Going batty for power

Baseball, like all games, can be dangerous. Using bats best served for little league, or material that typically is formed into pool cues or put over pancakes only compounds the problem.

In the college game, the aluminum bats wielded by today’s hitters are scientific marvels. With enormous softball size barrels and the state-of-the-art technology, the “ping” that pierces the air when contact is made resonates with anyone who ever grew up playing little league or stepped foot on a driving range.

Yet coupled with the size and strength of the modern NCAA athlete, these thunder sticks are incredibly dangerous for the fielders — most notably the pitcher standing a mere 60 feet away — and unassuming fans. because the ball travels at a high velocity when struck by a bat that does not break. 

“They have to get rid of aluminum bats,” said Long Beach alum and MLB Umpire Observer Joe Reid. “Somebody is going to get killed.”

In Major League Baseball stadiums around the country, wood bats have been swung since the game’s inception. When broken, large pieces can be launched into the air and cause serious bodily harm.

Maple bats have only increased this risk. Made popular by Barry Bonds’ record-breaking 2001 season, the maple bat craze has swept the big leagues and with it the problems have mounted.

While ash bats — the norm before maple — tend to crack and splinter when they break, a maple bat will snap or even shatter, sending jagged pieces wildly into the air.

The thin handles, density of the wood and cheap construction often employed in making these maple bats create a ticking time bomb.

Just ask Susan Rhodes. Sitting in the Dodger Stadium stands at a late April game, Rhodes was struck by a flying piece of maple debris and suffered a shattered jaw when Todd Helton’s bat broke on contact.

On Tuesday night in Kansas City, Brian O’ Nora, the home plate umpire for the Rockies-Royals game, was struck in the head and left bloody and bruised after Miguel Olivo’s maple bat was broken.

Former Long Beach State standout Troy Tulowitzki was involved in both of these incidents. Helton borrowed his bat when it snapped and hit Rhodes, and he fielded the ball at shortstop off Olivo’s bat.

Major League Baseball’s Safety and Health Advisory Committee held a conference call Tuesday, just hours before O’ Nora was struck, to discuss the danger of these bats.

“It’s amazing how often they are breaking,” Reid said. “At a game recently I saw three broken bats in a row, including two from the same player.”

Dealing with a rash of disputable home run calls, the league has recently put a plan into action to make instant replay a part of the game before the season is over. I can only hope they deal with this issue as swiftly and with as much interest as that one.

“At some point we are going to get a pitcher with a bat in the middle of his chest,” Reid said, “and we can’t have that happen.”

What can they do?

Most importantly a form of regulation is necessary. With the increase in maple bats popularity — more than 50 percent of major leaguers use them compared to none in 2000  — many companies now churn these bats out like they would any model.

With this competition comes cheaper, less safe models in an attempt to get a leg up on other producers. Major League Baseball is a multi-billion dollar industry and can afford to both regulate the quality of the bats and phase out the unsafe bats already in use.

Thicker handles, properly crafted wood and more testing are ne
cessary.

While playing in or attending a sporting event will always include perpetual perils, to stand idly by while people are getting hurt and many more are at risk is a disservice to the great tradition of the game and to all its players and fans.