• Contact Us
  • Events calendar
Entering Swellesley
Pinnacle, Wellesley

The Swellesley Report

More than you really want to know about Wellesley, Mass.

  • Advertise
  • Business index
  • Contribute
  • Wellesley Square
  • Private schools
  • Camp
  • Eat
  • Schools
  • Top 10 things to do
  • Embracing diversity
  • Kids
  • About us
  • Events
  • Natick Report
  • COVID-19
  • Seniors
  • Letters to the editor
  • Live government meetings
Needham Bank, Wellesley
Write Ahead, Wellesley

Metal bats making Wellesley Little League comeback

November 17, 2009 by Bob Brown 1 Comment

bat

Wellesley Little League is making some big changes for the spring season, most notably the re-introduction of metal bats.

The league did away with metal bats a few years ago in the wake of a serious injury sustained by a Wellesley High pitcher named Bill Hughto who got struck in the head by a line drive off of a metal bat during a game in 2001. The incident is frequently cited (HBO, New York Times and others) when the debate over safety of  metal vs. wood bats arises, with metal bat opponents arguing the ball travels too fast off of metal bats and  proponents countering that research is inconclusive and that broken wooden bats can threaten players as well.

Patrick Doyle, safety officer for Wellesley Little League’s board, says that Little League baseball nationally has worked with bat manufacturers to improve the safety of metal bats over the years by documenting their springiness. Only those bats with a League League-approved seal on them (indicating a Bat Performance Factor of no more than 1.15, the same as for the best wooden bats) will be allowed in Wellesley Little League.

So parents, be warned: If you’re thinking about getting your kid a bat for a holiday gift, be sure it has the correct label.

The main reason for bringing back metal bats back to Wellesley Little League is to speed up the action, Doyle says.

“It should provide for a better baseball experience,” Doyle says. “Kids throw hard and if you don’t hit the ball  squarely with a wood bat the ball doesn’t go very far. It turns the league into a pitcher’s league and ultimately that can turn off the kids who aren’t pitching.” In other words, there should be less standing around for infielders and outfielders with metal bats, and that should make baseball a more enticing game vs. soccer, lacrosse, football and other action-packed sports that kids can choose to play, he says. Spectators will probably need to be on their toes more than ever as well.

Some leagues have switched from wood to metal bats for cost reasons — wooden bats break left and right in Wellesley Little League. But Doyle says cost really wasn’t a factor in the decision. Neither, he said, was the fact that Wellesley travel league players could be at a disadvantage when playing teams from towns that do use metal bats in Little League.

As for other changes, the most skilled 3rd graders will get a chance to leapfrog their classmates by trying out for the  National League, which comprises mainly 4th and 5th graders, and 4th graders will get a shot at the higher level American League, which traditionally has been for 5th-7th graders. The potential downside is that older, less skilled players could find themselves pushed aside by the young up and comers (though all American League players are guaranteed an at-bat and three innings in the field per game).

We asked about whether the league is looking into field conditions, especially in light of all the rainouts and mud-outs experienced during the fall league (not that the league has much control over the fact it rained so often on Saturdays and Sundays). Indeed, the league does have a committee exploring the condition of fields.

print

Share

Filed Under: Sports

Trackbacks

  1. Wellesley’s top 10 stories of 2009 | The Swellesley Report says:
    December 30, 2009 at 3:13 pm

    […] of making it to the majors when he was drafted by the San Diego Padres out of Duke University. And Wellesley Little League players  found out that they’d be switching to from wood to metal bat…, a move some say will improve the quality of play and that others fear will lead to injury. […]

    Reply

Leave a Reply Cancel reply

You have to agree to the comment policy.

Linden Square, Wellesley
Wellesley United Soccer
Wonderful Wellesley

Tip us off…

Please send tips, photos, ideas to theswellesleyreport@gmail.com

 

Advertisements

Wellesley Square
Wellesley, Jesamondo
Cheesy Street Grill
Sexton test prep
Feldman Law
Fay School, Southborough
Wellesley Theatre Project
Volvo
Admit Fit, Wellesley
  • Facebook
  • Instagram
  • Twitter
Never miss a post with our free daily Swellesley Report email
Name: 
Your email address:*
Please wait...
Please enter all required fields Click to hide
Correct invalid entries Click to hide

You can subscribe for free, though we appreciate any contribution that supports our independent journalism.

Click on Entering Natick sign to read our Natick Report

Entering Natick road sign

Most Read Posts

  • Wellesley High holds special August ceremony for grad injured in car crash
  • Congrats to all those sweaty, determined Pan-Mass Challenge riders
  • Wellesley arts news: Davis Museum previews fall exhibits; Abstract art welcomes you to the library
  • An hour in a Wellesley garden—a visit to Little Red
  • Upcoming political debates & forums

Upcoming Events

Aug 12
12:00 pm - 1:00 pm

Fay School admission information session

Aug 12
1:00 pm

Bach to Rock free instrument petting zoo

Aug 15
1:00 pm

Wellesley Neighbors, Open Lunch

Aug 17
10:00 am - 11:00 am

Tour at Boston Outdoor Preschool Network

Aug 17
5:00 pm - 7:00 pm

Al Fresco Dinner and Music on the COA Patio

View Calendar

Popular pages

  • Wellesley’s 7 official scenic roads

Recent Comments

  • Ellen S on The Underrated Cure: Gardening’s Effect on Mental Health
  • Mary Ann on First taste: Wellesley Square’s new Lockheart Restaurant
  • Mary Ann on First taste: Wellesley Square’s new Lockheart Restaurant
  • Michael Maggard WHS '85 on In remembrance: Martha ‘Martie” Cherry Fiske, award-winning Wellesley teacher who fought for job rights
  • Katherine Fellows on Wellesley outdoor watering restrictions to come with a bit of ‘enforcement’

Links we like

  • Great Runs
  • Jack Sanford: Wellesley's Major League Baseball Star
  • Taquitos.net
  • Tech-Tamer
  • The Wellesley Wine Press
  • Universal Hub
  • Wellesley Sports Discussion Facebook Group

Categories

  • 2021 Town Election (24)
  • Animals (418)
  • Antiques (49)
  • Art (581)
  • Beyond Wellesley (49)
  • Books (368)
  • Business (1,514)
  • Camp (11)
  • Careers/jobs (49)
  • Churches (81)
  • Clubs (229)
  • Construction (296)
  • Dump (127)
  • Education (3,125)
    • Babson College (251)
    • Bates Elementary School (16)
    • Dana Hall School (34)
    • Fiske Elementary School (9)
    • Hardy Elementary School (44)
    • Hunnewell Elementary School (43)
    • MassBay (55)
    • Schofield Elementary School (24)
    • Sprague Elementary School (19)
    • St. John School (2)
    • Tenacre Country Day School (11)
    • Upham Elementary School (35)
    • Wellesley College (610)
    • Wellesley High School (970)
    • Wellesley Middle School (204)
  • Embracing diversity (70)
  • Entertainment (792)
  • Environment (754)
  • Fashion (141)
  • Finance (14)
  • Fire (164)
  • Food (347)
  • Fundraising (615)
  • Gardens (160)
  • Government (565)
    • 2020 Town Election (47)
    • 2022 Town Election (14)
  • Health (853)
    • COVID-19 (200)
  • Hikes (4)
  • History (389)
  • Holidays (406)
  • Houses (157)
  • Humor (47)
  • Kids (854)
  • Law (8)
  • Legal notices (6)
  • Letters to the Editor (63)
  • Media (70)
  • METCO (4)
  • Military (11)
  • Morses Pond (108)
  • Music (571)
  • Natick Report (30)
  • Neighbors (273)
  • Obituaries & remembrances (76)
  • Outdoors (643)
  • Parenting (63)
  • Police (757)
    • Crime (386)
  • Politics (551)
  • POPS Senior Profile (10)
  • RDF (6)
  • Real estate (334)
  • Religion (132)
  • Restaurants (335)
  • Safety (151)
  • Scouts (2)
  • Seniors (123)
  • Shopping (148)
  • Sponsored (6)
  • Sports (986)
    • Athlete of the Week (6)
  • STEM (107)
  • Technology (164)
  • Theatre (395)
  • Town Meeting (23)
  • Transportation (232)
  • Travel (17)
  • Uncategorized (1,231)
  • Volunteering (347)
  • Weather (178)
  • Wellesley Election 2019 (21)
  • Wellesley Free Library (277)
  • Wellesley's Wonderful Weekend (19)
Deland, Gibson Insurance, Wellesley

© 2022 The Swellesley Report
Site by Tech-Tamer · Login