Brett Bats: Wood Bats that Don't Break
By Jonathan Berohn
Ah—spring is in the air, which means that the crack of the bat is not far behind. If you’re like me, though, that also unfortunately means that the crack in the bat is also not far behind.
Obviously, metal bats are one answer to this problem (it’s not a foolproof answer, though—I’ve managed to break 2 metal bats over the years). They also have the advantage of giving you more pop in your swing. But when all is said and done they are metal bats. The ping of the bat is just not the same. Plus, since the ball comes off an aluminum bat a lot faster than wood, it's a safety issue in leagues where the players are—ahem—a bit older and slower.
A lot of leagues—especially adult recreational leagues—are recognizing this, too, these days and mandating the return of wood bats.
Performance
I was trying to figure out a way to keep myself in bats without putting myself into bankruptcy when one of my teammates discovered Brett Bats. Now, right from the start, any bat made by George Brett has something going for it in my book. There haven’t been too many people in the history of baseball that know more about hitting than Brett. Apparently he knows quite a bit about making bats, too.
The secret of the Brett Bat is that it’s not a solid piece of wood, but a wood laminate. The bats handle also comes wrapped in a resin tape for added stability. What this means is that you get the performance of wood but with unheard-of durability.
Value
For example, one of my other teammates ordered 6 Barry Bonds model maple bats. He went through all of them in one season. At $75 a pop, that's $450 for a stack of autographed firewood. On the other hand, all three Brett Bats that half the team used lasted one full season, and two of them survived two summers. The performance of the bat is a little duller than solid wood. By that I mean it feels like you don’t get quite as much carry, but the trade off is more than acceptable considering the most expensive Brett bat comes in at $59. Compare that to a season’s worth of maple bats at $450 and, if you’re like me, you’ll learn to live with the trade-off. Better still, Brett Bats offers discounts to players in most leagues.
