misunderestimation

Unfortunately, we heard this story before (From HelenaIR.com):

Moments later, the 16-year-old Oak Lawn High School sophomore lost consciousness. Even before he came out of a coma two weeks later, he was thrust into an emotional debate over the use of aluminum bats.

Many claim the aluminum bat has made baseball much more dangerous. Check out this quote from The Science of Baseball:

Titanium was used briefly, but it was quickly prohibited because that metal’s combination of high strength, light weight, and elasticity was clearly going to result in shattering all hitting records in all phases of the game. “You could actually grab the barrel of the bat in your hands and squeeze, and you could feel the bat give,” says Manning, who adds: “The trampoline effect was enormous, and though titanium was banned, we learned a lot about how to make aluminum bats achieve the same effect.”

We are building stronger, lighter, faster, and more responsive bats. The result seems to be, the ball travels faster off the bat then ever before. This common belief is leading toward legislation. The latest is in New Jersey according to NorthJersey.com

TRENTON, N.J. (AP) – A New Jersey lawmaker wants to return the crack of the bat to youth baseball games to help prevent serious injuries.

Assemblyman Patrick J. Diegnan Jr., D-Middlesex, on Thursday introduced legislation to require youth and high school baseball leagues to use only wood bats. The measure comes after a 12-year-old from Wayne was seriously injured when hit in the chest by a line drive off a metal bat.

“The speed at which a ball comes off an aluminum bat can be so great that the reaction time for a pitcher to protect himself or herself is reduced to almost zero,” Diegnan said. “We cannot protect every player against on-field injury, but we can correct a balance of power that has swung disproportionately in favor of hitters using increasingly lethal bats.”

The bill would mandate the use of wood bats in all leagues where youths under age 18 participate. An exemption would be granted only for a game in which the visiting team hails from out-of-state.

Must the choice only be wood? Not according to the Editors of NorthJersey.com:

The current debate, arising from a tragic incident where a line drive from an aluminum bat struck a 12-year-old pitcher in Wayne, stopped his heart and put him in a coma, has boiled down to whether non-wooden bats should be banned from youth baseball. But why must the choice come down to hickory or aluminum?

The fact is that aluminum bats can be manufactured to different specifications, including ones that reduce ball speed. As young athletes continue to get bigger and stronger at younger ages, it’s time for bat manufacturers and organized youth baseball officials to reevaluate the bat performance factors that manufacturers must adhere to and to design safer baseball bats.

Will wooden bats solve everything? Well, no. Check out this piece on major-league injuries from “come-backers” in The Enquirer.

Baseball players have a simpler formula: It comes back faster than it goes in.

Former Cincinnati pitcher Rob Dibble once threw a pitch 96 mph, only to see it returned to sender at 121 mph. Hall of Fame pitcher Nolan Ryan fired a 98 mph fastball hit back at him at more than 130 mph.

“You really can’t do anything,” Indianapolis reliever and former Red Brian Reith said. “You can try to get in a good fielding position … but if the batter squares up and hits it hard, you really have no chance of getting out of the way.”

Bottom line, baseball, like any sport, has risks…and there is nothing better than seeing your kid hit one deep.

More misunderestimation