Easton Vs. Rawlings Little League Bats

People who have been around baseball know that Easton and Rawlings are two prominent names in sporting goods, particularly with regard to baseball equipment and bats. Both companies have been around for many years and have been on the forefront of the evolution of baseball bats from wood to composites to high-tech aluminum alloys.

Non-wood Approved Bats

Non-wood bats are anything that is not made of wood or composite materials. These bats are primarily comprised of aluminum and alloy materials such as titanium. As of 2011, 20 different Easton models of mostly aluminum bats have been approved for play in all levels of Little League baseball. Rawlings produces 47 mostly aluminum models that are approved for play in all levels of Little League baseball.

The Best Easton Bats

Baseball Equipment Review places the Easton Stealth Speed II XL as its choice for the top Little League bat by this manufacturer. Be a Better Hitter, a website devoted to hitting instruction, lists the Reflex as a top-of-the-line Little League bat, as well as the Redline and Z-Core bats, which use an advanced alloy called C500 that includes scandium and is used in Russian missile casings. The C500 alloy is the most advanced in terms of its combination of light weight and durability. The Easton SV12 is also made with an aluminum/scandium alloy.

The Best Rawlings Bats

Baseball Equipment Review lists the Rawlings 5150 Exogrid, which comes in a size small enough for Little League players, as the top bat produced by the company in 2011. The same bat ranks No. 11 on the website's list of best overall aluminum bats for 2011. Exogrid is a technology that Rawlings adopted which helps to eliminate vibration in the hands when the bat makes contact with the ball, a concept that is revolutionary when it comes to aluminum bats. 5150 is a type of alloy that, according to Rawlings and Baseball Equipment Reviews, gives the bat great flexibility and trampoline action while also remaining very durable.

Considerations

As of 2011, Little League of America has placed a moratorium on the use of composite baseball bats in the Little League Major Baseball Division, which is comprised of boys and girls ages 9 to 12. Some composite bats, including only select models of DeMarini, Combat and Louisville Slugger, have been approved by Little League of America for use in the Junior, Senior and Big League Divisions. No Easton or Rawlings composite Little League bats have been approved as of 2011. The moratorium does not affect any boys or girls softball divisions, however.

Six models of Rawlings wood bats have been approved for Little League play; Easton does not currently produce wood bats for Little League play.