The Off-Season

As summer ball and wood bat leagues come to a close and college and high school player’s return to school, the real offseason starts to set in. While some use this time to relax and just get back into the routine of going to class, good players know this is the time to get better. This is the time to look back on what has got you to where you are. What have you done well? What do you need to work on? The offseason is where you get stronger, where you refine your skills, where weaknesses become strengths. This is the time where instead of sleeping in, you’re out of bed by 5:30 to get to that 6 am workout. You may not be playing games, but baseball season never really ends.
They say that the fall is where you become a family, and spring is where you prove it. The summer was fun to play ball with old friends and get your share of cuts in with that custom MaxBat wood bat….but as the leaves turn, so does the mentality. It now becomes time to get back with the boys and create that family. Every team is different and every year is different. You may not want to get up early to work out, but your teammates are right there with you pushing you to be your best and get that max rep. The offseason is where good players become great. You may not have coaches instructing you on what drills to do or when to get in the gym, but just because no one is watching doesn’t mean you don’t work hard. Extra tee work with a wood bat, or that extra bullpen, or that extra sprint are what make you ready to perform your best once spring rolls around.
The point I am trying to make is enjoy this time. Cherish the opportunity you have to play the best game on earth, no matter what level it may be. Be motivated to get up early or stay up late to work on your craft. As a former college player myself, and only being out of college for a few months, I can already say I miss the workouts after class and just hanging with the guys. Being able to play baseball every day were the best days of my life. Enjoy every game of catch, every cut off the tee, every feeling you get when hitting the ball squarely with a wood bat, every ground ball…..because while this may be the greatest game, we can’t play it forever.

Written by MaxBat contributor, Tyler Flakne

Tags: wood bat, Wood Bats

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Wood bats…..Wood Softball bats that is – Part 2

The wood bat movement for softball is something that really caught my eye. I have played slow pitch softball for a few summers now and have always thought that the metal bats used today are way too “hot”. I agree that having to have a home run limit is something that should immediately be a red flag. Not to mention, everyone now apologizes if they hit a ball up the middle.

In baseball, we are taught to drive the ball up the middle. As a baseball player myself (currently in a wood bat league), and a huge numbers and analytics nerd, I decided to do some research on the numbers.

A study was done out of Mamaroneck High School comparing metal bats and wood bats and swing and exit speed. The average swing speed was 8 miles per hour faster with the metal bats. The exit speed difference for someone of my age (22) was 14 mph faster off of the metal bat as compared to the wood bat.

If you take these numbers and put them into game like reaction times, you would find that with a wood bat, you have 0.04 more seconds to react on a ball hit back at the pitcher. Now this may not seem like a lot of time, but that can be the difference between getting your glove up to catch the ball and being hit by a hard line drive. As a pitcher who has been hit by a line drive back at me, I will take all the time I can get. In terms of softball, the base paths are 20-30 feet shorter than baseball, depending on the league. This reaction time is now reduced even more, which has caused pitchers and even some infielders to wear masks. At the end of the day, I am completely on board with the change to wood bats for softball. Not to mention the customization that MaxBat offers is something that softball players everywhere would enjoy.

Written by MaxBat contributor, Tyler Flakne

Categories: Bat Swing Speed, Metal bats, Wood Bat, Wood Bats

Tags: metal bat, metal bats, softball, wood bat, Wood Bats

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Wood Bat business chosen as Top 100 Small Business in USA

Behind every successful small business is an owner with a vision for something that could be done better – and a community that benefits from that vision. Whether it’s a vintage shop that revitalizes a troubled neighborhood, a construction company that builds new homes or a small restaurant that anchors a community, small businesses play an increasingly important role in bringing people together.

That’s why a wood bat manufacturer like MaxBat is being profiled as part of the Small Business Revolution project – a year long campaign that celebrates the vibrancy, variety and community impact of small businesses all across the country.

Baseball is America’s pastime, and wood bats and wood bat manufacturing is at the heart of it. MaxBat produces wood bats in their facility in the small west-central Minnesota town of Brooten. Producing wood bats for professionals, and amateur players around the globe since 2001.

“It’s very humbling to be chosen as one of only 100 small businesses across the country to be featured by Deluxe Corporation as a part of their Small Business Revolution campaign” said Jim Anderson, VP and Director of Sales for MaxBat. “When this idea to create custom wood bats was hatched, it consumed my life and I followed my passion. It’s the most rewarding venture that I’ve ever been a part of”.

The Small Business Revolution focuses on the importance of a personal touch and local involvement in an era when business is becoming increasingly impersonal. The campaign is capturing the stories of small businesses and their customers, families and friends – all of whom are a crucial part of what makes our communities whole.

And when you think about custom made wood bats, that is the essence of personal touch. Each wood bat being created for an individual ball player, one wood bat at a time.

“The hands-on customer service, the entrepreneurial spirit and the deep community involvement people find in the small businesses they frequent make all the difference,” said Amanda Brinkman, chief brand and communications officer for Deluxe Corp. “Telling these stories and putting a spotlight on these owners is our way of celebrating the best parts of American business.”

The Small Business Revolution story will be told throughout 2015, coinciding with Deluxe’s 100th anniversary celebration. Since 1915, Deluxe has helped small businesses grow and thrive by providing a range of business services, from websites and logos to social media and email marketing to checks and other financial services. In all, 100 small businesses will have their stories told on SmallBusinessRevolution.org

Categories: Maple Bats, Wood Bat, Wood bat company, Wood bat manufacturer, Wood Bats

Tags: Maple Bats, wood bat, wood bat company, wood bat manufacturer, Wood Bats

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Wood bats for softball?

If you didn’t know that wood bats are making a comeback in slow-pitch softball, you soon will. MaxBat has seen a significant rise in our wood bats for softball this year, and the demand keeps growing.

Why wood bats for softball? Well, if you’ve seen a competitive men’s softball game recently, you’ll notice some unusual rules.

Batters don’t even have to run the bases after hitting homeruns.
Homeruns are counted as OUTS after a certain number of them are hit.
Some leagues require pitchers to wear facemasks.

So…..why is this? This isn’t the softball that I grew up watching my dad play two nights a week in the summertime.

ASA has banned the use of dozens of “hot” bats, and that list keeps growing. Of course, the only “hot” bats are the ones made of metal and/or composite materials.

Many leagues have said “Enough is Enough”, and have switched to playing softball with wood bats. The game is safer and more enjoyable. Players who have made the switch exclaim to one another, “Why didn’t we switch to wood bats sooner”? Unfortunately, many leagues have switched to wood bats only after a handful of players in their leagues were permanently injured by a ball coming off a “hot” bat at close range.

Wood bats for softball can be made to exact ASA specifications, and because they are wood bats and not metal, they do not need the ASA stamp on them. Balls coming off the barrel of a wood bat do not reach ridiculous speeds, and make it fair/safe for the fielders. Now if someone hits a homerun in a softball game with a wood bat, it’s because of the player’s talent level, and not the bat’s engineering.

Many leagues play on fields without fences too. So using wood bats in softball games can reduce the number of gap shots that roll for a mile and a half before an outfielder tracks it down.

Perhaps now is the time for your community or parks and recreation department to host a wood bat softball tournament to expose the game to more people.

Categories: Wood Bat, Wood Bats

Tags: homerun, softball, wood bat, Wood Bats

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What is the proper way to hold a wood bat?

We are frequently asked by customers “how should I hold a wood bat”? It’s actually a good question, because with the variety of wood species to make wood bats, there’s a difference of opinion depending on what kind of wood bat you’re swinging.

Let’s start with how to hold the wood bat, and then we’ll get into the specifics.

First, hold your wood bat upright so the manufacturer’s logo (in this case, a MaxBat logo) is centered. Which means you’re looking right at it. Now, if you are a right-handed batter, slightly turn the wood bat in your hand so the MaxBat logo is facing your left shoulder. If you are a left-handed batter, you would do just the opposite (slightly turn the wood bat in your hand so the MaxBat logo is facing your right shoulder.

But, why do we need to do this with wood bats, and not with aluminum? Because wood bats have different flexes, and one side is harder than the other, etc., etc. So, we want you to hold your wood bat in your hand, so that when you swing it, the hardest side of the wood bat barrel is making contact with the baseball. By positioning the MaxBat logo to face your left shoulder (Right-Handed batter), or your right shoulder (Left-Handed batter), the MaxBat logo should be facing straight up to the sky when the wood bat barrel makes contact with the baseball.

So, what’s the big advantage to that? We place the logo on either the Face-Grain (Ash Wood Bats), or Edge-Grain (Maple Wood Bats and Birch Wood Bats) so that when you position the wood bat in your hand correctly, you will be hitting the ball on the hardest side of the wood bat barrel. Hitting the ball on this side of the wood bat barrel has been proven to extend the longevity of your wood bat.

Prior to 2009, it was believed that the manufacturer’s logo should always be placed on the face-grain of wood bats. However, after extensive testing that was mandated by MLB, it was established that the manufacturer’s logo should be placed on the edge-grain of Maple wood bats and Birch wood bats.

So there you have it. Just another tidbit on wood bats, from your friends at MaxBat. Makers of the finest wood bats on the planet.

Categories: Baseball Bats, Birch Bats, Maple Bats, Metal bats, Wood Baseball Bats, Wood Bat, Wood Bats

Tags: birch wood bats, maple wood bats, wood bat, Wood Bats

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The Off-Season

Wood bats…..Wood Softball bats that is – Part 2

Wood Bat business chosen as Top 100 Small Business in USA

Wood bats for softball?

What is the proper way to hold a wood bat?

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