Way O/T ? for Trevor Bailey

[Keith Graydon]

Trevor,

I see in your sig that you are an

quote:

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EXTREME Softball Enthusiast

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So you get this question first.

 

What do you know about the line of Tri-Shell bats from Easton?

 

My sons birthday is soon and we get him a new bat almost every year. (he likes to hit )

 

I know I'm Way o/t here but the bat does at least, have a little aluminum in it!

 

-Keith

 

[ 01-16-2003, 10:38 AM: Message edited by: Keith L. Graydon ]

[Trevor Bailey]

How old is he and what division is he in?

 

From a softball point of view, two guys on my tournament team have litterally folded that bat. I personally would stay away from it. Another one you may want to stay away from is the Easton Triple 7. It has an extremely weak spot close to the handle. I have sent two back from my 9 year old already. He dented both with one swing. He has however, had good luck with the latest Z-Core bats. Just make sure if you let your son do batting practice, you buy a sleeve to put on the bat. And in addition to the sleeve, have hime rotate the bat in his hands after each swing.

 

Hope this helps.

[Keith Graydon]

Wow! That was quick!

 

He'll be 11 next week. He'll be playing Major "A" Little league. (11-12 yrs.) Williamsport rules. He's 100 lbs and 58 1/2 inches tall. He used a NIKE "Show" bat last year to good effect. He knows that the NIKE and any new bat of that quality will NEVER go in the cage. at least without a sleeve. THanks for the tip about turning it . I still think about "lableing" a bat! Heh, showing my age I guess. Anyway ,thanks for the advice. He'll make the final choice 'tho. I think he's partial right now to the "connection" series. We'll See.

 

Thanks again,

 

-Keith

 

ps. I got a killer pic of him taking soft toss last year if you'd like to see, i'll post it. just for fun.

[Trevor Bailey]

You should watch out for that bat as well. Being that the pitchers are going to be throwing faster, I would tend to go with a "solid" bat. The connections tend to become "loose" at the joint if the ball is not hit on the "sweet" spot everytime. Any mis-hit will cause damage to these bats. If you will notice, connections are coming way down in price and they are going to stop making them for softball.

[limitless creativity]

Trevor,

Have you ever played in a fast pitch softball league?

I ended my 20 year playing career of both slow and fast pitch softball last april. was playing 2-3 days a week.

A buddy wants me to play on Fridays in Huntington beach, I will think about it.

 

started back up in golf though.

 

I miss playing fast pitch more than the slow pitch, it played more like baseball.

 

Mike

[Trevor Bailey]

The only fast-pitch in my area is played on the reservations. That's about it. It is nearly impossible to get on one of those teams. I play 3 nights a week now, plus tournaments on the weekends. Of course my wife is not a happy camper, because if my family is not at one of my games, we are at one of my kids games

[Guest CNC Apps Guy 1]

Louisville makes good bats as well. They are made right here in Ontario California too. Pay attention to the "-" number. The higher the number, the thinner the walls are going to be. I'd reccommend no greater than a - 8 for a real power hitter. They just changed the rules for High School bats, no greater than a - 3. The - number represents the amount in ounces that the bat is lighter than it's length. For example a 31" bat that is a -3 weighs 28 Ozs.

 

HTH

[Trevor Bailey]

To add more to what James just said, if you find a bat that your kid likes, check with the manufacturer and make sure that it is not "illegal". There are a lot of bats for both softball and baseball being outlawed in a lot of parks now.

[Guest CNC Apps Guy 1]

Generally, Easton, Louisville, and Worth are OK. Make sure to read the approvals on the bat. Usually you'll see Little League, Pony Baseball, Dixie, Babe Ruth, and others.

 

HTH

[TheePres]

YAY!!!! Spring training right around the corner.

[Guest CNC Apps Guy 1]

Oh yeah!!!!!! I can smell the brick dust already.

 

Hey Pres. my oldest son made 3 out of 4 cuts for the High School Baseball Team. He has one more cut to go before they make the final decision. I've never seen him work so hard for something. I'm proud of him. How are your boy(s) doing?

[Trevor Bailey]

Highschool!!!! How old is your oldest James? Man, I can't wait for those days.

 

You may want to look into the Worth 3DX bats. I know that they are going to be banned.

[Guest CNC Apps Guy 1]

My oldest is 14. He'll be 15 in June! We bought him an Easton Triple7. His power has improved DRASTICALLY over the last Easton we bought him. Then again he went from a -8 to a -3 bat so he's got some momentum to go with his bat speed.

[Keith Graydon]

Thanks all,

 

My boy's been swinging a -10.(28-18). I was looking at the Easton Z-core (thanks Trevor)and they go all the way to -12.5 !.

I retired from softball about 11 years ago. Kids (11 and 9)hmmm theres a pattern here! Now the eyes are shot too .

We played in the BEER league. sometimes for money when the other team didnt drink. (go figure). We had our own bag-man too LOL. My team was almost all guys from my small (2000 peeps)town. Most of us played little league together. Three brothers in the outfield. We were,a very very good class "C" team. at least thats what we would enter tournaments as. We were honest about it tho. not like these teams that load-up on players just for a big tourny. Every one of our guys were special. Rick, our first baseman had THE softest hands of all time. Made me look good on many occaision. Slick 2nd baseman, Rick cousin Gil. sneaky power too! Brad, the SS, Mr Clutch. allways came thru. i could go on and on.

Oh, And me? I play the Hot corner.

 

My son, taking a soft toss last spring. coach tossed em kinda high.

 

 

-Keith

[Trevor Bailey]

I think you will like the Z-Core. My oldest has 4 tournaments on his bat 28-18, and no dents yet. Not even out of round and the weather has been pretty chilly as of late. My middle son has the same bat, 28-15. He moves up to the pitching machine this year. Can't wait. My boys use wooden bats for batting practice that weigh 5 ounces heavier than their normal bats. Man, you would not beleive the bat speed increae from doing this

 

To all fathers with son's playing or getting ready to play ball this season, good luck and remember the most important thing about the game........IT IS ONLY A GAME!