Virginia Little League - bat ban?
March 11, 2008
I just received the following email about the potential for state legislature to force Little League to change the rules in Virginia to enforce a “bat ban”. Ok, bat ban sounds a bit excessive since the kids will still play with bats, just wood ones. At first I thought, “cool - just like the big leagues!” but then the point about the cost of replacing broken bats and the danger of splinters flying made sense. Not that the younger ones are really smacking the ball hard enough to actually break a bat, but I guess you never know, particularly as they get older and stronger. So anyway, I thought I’d pass along the email in case anyone is interested.
March 11, 2008
Dear Virginia Little League Volunteer:
I am writing you today due to a very serious situation involving Little League Baseball in Virginia.
In case you haven’t heard, the New York City Council voted to ban the use of aluminum bats for all high school games played in the City. Now, similar legislation could find its way to Virginia – legislation that would ban all non-wood bats from being used in all Little League games throughout the state.
At Little League, nothing is more important to us than child safety and I can report to you that a ban on aluminum bats is not necessary. It will harm our game and make it less enjoyable for the millions of children who safely play the game today, just as it has been safely played for the last forty years.
Unfortunately this ban is also going to cost a lot of money to youth baseball programs. Money that could be spent for educational purposes, will now go to fund the cost of re-supplying broken wood bats for a game that is already considered safe. In addition to the higher costs, we know that wood bats break, shatter and splinter, which introduces other risks to the game.
Little League Baseball has joined a coalition of parents, coaches and bat makers to oppose this unnecessary ban.
The Coalition is named “Don’t Take My Bat Away” and I urge you to join.
Please log onto their website, www.DTMBA.com, and carefully review the facts and the science behind Little League’s decision to support the safe use of both wood and aluminum bats.
I’m proud that Little League has led the way in developing batting helmets, the modern catcher’s chest protector, helmet and mask. We banned head first sliding for safety reasons and we also abolished the on-deck circle ten years ago. Just this year, we implemented a pitch count to protect our players’ young arms.
If there was a safety-driven reason to ban aluminum bats, we would support it. There isn’t and that’s why I urge you to get involved.
Please log onto www.DTMBA.com and join our growing coalition.
Sincerely,
Steve Keener
P.S. There is a very real chance we could see a bat ban bill in Virginia soon. Please consider logging onto the Don’t Take My Bat Away Coalition’s webpage (DTMBA.com) and join Little League, Babe Ruth Baseball, PONY League, American Softball Association, American Legion Baseball, American Baseball Coaches Association, National Council of Youth Sports, the National High School Baseball Coaches Association, and many other groups that have studied this issue - so we can work together to fight a potential ban.
Little League International
P.O. Box 3485
539 US Route 15 Hwy
Williamsport, PA 17701-0485Phone: 570-326-1921
Fax: 570-326-1074
Hey look at that! Dusty Baker is the chairman of the coalition.
Posted in Baseball - General
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March 11th, 2008 at 10:46 pm
Aluminum bats were introduced to Little League during my final year of play. I used wooden bats up to that year, and continued to use a wooden bat in my final year, as we had the choice of which type of bat we wanted to use. I don’t recall ever seeing or hearing about a wooden bat breaking during a game or practice. In my opinion, that’s a ridiculous concern at the Little League level, and is not a reason to oppose this legislation. I think that the potential cost of replacing aluminim bats with the wooden variety is a more rational basis for trying to defeat this kind of proposal. Personally, I would not object to the introduction of wooden bats. I think the best thing is to make both types of bats available, and let kids use the kind that they each prefer. That’s how it was during my final year in Little League, and it worked just fine. Choice is a good thing! :-)
March 12th, 2008 at 8:35 am
You would think the state legislature would have more important things to worry about, like the total traffic gridlock in NOVA.
March 12th, 2008 at 8:42 am
I had a long conversation with a friend about this yesterday who also used wooden bats back in his Little League days. I guess it’s a matter of the ball coming off an aluminum bat so much harder and injuring pitchers. We decided they should put wooden bats in at the high school/college level and let the kids continue to use aluminum.
Phil, it looks like a matter of of them jumping on the bandwagon of other states. Oh, and Take Metro! (c) Stan Kasten! :-)