Picking out baseball bats for youth players can present some unique challenges, specifically because youth players lack the experience of older players and have not grown into their skills yet. Even very proficient younger players will still be growing and may change their tastes or their needs as they become more adept at their sport.
Therefore, while there are some rules you can follow to find a good bat for a youth player, you will need to become more comfortable with flexibility. As your younger player grows, he or she may change in preference for bats.
The first thing you can do when you are picking out baseball bats for youth players is assure yourself of the length that works for the younger player. Unlike weight, weight drop, and material, there are actual metrics you can follow here to ensure that a bat is fitting to a player.
There are a couple of ways you can go about ensuring whether or not a bat is properly sized to a player. Have the youth player pick up the bat in question. One way you can check the length of the bat is to have the player place the knob of the bat against their chest at the juncture of their arm. The player should be able to extend their arm outward wrap their fingers around the middle of the barrel, around the midpoint, or a little bit farther.
Alternatively, you could have the player stand with their arms outstretched to the sides. With the knob placed in the middle of the chest and laid outward along the arms, the bat should reach just about to the fingertips. There are other ways to assure yourself that the length of the bat is fitting, but these two methods will work in nearly any scenario.
Next is weight, and you need to ensure that the weight of a bat is not too heavy for a player before you even get into balance and weight drop. Once you settle on a bat in terms of length, have the baseball player pick up the bat and hold it either forward or to the side of their body with one arm outstretched, with the bat parallel to the ground.
The youth player should be able to hold the bat extended for a minimum of thirty seconds, although some others will tell you that he or she should be able to hold the bat extended for at least a minute. Young players should be comfortable doing so or the bat will probably end up being too heavy for them; however, the unique situation here is that youth league players will get stronger as they grow, so you can go with a bat that is just a little bit too heavy with the intent to let the player grow into it.
If the bat is sized and weighted properly, you can start to get into the length to weight ratio of the bat that will affect the swing weight and is also known as weight drop. A bat with a low weight drop will feel heavier and a bat with a high weight drop will feel lighter. Since younger players may now know whether they prefer a higher or lower weight drop this is something they will learn over time. Lighter bats handle better and allow the player to achieve a higher swing speed, so for some young players, a high weight drop may be preferable. Just keep in mind that some players may grow to appreciate heavier bats as they get older and stronger, as these bats will enable them to drive more power through their swing.
In our collection of youth bats, you will find plenty of options from some of the best manufacturers in the industry, offering unique combinations of bat features. Whether you are looking for a shorter bat with a heavy swing weight or a light bat with a big sweet spot, you can find it in our collection. You just need to get to shopping to find it. Don’t forget while you’re shopping for baseball bats for youth baseball that you can find batting gloves and jackets and other essentials as well.
If you want to learn more about how to pick out the ideal ball bat for a youth player, you can always give our team a call at 1-888-540-BATS. As we mentioned earlier in this article, young players’ skills will not be as well developed and it will take some time to key in on what works for any given player.
Feel free to reach out to our team and we will extend our experience to you. Even though it takes a bit of savvy to pick out a fitting back we’ll help you get there. Give us a call today, tell us about your situation and we’ll make recommendations.
