New gear advice?

[wazzy]

Never, ever buy a bat to grow into.

Too long is a bigger sin than too heavy.

A bat too long at that age has potential to cause swing flaws that are very hard to fix.

A bat too long can cause a young player to never develop as a hitter. “Never“ is a serious word. Pay attention to it.

There is No Status In Swinging A Bigger Bat Than Most Other Kids The Same Age. NONE. The coach doesn’t care. The other players don’t care. The other parents don’t care. The only people that will like it is the pitchers on the other team.

An inch longer bat does not give you “better plate coverage”. Biggest myth in softball. Get lessons and practice more with the bat you have.

Measure the outside width of your daughters shoulders. Multiply that number by two. That number is likely going to be 30 or maybe 31 in your daughters case. Get a -10 bat in that length. IF YOU HAVE ANY DOUBT, GO DOWN AN INCH. (The bat size guide chart that is on every bat sales site will be similar.)

The vast majority of 10u players should be swinging a -10 Demarini, LXT, Xeno, Ghost that was bought second hand locally. Most 10u kids can’t hit a ball hard enough to tax a high quality modern bat. Let someone else pay new prices and pay half for a great bat. If and when you are going to buy a new bat, contact @CoreSoftball20 on these forums and talk to him. He will give you great advice.

A bunch of us were in your shoes years ago. I made all the dumb mistakes you can make. Trust experience on this topic. Don’t do what the rest of us did.

Sorry if this was seems harsh. This is a message that needs to be delivered effectively.

@mods... For the 922nd time, we need a sticky on this topic.

Good luck and enjoy the ride!

I'm into honesty and I came here for advice, so this is awesome! Thank you. I would rather learn from your experience than spend 400 bucks on a bat that ruins her swing. In my defense though... I would say that I'm not out to impress anybody by having DD swing a bigger bat than most. That thought didn't ever cross my mind. She used a 29 in tee ball (which was co-ed and therefore coach pitch) and her first year of farm because it was pink. Then, she jumped to the 31 because her favorite babysitter who played in HS gifted her a bat that was likely too small for her. So she tried to swing it and she could. That's it. I'm more guilty of being cheap than anything else. HOWEVER, she does have an impressive swing. The competition will be using composite bats, so I think she needs one. The last thing I want to do is to screw up her swing. How will I know if she has developed swing flaws??

 

[wazzy]

My DD is 5'4" tall and weighs a 150# and she just now went to a 31/21. I honestly think -11 bats are better suited for most kids at 12U. Keep in mind that the aluminum bat she is using is probably true to weight while many composite bats are heavy... especially ghosts.

As far as pants try mizuno or rip-it.

So, -11 in a composite and -10 in aluminum? Thanks for the tip on the pants.

 

[wazzy]

Never, ever buy a bat to grow into.

Too long is a bigger sin than too heavy.

A bat too long at that age has potential to cause swing flaws that are very hard to fix.

A bat too long can cause a young player to never develop as a hitter. “Never“ is a serious word. Pay attention to it.

There is No Status In Swinging A Bigger Bat Than Most Other Kids The Same Age. NONE. The coach doesn’t care. The other players don’t care. The other parents don’t care. The only people that will like it is the pitchers on the other team.

An inch longer bat does not give you “better plate coverage”. Biggest myth in softball. Get lessons and practice more with the bat you have.

Measure the outside width of your daughters shoulders. Multiply that number by two. That number is likely going to be 30 or maybe 31 in your daughters case. Get a -10 bat in that length. IF YOU HAVE ANY DOUBT, GO DOWN AN INCH. (The bat size guide chart that is on every bat sales site will be similar.)

The vast majority of 10u players should be swinging a -10 Demarini, LXT, Xeno, Ghost that was bought second hand locally. Most 10u kids can’t hit a ball hard enough to tax a high quality modern bat. Let someone else pay new prices and pay half for a great bat. If and when you are going to buy a new bat, contact @CoreSoftball20 on these forums and talk to him. He will give you great advice.

A bunch of us were in your shoes years ago. I made all the dumb mistakes you can make. Trust experience on this topic. Don’t do what the rest of us did.

Sorry if this was seems harsh. This is a message that needs to be delivered effectively.

@mods... For the 922nd time, we need a sticky on this topic.

Good luck and enjoy the ride!

Also, thanks a million for the sizing tip of measuring the shoulders. I always thought it was loosely based on height. Everyone will be pleased to know she measures roughly 15.5 inches across... lol Oh, and thanks for the contact info for purchasing a new bat! Good stuff.

 

[Westwind]

I would say that I'm not out to impress anybody by having DD swing a bigger bat than most. That thought didn't ever cross my mind.

Sorry- didn’t mean to imply that you were doing that. It’s just that I saw that first hand many times when my daughters were young. The other variant is the parent gets a “good deal” on a bat that is too big and they “just choke up” or put knob cuffs on it. Also I make this same post a few times per year and figure other parents of young players will read it too.

Also,I am quite jealous of you 10u parents! ! I really wish I could go back and do it all over again!

 

[wazzy]

Sorry- didn’t mean to imply that you were doing that. It’s just that I saw that first hand many times when my daughters were young. The other variant is the parent gets a “good deal” on a bat that is too big and they “just choke up” or put knob cuffs on it. Also I make this same post a few times per year and figure other parents of young players will read it too.

Also,I am quite jealous of you 10u parents! ! I really wish I could go back and do it all over again!

I'm looking forward to the experience. And I honestly appreciate the input. And I would probably be the kind that would go for the "good deal" had we not had this conversation...lol Thanks again!

 

[texasck1]

My DD is now 2nd year 12U, but sounds like mine and yours are similar in strength and build. At 10U we did not buy new bats. A 30 or 31 in no more than a -10 is what we used, even though DD had no problem swinging bigger or heavier bats. Other than 1 Ghost Advanced, there has only been a Xeno in her bag and they just work. (with the Ghost there was still a Xeno as a backup)

Go check out Sidelineswap, local FB softball pages, Ebay, Playitagainsports. At the price you can get a used Xeno, buy a 30 and 31. If you look hard, you shouldn't have to spend more than $200 total with shipping for both. Let her swing them both for a while. Put them both in her bag. She will eventually use one over the other and you will have your answer.

IMO, always error a little on the side of a lighter bat. Bat speed kills balls!!!

 

[wazzy]

My DD is now 2nd year 12U, but sounds like mine and yours are similar in strength and build. At 10U we did not buy new bats. A 30 or 31 in no more than a -10 is what we used, even though DD had no problem swinging bigger or heavier bats. Other than 1 Ghost Advanced, there has only been a Xeno in her bag and they just work. (with the Ghost there was still a Xeno as a backup)

Go check out Sidelineswap, local FB softball pages, Ebay, Playitagainsports. At the price you can get a used Xeno, buy a 30 and 31. If you look hard, you shouldn't have to spend more than $200 total with shipping for both. Let her swing them both for a while. Put them both in her bag. She will eventually use one over the other and you will have your answer.

IMO, always error a little on the side of a lighter bat. Bat speed kills balls!!!

Thanks, this is very helpful! She hasn't swung a Xeno, but in reading up on them I always wondered if that would be a good bat for her. We will check it out. She does love her LS!!

 

[BrianTx01]

Thanks, this is very helpful! She hasn't swung a Xeno, but in reading up on them I always wondered if that would be a good bat for her. We will check it out. She does love her LS!!

I would not think a Xeno would be a good bat for a 4'7" girl. Xeno is a big girl's bat.

 

[YOCOACH]

Also,I am quite jealous of you 10u parents! ! I really wish I could go back and do it all over again!

Just do what I did. As soon as DD went off to college several years ago I dropped back and took another 10U team. Now we're at 14U but it's the best of both worlds. I have 13 new adopted DD's that I get to buy a few bats, gloves and mitts for without spending my own money plus I get to send them home at the end of every practice and not have to worry about feeding them. A majority of them I get to see in groups of 2 for extra hitting throughout the week and my 3 catchers an additional time for catching. I still get to travel with a TB team. I still have a SB family and when DD is home, she helps coach and travels with us which makes it even better.

@wazzy NO...stick with a drop 10 in a composite as well. Just be aware of which manufacturers run overweight such as the Ghost, which ones are a tad light and which ones run true to weight. @EricF started a bat weight database thread which was made a sticky. Any questions about weights should have answers there.

 

[wazzy]

Just do what I did. As soon as DD went off to college several years ago I dropped back and took another 10U team. Now we're at 14U but it's the best of both worlds. I have 13 new adopted DD's that I get to buy a few bats, gloves and mitts for without spending my own money plus I get to send them home at the end of every practice and not have to worry about feeding them. A majority of them I get to see in groups of 2 for extra hitting throughout the week and my 3 catchers an additional time for catching. I still get to travel with a TB team. I still have a SB family and when DD is home, she helps coach and travels with us which makes it even better.

@wazzy NO...stick with a drop 10 in a composite as well. Just be aware of which manufacturers run overweight such as the Ghost, which ones are a tad light and which ones run true to weight. @EricF started a bat weight database thread which was made a sticky. Any questions about weights should have answers there.

I'll check it out. Thank you!

Can't wait to get started with winter workouts this week!