Posted by: Jimmy () on Fri Jan 12 21:08:20 2007

> > I have found that in some instances it is not that difficult to move up an ounce or two
once good mechanics are formed using a lighter bat. As such it is not uncommon for a
good hitter to be able to use a heavier bat. Also such hitters find that they are able to hit
the ball further with a heavier bat. Bat speed is important, but we should remember that
top hitters of the past were able to hit well with heavier bats initially (Musial, Williams,
Stargell). Over their later years they likely went down in weight. But for fastballs many old
school hitters prefered heavier bats. And the ability to hit a good fastball is still at a
premium. Soriano uses a 35 ounce bat today.
>
> Hitting Guru, Jack,...
>
> In your opinion, why would some hitters cork their bat if it were legal? Sammy Sosa said
he could impress the fans more during BP!!! One way or another, he felt he could hit the
ball farther with such a bat. What happened to his home run production after the cork bat
issue? Coincidence or was it solely because of something else? What are your thoughts?

BobL,

The density of the wood is a major factor in how the ball comes off of it. The more dense
the wood, the harder the wood. The harder the wood the more pop the bat has. The
problem is that dense bats are heavier and the hitter wants to create as much batspeed he
can. If a hitter corks the dense bat he can achieve a swingable "hard" bat. Don't get
fooled, the weight of a corked bat is usually similar to a non-corked bat. The origional
weight of the bat to be corked is very heavy. The cork is a lighter material but also suplies
stability to the core of the dense, heavy wood. This is obviously against the rules and is
considered cheating. Players do comply with the rules another way. "Cupped" bats are a
heavier bat (dense) with some ounces shaved out of the top of it. This doesn't take away
as many of the ounces as a corked bat but it does help and it is within the rules. If you
like a wood bat to be 34 inches and 32 ounces order it "cupped" so that the manufacturer
takes a dense 35 ounce bat, shaves off a few ounces and you get the densest, hardest bat
for the lenght and weight. An uncupped 34 inch 32 ounce bat will not be as hard and will
have less pop.

This is why players that know this don't just reach for a lighter bat for more batspeed.
They understand the importance of hard, heavy wood. The cheaters try to have the best of
both worlds.

Jimmy