Bat length question

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Apr 11, 2016
133
28
DD swings a 32 inch bat and it is the correct length on all the charts. Her hitting coach is telling her to start swinging a 33 because it will add distance and she can handle it since her exit velocity is good. My DD is a sophomore in HS.

12 year old buddies daughter that is taller was just told by a college coach to start swinging a 33 inch bat also. She normally uses a 32 inch bat.

Both that live in different states are being told that the inch bat will add 20 feet. Not sure about this.
I was always told to give them the longest and heaviest bat they can handle.

DD is still under 5'2". We just switched her to a 32" bat, and she is swing a lot faster. Her 31" bat was way too short, but she grew almost 3 inches in a few months, and we didn't want to switch bat in the middle of the season. Once we put the 32" bat in her hand, she has a much higher exit velocity.

We always add either an inch to the bat or weight, but not both at the same time. Ever inch is like an extra oz. In the summer, we may switch her up to 33" or add another drop.

Most of her teammates have 33" bats already, since they are much taller than she. They are all 13-14 years old and in 8th or 9th grade. Sounds like 33 isn't a far fetch for your daughter.

Another thing we look for is the balance of the bat. DD doesn't like the ghost bat, b/c it is top heavy. As a slapper, she likes bats that are balanced in the center.
 
Jan 28, 2017
1,662
83
I was always told to give them the longest and heaviest bat they can handle.

DD is still under 5'2". We just switched her to a 32" bat, and she is swing a lot faster. Her 31" bat was way too short, but she grew almost 3 inches in a few months, and we didn't want to switch bat in the middle of the season. Once we put the 32" bat in her hand, she has a much higher exit velocity.

We always add either an inch to the bat or weight, but not both at the same time. Ever inch is like an extra oz. In the summer, we may switch her up to 33" or add another drop.

Most of her teammates have 33" bats already, since they are much taller than she. They are all 13-14 years old and in 8th or 9th grade. Sounds like 33 isn't a far fetch for your daughter.

Another thing we look for is the balance of the bat. DD doesn't like the ghost bat, b/c it is top heavy. As a slapper, she likes bats that are balanced in the center.
DD off the Tee last night was 73 mph exit velocity but the reason we started going to a hitting coach is that she is late on inside pitches (long). It is really just a turning issue before the hands go, IMO. Since she is late on inside pitches a longer bat does not make sense to me at the moment. As far as, hand speed and strength it is not an issue at all.
 
Oct 4, 2018
4,611
113
Both my girls are moving up to 33" this Spring.

The 6 foot tall 14U girl is a no-brainer. She's strong like bull. Exit velocity in the high 60s.

The 12U girl is 5'6" and weighs more than my 14U bean-pole. She's strong like bull. Exit velocity in the high 60s.

I'm also in the camp of moving up in bat size & weight as you can.

Here they are in lessons. They have very different body types, but I'm pretty sure have the same biological parents:
1641403034689.png
 
Last edited:
Aug 31, 2020
36
8
Depends on her size in my opinion. Players are all over the place size-wise. For reference, my 13yo is 5'6" and approx 120lbs. She moved to a 33 -10 recently and has no problem with it. In fact, she requested moving up.
 
May 1, 2018
659
63
So my DD is 5'3 175ish and 13yrs old. She is Strong Strong...... I'm not good at math but have always thought to swing the biggest bat you can swing violently. So she is swinging a 33 -9 for the past year. I would think that a girl who is 5'5 160 should have no issues at all with a 33 -10.
 
Oct 4, 2018
4,611
113
Another thing we need to constantly remind ourselves is that the weight of the bat can't be determined any other way than weighing the bat.

My daughter's 32 drop 10 Ghost weighs .1 ounces more than her 32 drop 9 Xeno.
 
Apr 2, 2015
1,198
113
Woodstock, man
She is very strong but has some bat drag at times.
This is where every Dad goes wrong. They spend $$$ on bats instead of fixing the bat drag.

Fixing bat drag lasts a lifetime, and extends careers. A new bat will waste your money and your time, and shorten her career.

Having said that, pick a bat based on weight and balance, then get the longest one of those. Extra length mostly gives you plate coverage.
 

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