An Experimental Investigation of Baseball Bat Durability

Abstract

The service life of a baseball bat is a function of its durability. All wood bats crack, and ash bats exhibit flaking of the barrel due to repeated impacts. In aluminum and composite bats, repeated impacts can cause a change in the material properties, which in turn can lead to dents and microcracks that ultimately coalesce to form macrocracks. A test machine for simulating essentially any field condition for bat/ball impacts has been developed to study bat durability. The system uses an air cannon capable of firing a baseball at speeds up to 180 mph at a stationary bat which is supported in a grip that replicates a player’s hands. This paper will describe the system, present some supporting analysis of the gripping method, and present results of tests from wood and aluminum bats.