The lure of the aluminum baseball bat can be strong for players looking for an advantage on the field. They may have to do without the satisfying "crack" a wooden bat makes upon contact with the ball, but they appreciate the punch that a metal bat packs. Bats made out of aluminum have become very popular among players.
History
The notion of metal baseball bats dates at least to 1924, when William Shroyer acquired a patent for such an innovation. However, aluminum baseball bats appeared on the market much later--in 1970--when sporting goods company Worth introduced one, according to Baseball-bats.net. Aluminum bats increased in popularity in the late 1970s when another company, Easton, began producing bats made of a stronger-grade aluminum. Despite the affinity that players have for the bats, they have never made an appearance at the sport's highest level--Major League Baseball allows only wooden bats.
Benefits
The biggest reason that athletes use aluminum bats over wooden models is that they feel aluminum allows them to hit the ball farther. And though aluminum generally costs more, it is, unlike wood, not prone to break or crack quickly, according to Dick's Sporting Goods.
Types
Manufacturers combine aluminum with with other metals to produce various alloys. Zinc, copper and magnesium are common in baseball bats. They make up 7046, the standard aluminum alloy for bats, according to Dick's Sporting Goods. A more durable alloy is CU31/7050, which has zirconium and increased levels of magnesium and copper. Even stronger, due to a larger amount of zirconium, is C405/7055. Some players also choose C555, with traces of scandium that make it seven times stronger than C405.
Controversy
Aluminum bats have been the subject of long-running controversy. Compared to wooden bats, their weight is distributed more evenly, allowing players to swing them faster, and they have "larger sweet spots," according to The Associated Press. That raises a greater possibility of injury if a player is hit with a ball. High school teams in North Dakota and New York City have, since 2007, used wooden bats only. Some states, including Pennsylvania and Montana, have considered bans on metal bats because of safety concerns.
Expert Insight
Apart from safety concerns, colleges and other baseball programs have good reason to require their players to use wooden bats, according to baseball experts Matt Kelly and Paul Pedersen. Wooden bats "are much more challenging to hit successfully with than are aluminum bats," they wrote in the Sport Journal, a journal published by the United States Sports Academy. They advocate for a ban on aluminum bats at Division I of the NCAA. Such a move would help players to "become better prepared for either possible failure or a possible future in professional baseball."
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