Much of the conversation, and controversy, over the past three decades since aluminum baseball bats made their debut in the U.S. has centered around acoustics, safety, tradition and cost issues. But their actual performance in comparison to wood bats is a topic surrounded by some uncertainty.
Those in the game seem to instinctively know that metal outperforms wood based on their experience. However, the proof has been hard to find because there haven’t been many scientific studies done that compare their performance.
Evidence of Greater Batted Ball Speed
A paper entitled "Dynamic and performance characteristics of baseball bats" and published in a 1977 issue of Research Quarterly, concluded that “the batted ball speed of an aluminum baseball bat was about 3.85 mph faster than a wood baseball bat.”
For the study, six college players took swings in batting practice over the course of five days using randomly selected wood or aluminum bats. Batters swung at balls thrown by both pitchers and pitching machines until each produced 30 line drives.
A radar gun measured the speed of the ball as it came off the bat. The average batted ball speed was measured at 88.6 mph for wood bats and 92.5 mph for aluminum bats.
Contrasting Study of Metal Versus Wood Performance
Another study published in 1989 found that metal bats did not outperform wood bats. Instead, it maintained that the speed at which the ball rebounded off the bat was indeed influenced by the bat’s composition, but also by the impact location and firmness of grip.
However, there were two key differences in this study compared to the earlier one: only pitching machines were used and players held their bats stationary rather than simulating real game swings.
There was a third study in the early 1990s comparing wood, aluminum and composite bats. Again, a stationary bat was used and the speed at which the ball rebounded off the bats was measured. The conclusion was that aluminum and wood bats performed the same.
It’s difficult to know how much credence to give studies that don’t simulate real field conditions featuring a live pitcher versus a swinging batter.
Fortunately, one such study does exist. Published in 2000 by J.J. Crisco and R.W. Greenwald, it involved 19 players from high school to minor league levels, swinging both wood and metal bats at balls thrown by live pitchers in a batting cage.
Using high-speed video, a three-dimensional map was generated of the bat swing, before, during, and after impact. This data was then analyzed to obtain batted ball speeds.
The results showed conclusively that metal bats outperformed wood bats. The average batted ball speed for wood bats was 98.6-mph, while the average batted ball speed for metal bats was as high as 106.5-mph, up to 8-mph faster.
Advantages of Metal Bats Over Wood
The study presented data demonstrating why metal bats are able to outperform wooden bats.
- they swing faster
- they produce a "trampoline effect"
- they have wider sweet spots
- they don’t break
Essentially, the conclusion was that the faster batted ball speed produced by the metal bat means the ball will go farther than one hit with wood. A baseball coming off a wood bat at a speed of 98.6 mph will travel 388 feet, whereas one hit with metal at a speed of 106.5 mph will travel more than 400 feet.
In terms of performance, players and fans will agree that an extra 12 feet is a difficult edge to ignore.
Richard Barrett - Richard M. Barrett majored in journalism at St. Bonaventure University and has edited newspapers, magazines, newsletters and web sites. In ...
