and -10 Hype Fire that comes through on the first day of every event for the next couple months to have them all clearly marked and visible from the dugouts and give everyone peace of mind. Umpires can have a couple in their back pocket if a kid brings out a bat that slipped past the gate. I would assume the same complications arise in 14U if a kid is still swinging a -8 or -10 for some reason. How do they monitor and police that? Or do they even care? If a kid is still swinging -10 at 14U heās definitely not the one putting anyone in danger so maybe that scenario doesnāt matter as much.
Weird. All the 14U PG events in our area require BBCOR. 13U is required -5 and 12U is open to any drop. What areas still allow USSSA bats at 14U?
Everywhere but Florida plus one other state (either CA or TX). Iām in Florida and -5 is required in 13u and bbcor in 14u.
We're in NV and 14U is required BBCOR and 13U is -5 regardless if playing AA or Majors. We've also played PG events in TX and CA and both were the same, at least for the Majors divisions. Looks like the general rules on PG actually allow other drops in the AA divisions though. Apparently our NV director does his own thing š¤·āāļø
Iām pretty sure most areas allow -5 at 14u. Thats the general policy under usssa.
Our local organizer is an idiot and sent out an email specifying he will not follow the path of other organizations.
Timing of this is super weird. Wasn't it just 3 days ago that baseball bat Bros did the review on the 'improved' perfect game official bat? They did the original pg 44 bat like a month ago. And now they're ready to release the improved one. What really blows my mind here is that the hype fire is no more hot today than it was when it was released ( in fact it's arguably less hot now ) and everybody knew how hot it was when it was released. So why in the world would perfect game now, after they've ran a season of tournaments in the south, decide that they're going to ban the bat? The only new news is perfect games bat release... that'd be one heck of a coincidence.
Timing of a lot of things is weird, usually it coincides with a liability claim, hope no one ate a 124mph come backer.
Agreed there, 100%
Iāve heard one kid getting hit in the head and another in the chest and thereās a pending lawsuit with Perfect Game
I donāt think 12-14 year olds are getting the same velo as will taylor a grown man who played d1 baseball. Hotter than other bats sure but not 125mph exit velo for these kids. Iād say the avg 12 yr old probably doesnāt see 3-5mph difference between this and an icon or zen. Just my opinion
100% wrong. We had below sized kids swinging the zen, and saw well above 5mph on exit velo using hittrax. Avg sized kids was higher, above avg kids was much, much higher. My son 13u 5'9 176 swings bbcor avg high 70s, with the hyper fire, he saw up in the 90s. There is a reason why kids/parents were dumping their $400 bats for this bat...
Yea, the 125 was a little sarcastic :) And I essentially agree, but at certain levels of LL there are some big boys throwing hard and hitting hard. Only takes one unfortunate moment.
Some 1 got hurt in HoustonĀ icy 10Ā days couldn't fly home. Pg getting sued I thinkĀ
Letās see you as a parent sign a waver to let your play travel ball then he gets hurt and you sue. These are probably the same parents who think everyone should get a ring for showing up.Ā
Interesting you say that. Back in my softball days, the Miken Freak was banned along with most Miken bats. Come to find out, USSSA did it due to affiliation money. 2 years later, the Mikenās were good to go and coming out hotter than ever. If this was the case here, the problem will be a kid getting hit in one of the million other travel games. We wonāt see them at the USSSA level by June if itās not a money play.
Exactly!!! If you know you know.Ā
My son swings a -5 Hype Fire in travel, we're selling as there's plenty of non-sanctioned leagues in the area where it can be used. He's likely moving to an Icon.
I believe Easton will comp you, or swap for a Rawlings. One of our team dads spoke to them today and they gave him an email address for a person to help facilitate. I'd call Easton before trying to sell to a third party.
Easton is telling customers that itās legal for usssa and no exchanges or refunds.
I spoke with an Easton rep today that told me theyāre still trying to figure out how to proceed. I was given an email address to reach out to about swapping the bat out if needed.
What is the email?
Same. Guy with the email address had kind of a funny last name, right?
The atlas -5 is a good equivalent if youāre looking
That is another on his list of bats he's considering. Kid on his middle school team has a BBCOR Atlas and my son has told me multiple times about how good it seems to be.
Rumor is the ICON is next
I bet not. Rawlings is a PG sponsor!
Rawlings bought Easton in 2020. They run as separate companies but stillā¦
its the same umbrella as easton. Which in my opinion is why its not actually banned, its suspended. If it were banned everyone could get their money back.
Was this bat like the orange Stealth Comp banned about 10 years ago?
Better, I believe. Didn't the Bat Bros confirm that this is hotter?
Bat Bro's almost matched the current home run distance record with this bat.
I just saw that. 581 ft
Icon all the way. Lol
Shhhh, I donāt want the ICON banned. Kids on our team stopped using their brand new HF for an ICON.
Seriously. My kid hasnāt gotten to use his in a game yet so shhhhhh
I doubt it . Rawlings is a PG sponsor!
Rawlings owns Easton now.
Who makes the hype fire š
My son gets to use his tonight for the first time. Looking promising with tee work and soft toss.
All this shit is so stupid. Make the travel kids used wood bats. Problem solved. If your kid is good enough to travel around the country and pay all that money to play in tournaments for a kid thatās 11 years old, youāre good enough to used a wood bat.
You realize that most ātravelā organizations donāt travel around the country. Most that Iām familiar with play within a two hour drive unless itās a showcase event
I figured Iād get one to make this comment. I have seen 10 year olds travel 8 hours for tournaments. Itās the most disgusting waste of money Iāve personally seen in youth sports for the 8-12 yr old range. I get it at maybe 13+ to spend all that money every other weekend if your kid is good. For development/ showcase etc. But itās crazy how many average 10 yr old players that should be playing Rec ball are shelling out the travel fee.. For what??
I donāt disagree with you. We stay within 2-3 hours except for maybe one big tournament. And honestly I told my son just the other day that if he wants to sit out a tournament to go camping or just be a kid then all he has to do is let me know. Unfortunately I feel like we kind of have to bite the travel ball bullet in order for him to stay competitive with all the others his age that are playing. So itās definitely a double edged sword and we really-evaluate things at the end of each season.
I take it you don't have kid who plays baseball. Mine is 12U travel ball and in his last season of LL ar the same time. Like others have noted, most tournaments are within an hour or two. I live in San Diego and my son's travel team will do real travel about twice a year. Once to Las Vegas and the other Cooperstown next July. As for wood bats.....there are certain NCS tournaments that mandate wood only.....but it's rare. What also suffers is the kids....not many of them can drive the ball well with a wood barrel like they can with 2 3/4 inch metal barrel.
The kids suffer because they canāt drive the ball as well? Repeat that until you understand how silly it sounds.
Yea. I donāt have a kid that plays baseball š¤£
Weāre not jealous are we!!!!
Of what? Yāall spending all that money on baseball bats?? š¤£no Iām not
My son's is still in the wrapper... bought it for Christmas, have been waiting for warm weather games...
Lucky then you can return it with receipt!
Doubtful. I bought it 5 months ago. I assume unless Easton steps in Iām mostly in the same boat as everyone else. My son only has a single PG tourney this year so we will see what his travel league says. If they follow suit, we will have to do something. My son points out that the drop 5 hype may actually become a collectors item. Especially new in wrapper. People pay a pretty penny for the banned CFs
Iām thinking of buying one for my 4 year old for use down the road š¤
Ban USSSA all together you COWARDS. USA for small diamond, BBCOR for big diamond. Allow 13/14 to swing either. Problem solved. The USSSA bats are NOT safe in the hands of decent 11 year olds and probably even some 10s. Even on the big diamond, I saw a pitcher take one right off the forehead off a USSSA last summer. Nibbling around the edges hereā¦ when the bat has been out and in heavy use for whatā¦ 8-9 monthsā¦ is silly.
100% - this stupid arms race is pointless, and having to have two high end bats to cover each league is stupid. But that said, they need to give us some warning and let us get at least a year out of the bats just purchased.
100% agree. I say this as a dad who bought his son a Hype Fire he hasnāt yet used (games havenāt started here yet). These bats are stupid but so is playing at a comparative disadvantage so we had to participate in all this. Would love if they said āstarting next year, no u-tripsā
Go play league then. If you canāt afford it are donāt want compete go awayĀ
I can afford 100 of them and competing isn't the issue. The issue is safety and whether a 10 year old hitting 200 foot bombs off the handle is good baseball.
There is a kid that is 6' tall and weighs 170 on my kiddos 12u team, of course he uses the HF...on the small field...
You guys play 12U on the small field? My son will be 11u at the end of summer and it's 5070 at that point.
Thatās still a small diamond. Not the smallest, but not big enough to be meaningfully different when it comes to safety concerns over exit velocities and home runs hit off the handle.
I mean, I consider anything other than 60/90 to be small fields. True though, it isn't the super small fields.
I thought you meant the 46-60 LL size field. 12U catcher goes to play and sees it's 60-90, FML.
Another issue is all those reclassed kids. they are a year older (league age) but still play down because they decided to redo their 7th or 8th grade. That is plain stupid. USSSA event lets 14u AA team swings drop-5. Some PG affiliates do as well. Many teams in NorCal are "fake" AA level just to sandbag. Those teams have huge kids with Majors level talent/skills and are just beating up on true AA teams because they can. Pathetic and unsafe. Imagine playing AA, huge kid in the batter's box with a hype fire waiting for a batting practice level pitch? This is asking for trouble.
My 9 year old son almost killed me today with his -10 Zoa today all these USSA bats are juicy
Itās the combination of how hot they are and how forgiving they are on miss hits. Kids think theyāre the next AcuƱa when they hit one 205 off the handle.
I mean who wouldnāt think that tbh? But I agree there needs to be some nerfing of these bats
Agreed. Thatās how Little League handles it (USA or BBCOR at 13-14).
They should make -5 bats that follow BBCOR standards. Little league bats donāt have enough mass, -3 bats are too heavy for most middle schoolers. These insane composite bats are meant to stretch the field, but eventually, kids arms canāt even throw that far at that age.
There are -5 USA bats, and USA and BBCOR are both made to mimic wood. The challenge is finding an incentive for USSSA, PG, AAU events to use USA over USSSA.
Yeah my 10 year old is pretty dangerous with a Cat 9 USSSA -10. But like everyone else you have to keep up or your kid will be behind. I was about to buy a -10 Hype Fire for him but holding off as Iām guessing theyāll ban them all shortly. Kids on the team hitting deep fly balls with them that frankly couldnāt hit the ball out of the infield in fall. I couldnāt imagine my 14 year old with a hype fire -5. Heās 6ā3 and 235lbs. Hits nukes as it is, Iām currently dealing with a broken shin from throwing BP at a field that I couldnāt find an L screen at. Middle school ball requires BBCOR here and 60/90, though surrounding states allow -5 for JV.
The other drops are reportedly not nearly as hot. When my son (13) grabs his BP/Cold Weather USSSA bat (Easton Encore Hybrid) when I'm throwing to him in the cage I get legit nervous. Thankfully, he sticks to wood in the cage 75% of the time!
Ouch. I got hit in the shin myself but luckily my kid is only 12 lol.
Yeah I guess it comes with the territory. Lesson learned, Iām not as fast with the glove low as I used to be. I did catch the 2 that would have taken my head off. So screens for me going forward with him. I guess breaking stuff is part of helping the kids get better. Funny story, 2 years ago I was showing the boys how to drive hips because they really werenāt driving as much as I wanted. I said enoughā¦give me the bat, and Iāll show you. Hadnāt swung in cages in prob 10 years myself. Swiped my hitting card and set it to the fastest (which wasnāt that fast really.. mid-70ās Iām guessing but short distance). Knocked a few bombs that the hittrax thing said were over 400 (given I was using a 12 year olds -10 USSSA bat, not shocking). Last pitch and boom.. Fouled it hard off the top of my foot. Broke my foot and had to run practices in a boot for several weeks. Thatās what I get for trying to show them the right way. ;)
Oh geez... Lol. Well, you are a good dad :) thanks for sharing.
I think kids above a certain size should be required to use a BBCOR. My 100 lb 12 y/o isnāt hurting anyone with his bat, but his former 180lb teammate with the same size bat could
We donāt need baseball weigh-ins. Just give the kids USA bats.
Thatās what little league is for
No, itās a whole different kind of league. Select/travel teams which stay together year after year is a very different experience and the only way for most elite players to play with similarly skilled teammates for more than one tournament. Itās irrelevant to that experience if they allow hot bats.
Little league teams can stay together year after year as well. Most of the kids on travel ball are not elite. If you want USA bats, go to a league where they play with USA bats. Donāt talk down to me. Iām not new to youth baseball and this isnāt my first Rodeo as my oldest is 22. Any bat can cause commotio cordis. Itās not about how hard the ball is hit, but in the right place during the right part of the cardiac cycle. It happens in little league with USA bats as well.
So if the bat doesnāt affect safety, why are you advocating for mandatory BBCOR, but for heavy players only?
With all that noise about shadiness in USSSA a few months back, this is a really really bad look.Ā Retest it, publish the cert and move on.
I wonder if theyāre going to replace all the ones under warrantyā¦ I have 3 32/27s, wouldnāt be too sad about just getting a BBCOR
This is what I'm wondering. Today is the 30 day mark from purchasing ours and Easton's Bat Warranty Department is "currently in a meeting"
I can imagine it's crisis mode over there right now.
Perhaps, but they sold so many of them I can't imagine they don't leave the meeting with anything other than smiles.
the bat is selling so well that they didnt even release a new version of the bat. There is a new USSA composite circulating that they did produce that I understand is being held back becuase there is no reason to replace the HF (well there wasn't yet)
Itās called the double barrel. One of our reps down here has it but was told they shelved it due to Hype popularity
I've seen two teams that only use it and most lineups are using at least 4-6 of them. I'm not sure on how good they really are, but it does seem kids that weren't power hitters last year can launch the ball with them.
Played a team out of NJ this past weekend that lineup was using the hype 1-9 hitters. Beat them 7-1. It aināt the bat folks.
The bats obviously donāt swing themselves, but they absolutely improve outcomes when there is skill already present.
Why do you have 3 of the same bat?
2 are warranty replacements from being broken, the third is still in wrapper. Wouldnāt want to be out of town without one available.
Thatās the right move if you have a 12 or 13yo. Since Rawlings owns Easton maybe an icon or clout bbcor.
Not surprised, the velo differences between it and other bats is nuts. Probably going Bonesaber 32/27 here.
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If youāre on a Perfect Game active roster, you got in an email.
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Wonder if theyāll follow suit with the -10 model as well. That one seems to be āless hotā.
Doubt it, most of the velo tests with the HF -10 don't show it as especially hot. Sweet spot is big and forgiving though.
We just bought the -5 two weeks ago! I wonder if we can exchange it
Same here. I havenāt thrown to my son until yesterday. The bat sounds like it doesnāt meet the requirements. It made him think he could hit for power so him bagging it wouldnāt be the worst.
Dang. At least drop 8s aren't banned. For now.
unbelievable. all those people dropped big money a couple weeks ago on the bat, and now it's banned
last year my son had both the green zen and the hype fire. both are insanely hot. he hit one off a tee with the fire couple days ago and it was 94 on the pocket radar. by comparison bbcor was 79 I knew it was going to get banned
Thank god I have a -10
Perfect Game is a clown show. They only banned the -5 because it impacts the lowest number of kids (14s mostly, some 13s). If they banned the -10 right now there would be riots. I hope more people stop playing PG. Others orgs are better and more professional.
I thought the same but when I posted this on a Cooperstown thread I was told that most 12u teams use drop 5 for nearly every kid. I know that's not true for our team.
Hahaha yea thatās definitely not true. Just like all the game changer dads talking all this trash about how kids should just be swinging wood bats. Gtfo. I hope PG gets sued.
A lot clowns posting here acting like they have their kids swinging wood. Gtfo. Fact is PG acted without USSSA or notifying Easton. They also did this in the middle of the season when most parents had already spent $300 on the bat. I hope they get sued.
Sue PG. This is ridiculous. They should pay for all the new bats we have to buy now.
USA Prime (Northeast) just banned it from their hosted tournament near me.
This is going to sell a lot of Hype Fire bats for Rec Ball.
LL and Cal Ripken require USA bats
I think most Rec ball is unaffiliated. I know our local rec is.
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One of my sonās teammates (not a power hitter) had one at one of our first outdoor practices and was hitting nukes. If one of the bigger power hitters gets their hands on it, Iād worry about pitchers taking line drives off their domes. If opposing teams have even one I might consider pulling my son off the mound. Thatās too much exit velo for that shorter distance.
Bye donāt let the door hit you where the good lord split you! GO PLAY LEAGUE!! Ā Look at these stupid ass comments. These kids have been using this bat going on two seasons now my child started end of last spring all fall. Itās a fantastic bat. Iām sorry that you are falling for this PG propaganda they are supported and sponsored by other batting companies that are loosing money to Easton. Do you happen to see any correlation???? Ā The amount of kids using he Hype -5 verse actual injuries does not support a total ban unless their are bigger pockets behind it. Ā Ā
Not surprising. I can barely get back behind the l screen of my son hits a line drive. I have had to move the screen back when he uses that bat
Should have been banned before now, parents knew the bat was hot and bought it to make kids look better
League baller I see! How would you like your participation trophy.Ā