[Husker] PineTar and Aluminum Bats

[Jeff Volk]

Neal wrote:

>College baseball went to aluminum in the mid-70s.  It makes it easier to hit and harder on >pitchers.  Some of the best players stay away from college for that reason.  The aluminum  >bat makers are in bed with the NCAA and college baseball programs; that is the only reason >we still have metal in the college game.  

True, economics is the main driving force behind the use of aluminum in college. The primary reason for this is simply the cost of wood bats and how easily they are broken - even the new composite hardwood bats. A secondary issue to that is the sponsorship issue, although the last time I checked Louisville Slugger, the primary provider of metal bats to NCAA teams also does a pretty big business in wood bats - so really the bat companies are making money either way.  

>It is more dangerous for players and it cheapens the game. 

While I would agree that it is definitely more dangerous, I would stop short of saying it "cheapens" the game. HBO Real Sports did a story in 2002, which has been updated and is airing in the June episode, on the safety of metal bats. It primarily points out what a sham the NCAA's testing and certification program is and how unsafe the bats really are. Without going into great detail, the safest exit speed for a baseball in which the pitcher still has time to react is approximately 80 mph with an aluminum bat. The NCAA's testing program states that for a bat to be certified it has to meet the same exit speed criteria as a wood bat using the same speed pitch and swing. The test uses a 60 mph pitch with a 60 mph swing speed to create this balance for certification and produce up to an 80 mph exit speed. In the real world however, where 80 and 90 mph pitches are far more common and swings are much harder, an 80 mph pitch can produce exit speeds in excess of 114 mph, giving a pitcher less than .02 of a second to react - in excess of what any human is capable of. Anyway - for those interested watch the piece...like most things on HBO Real Sports it is very well done. 

>It is also a reason why college baseball is inferior to AA minor league ball.
 
This statement is absurd. Aluminum bats have no bearing whatsoever on why college baseball is "inferior" to AA minor league baseball - talent does. Most AA teams are stocked with players who have legitimate shots at making the big leagues - players who were the Alex Gordon's of their respective HS or college teams. With that better level of competition comes a higher level of play and that has nothing to do with aluminum or wood bats. In turn, that is why MLB is a better level of competition than AA...as you move up you increase the skill level and quality of the players. 

College baseball is an exciting game - in many ways far more exciting than a AA game...and I would rather watch a College World Series game like the Nebraska - ASU game like the one yesterday than a Springfield Cardinals - Tulsa Drillers AA game ANY TIME! But that is just my .02 cents. 

Have a great day. 

Sincerely,

Jeffrey Volk