While professional baseball limits its players to using wood bats, most other levels of play do not place such restrictions on their players. Aluminum bats--an alternative to wood bats--offer durability and greater power. However, aluminum bats can pose dangers to players and spectators, and care must be exercised when they are used.
Trampoline Effect
The properties of an aluminum bat that allow for greater power can best be explained by what is known as the "trampoline effect." This compression of the hollow aluminum bat barrel acts as a springboard, launching the baseball at greater speed than what a wood bat can produce. One study, by Kettering University in Flint, Mich., concluded that balls hit by an aluminum bat can travel up to 8 mph faster than those hit by a wood bat.
More Speed, Less Reaction Time
While hitting the ball with greater power can be good for the batter, it also means greater risk for players in the field. Human reflexes can work only so well to help a player defend himself when the ball is rocketing toward him. The pitcher--the player closest to the batter, at 60 feet, 6 inches--runs the greatest risk of being struck because of the reduced reaction time. In Little League, pitchers are just 46 feet from home plate. In addition to being so close, a pitcher also tends to be in a compromised athletic position, having just put all his energy into delivering the ball to the batter.
Possibility of Death
A New York Times article published in 2006 reported on three youth baseball players struck by balls hit by an aluminum bat. An 18-year-old pitcher from Montana died after being hit in the head in 2003. A 12-year-old from New Jersey struck in the chest in 2006 suffered brain damage. A 16-year-old in Illinois needed brain surgery after being struck in 2005. Furthermore, the risk of traumatic brain injury is not limited to baseball. According to SportsMD.com, a California high school softball pitcher was struck in the face by a ball hit with an aluminum bat, sustaining serious injuries in March 2010. The player was wearing a face protector at the time; doctors said it may have saved her life.
Bats as Projectiles
A primary reason for using aluminum bats is the durability and subsequent long-term financial benefits of having to replace them far less often than wood bats subject to breakage. Wood bats that break also can endanger players who happen to be in their line as the pieces fly into the field. Aluminum bats, however, are not immune to shattering. Furthermore, aluminum bats are just as likely to fly out of the hands of batter on a swing, presenting another danger to fielders and spectators.
References
- New York Times.com: Metal Bats Are an Issue of Life and Death
- SportsMD.com: Controversy over Aluminum Bats Surfaces in California
- Kettering University.edu: Why Aluminum Bats Can Perform Better than Wood Bats
- HKSportsfields.com: Baseball Field Dimensions
- HKSportsfields.com: Little League Baseball Field Dimensions
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