Softball bats - what's your weapon of choice?

[bucksfan2]

Pitching and 3b are two places that I do not want to play in softball. The ball just gets on you too fast. I am pretty much a pull hitter but can go opposite if need be. One game two season ago I tried to go opposite and took a ball right back at the pitcher. It was a line shot that hit the pitcher in the wrist and bounced elsewhere. Needless to say I don't go opposite too much anymore.

[rotnoid]

Our pitcher has actually started wearing a helmet. He took one scary close to the frontal lobe last year. Somehow he got his hand up and it glanced off the glove. Other wise, it coudl have been pretty nasty. He takes a lot of crap for wearing it, but I'd rather get made fun of than made dead.

[Buckeye33]

Our pitcher has actually started wearing a helmet. He took one scary close to the frontal lobe last year. Somehow he got his hand up and it glanced off the glove. Other wise, it coudl have been pretty nasty. He takes a lot of crap for wearing it, but I'd rather get made fun of than made dead.

The pitchers helmet is becoming more and more prevalent in the softball world. Especially in higher levels. I've been lucky enough to only be hit from the waist down in my short pitching career.

I probably should buy one and wear it.

[TRF]

If it still has some hits remaining in it and isn't dead yet, then it should be a pretty nice stick.

It's about 3 years old. he played in an over 55 league and didn't use it in practice. I'd say it has less than 200 hits.

[BoxingRed]

Just wanted to bump this up to get some input. The bats in the league have to be ASA approved. I am looking at the Miken 500 Maxload and Combat AntVirus. Anyone have any thoughts on these 2 bats? Any problems with cool weather? It's a night league and we'll be starting up in a couple weeks. Wouldn't be surprised to have weather in the 50's though 60's is more likely.

[danken12]

Just wanted to bump this up to get some input. The bats in the league have to be ASA approved. I am looking at the Miken 500 Maxload and Combat AntVirus. Anyone have any thoughts on these 2 bats? Any problems with cool weather? It's a night league and we'll be starting up in a couple weeks. Wouldn't be surprised to have weather in the 50's though 60's is more likely.

Generally, Miken's are pretty good as far a weather is concerned. I believe the NRG line is pretty good as far as durability is concerned. Combats generally are more prone to break in colder weather or any weather for that matter. Composite bats when cold are more prone to breaking than when warm. However, the Antivirus is a pretty nice ASA bat. My personal favorite is the Easton Synergy Extended. It's a great ASA bat.

[OldRightHander]

The pitchers helmet is becoming more and more prevalent in the softball world. Especially in higher levels. I've been lucky enough to only be hit from the waist down in my short pitching career.

I probably should buy one and wear it.

I've been pitching for several years now and have been hit in every part of my body. The helmet sounds tempting.

[GAC]

You seem like the type to take walks in slow pitch softball. Pansy.

Thanks for helping me spill coffee all over my keyboard. :

[GAC]

I'm with you there. I love pitching to teams that are free swingers. We shut out a team like that last year because they were hackers and I just stopped throwing anything over the plate.

I no longer play softball because even though my mind says yes.... my 52 yr old body says no after 30 years of abusing my body in both fast pitch and slow pitch B and C class leagues.

Speaking primarily for slow pitch - I really don't like the term "hacker". Yes the objective is to win obviously. But in my years of experience, and I've been on both teams that have won tournaments and city championships, as well as mediocre to bad teams... the mindset of a vast majority of men was that a walk was not a true test of their talent/abilities. We want to face a challenge. Where's the challenge? In slow pitch, and particularly in C class where you have a very diverse mixture of good to bad talent, if your mindset stepping into that batter's box was to try and draw a walk, then odds are you could get one. It doesn't mean one tries to avoid them, or won't take one. Just that when they step into that batter's box they want the opportunity to hit the ball. And when that opportunity presents itself then you take it.

You have a consistently better level of talent at the B level. At the C level that is not always so true. It wasn't hard to have a team(s) where their pitching wasn't at a quality level, and if a team wanted to they could send batter after batter to the box and walk all night long. I've been on both ends of that scenario. It's not fun, and is downright boring. And while we used ASA umps/rules, they weren't always consistent in the pitch calls either.

But I have also faced a lot of teams where they had a pitcher who was simply lights out. He rarely missed his mark. They were tough to face, and I loved facing those guys because of the competition. I saw it as a true test between me and him. Those were the type of situations where you dug into that batters box because it was going to be fun. I was always hyped in those situations. And if you went up there looking for a walk and were taking pitches, then you were probably going to be put into a situation, behind in the count, where you were then going to have to swing at a "bad" pitch, protect the plate, in order to try and stay alive.

And I'm sorry, but maybe the mindset has changed in the last 6-7 years since I've quit playing, but you just don't strike out in slow pitch softball. Especially looking. Sure - it may not matter at the ML level and with Adam Dunn; but we're talking slow pitch softball here. If you did K looking, then before you leave the batter's box you may as well reach down and grab those other two balls and hand them to the catcher too because you won't be needing them the rest of the game.... and probably that night.

I was not a hacker; but I was an aggressive ballplayer whose mind was always in the game. But over my "career", and as a RH'd batter in the 3-5 spot, where one is counted on to produce, I'd say a lot of my hits came from balls that were outside the strikezone. But it was MY PITCH - a pitch I was looking for. I saw those as mistakes on that pitcher's part, not "Gee that pitch is a ball, so I'm going to let it go by". Before I stepped into that batter's box I had already analyzed defensive alignments/tendencies. I looked for weaknesses. It also depended if/where I had men on base and where I wanted to hit the ball. I had excellent footwork. But dammit, I was going up there to drive guys in, to produce. And that doesn't mean I went up there hacking away; but I was very self-assured and confident in my hitting. It was one of the reasons I hit in the batting order where I did. And if they gave me a particular pitch where I wanted it, and depending on what side of the field I wanted to hit it to, then I was going to seize that opportunity, not let it pass by for the sake of maybe getting a walk, and drive that ball in that hole.

I guess I could have stood up there with the bat on my shoulders and tried to take a walk. Be a man - swing that bat! At least after the game you'll still have your other balls intact.

[jmcclain19]

Just wanted to bump this up to get some input. The bats in the league have to be ASA approved. I am looking at the Miken 500 Maxload and Combat AntVirus. Anyone have any thoughts on these 2 bats? Any problems with cool weather? It's a night league and we'll be starting up in a couple weeks. Wouldn't be surprised to have weather in the 50's though 60's is more likely.

I played last season on a team that had three Anti-Virus bats. I would definitely say try one if possible before buying. It was different than any other bat, save Anderson, that I'd try before. But those I know who had them swore by them. Very similar in my opinion to the old Mizuno Crush in feel and sound.

[OldRightHander]

Speaking primarily for slow pitch - I really don't like the term "hacker". Y

I was really referring to the kind of hitter who just stands up there and swings at anything you throw him because he absolutely won't take a walk. My approach at the plate is to look for a pitch I can do something with and to let anything else go. I'm not a good enough hitter to hit the pitcher's pitch. When I'm pitching and I see a hitter who is going to swing at anything, I'm throwing junk until he shows me he can lay off it. If he's going to continue to swing at my pitch, that's what he's going to get, and more often than not he's going to get out.

[Z-Fly]

I was really referring to the kind of hitter who just stands up there and swings at anything you throw him because he absolutely won't take a walk. My approach at the plate is to look for a pitch I can do something with and to let anything else go. I'm not a good enough hitter to hit the pitcher's pitch. When I'm pitching and I see a hitter who is going to swing at anything, I'm throwing junk until he shows me he can lay off it. If he's going to continue to swing at my pitch, that's what he's going to get, and more often than not he's going to get out.

Could someone explain the rating of bats? I have done a little research. It looks like Utrip uses bats up to 120 Mph and ASA uses bats to 98 Mph. What exactly does that mean?

[Buckeye33]

Could someone explain the rating of bats? I have done a little research. It looks like Utrip uses bats up to 120 Mph and ASA uses bats to 98 Mph. What exactly does that mean?

If I'm remembering correctly, the MPH rates how fast a ball comes off the bat when swung at a certain rate. I think a machine swings the bats when they test them. So if the bat was rated at above 120 mph, the ball comes off the bat at more than 120 mph.

ASA uses 98mph because they don't like having players just crushing the ball. ASA tries to be more like baseball than the other divisions. ASA allows steals as well.

[Z-Fly]

If I'm remembering correctly, the MPH rates how fast a ball comes off the bat when swung at a certain rate. I think a machine swings the bats when they test them. So if the bat was rated at above 120 mph, the ball comes off the bat at more than 120 mph.

ASA uses 98mph because they don't like having players just crushing the ball. ASA tries to be more like baseball than the other divisions. ASA allows steals as well.

I have played in ASA the last two years and a Utrip league last year and I have never seen anyone steal. I know some parks change the rules a little (ie Utrip E leauges being able to hit 1 HR per team per game). Where did you see this at?

[OldRightHander]

I don't know anything about stealing. Our league plays ASA rules and I've never seen that. They have this robot that swings the bat the same force each time and they measure the speed the ball comes off. As a pitcher, I'd rather people not use the 120 mph bats. 50 feet is awfully close to try to react to something hit that hard.