As I read The City Paper article, and others, on the new metal (aluminum) baseball bats, I continue to wonder about the cost per bat.
I would like to know the actual cost incurred by teams for the metal bats. My memory tells me that originally, the NCAA, and other college sanctioning bodies, went to metal bats as a cost-saving measure. However, until this year, apparently many teams were investing in the expensive composite bats to gain an (illegal) edge. Imagine that: cheating in baseball.
So how long will it be before some clever engineer conjures up a new bat with a larger “sweet spot”?
What is the cost difference between wood bats and the current metal version? How long does a metal bat actually last?
Why don’t they just end this madness and go back to wood bats the way Abner Doubleday and God intended?
Disclosure: I confess I am a baseball purist. I don’t even like “batting gloves” and you don’t want to hear me rant about the designated hitter farce.
James Ladd
Nashville 37207