Rawlings Composite Bats Get Better With Every Swing

Maximize your bat speed, power and control with a Rawlings' composite bat.

Composite bats are lighter than aluminum bats, which helps a hitter increase bat speed.

Their flexible handles, large barrels and large sweet spots make for better power numbers.

And, when fully broken in, composite fibers begin to loosen, helping the bats reach top performance—even outperforming aluminum bats.

Composite bats first became available in the mid-1980s, but they quickly disappeared because they didn't perform as well as aluminum and didn't produce that popular "ping" sound.

In the early 2000s, however, composite bats became the go-to bat in softball. Since then, they've become immensely popular, challenging aluminum bats in both durability and performance.

Today, there is a wide variety of composite choices, including all-composite bats, bats with composite handles and aluminum barrels, bats with composite outer shells over aluminum barrels and even some all-composite double-wall bats.

Rawlings' 5150 Composite and X-Treme Performance bats have 100 percent composite frames with multi-wall barrels.

To reach optimal performance, composite bats need to be broken in.

Here are some tips for breaking in a composite bat:

• Use real baseballs when breaking in a composite bat.
• It takes 100 to 200 hits to break in a composite bat, and some bats take longer than others.
• Hit live balls thrown at 40 mph or better for best results. A pitching machine works well if it is set up to throw leather baseballs. Hitting off a tee will not break in a composite bat very effectively.
• Each time you make good contact, turn the barrel about 1/8 so you break in the bat evenly.

Because composite bats perform better as they are broken in, some leagues have restricted their use. In addition, composite bats have a reputation for performing poorly or even breaking in weather that is cooler than 65 degrees.

Since many leagues have changed their certifications and testing for the 2010-11 season, the best way to ensure your Rawlings bat is legal for your league is to review the rule book of the governing body for your league.

Read our previous articles on bat certifications, bat series and different types of Rawlings bats in our News section at RawlingsGear.com.

Visit RawlingsGear.com or contact a Rawlings Gear Customer Care representative at (866) 678-GEAR(4327) for information on your Rawlings composite bat.