Choosing a BBCOR Bat

https://batsmash.com/hitting/bbcor-bats-explained/

Choosing a BBCOR Bat A ​BBCOR bat​ is the standard of bat required for competitive high school and college baseball.

In comparison to the old standard, BESR, BBCOR bats are noticeably less powerful. This change was in part due to the immense power that BESR bats produced, particularly at the collegiate level.

Let’s answer common questions related to BBCOR bats.

What is BBCOR and what does it stand for?

BBCOR was introduced in 2011 and stands for Ball Bat Coefficient of Restitution (B.B.C.O.R). It is now the standard BBCOR measured the energy lost when a baseball bat connects with the ball – also seen as the bat’s “springiness”. A high number greats a greater “trampoline effect”, meaning the ball will jump off the bat at a faster rate and can travel further. A lower number = less pop and power.

This B.B.C.O.R. standard set the maximum number at .5; meaning, no legal baseball bat can exceed this number using the BBCOR formula. The .5 number is only slightly higher than a ​wooden bat​ and significantly less than the BSER bats.

The pop of BBCOR bats is closer to the MLB standard than the previous standard (BESR). This gives high school and college players some benefit of using a metal bat, without the overly-bearing offense stats and high risk of pitcher injury.

Overall, BBCOR bats have less pop than BSER bats.

Why were BSER bats removed?

https://batsmash.com/hitting/bbcor-bats-explained/

​BESR is a formula; the exit velocity of the baseball divided by the baseball velocity + bat velocity With the BSER bats in place, college baseball as a whole saw a +14% increase in runs scored and a +38% increase in home runs hit. This was seen as damaging the nature of the game, giving batters the advantage over pitchers and the fielding team.

Additionally, pitcher safety became a huge concern. With BSER bats, the exit velocity of a ​90 MPH fastball ​could exceed 108 MPH​! Standing only 60 feet away, a screaming line drive off of a BSER bat would be nearly impossible to react to. Every college pitcher faced significant risk and many suffered significant injuries during the BSER bat era.

This brought in the BBCOR era – a new method and standard for baseball bats to reduce injury and improve the game as a whole.

BBCOR Features The “sweet spot” of BBCOR bats are approximately 2″ smaller (3″) than those of BSER bats (5″). This means you really need to square up the ball to hit a line drive.

While I used a BSER bat in High School, hitting the ball off the end of the bat sometimes resulted in line drives and well-struck balls. The BBCOR bat materials drastically reduce the chances of that happening.

Exit velocity off of BBCOR bats is also approximately 5% slower than BSER bats. Put simply, this means fewer base hits, fewer line drives that find gaps, and fewer home runs. There’s no way around it.

Using the new formula, factors that would produce a 400′ home run with a BSER bat would result in a 375′ fly out using the BBCOR Bats.

https://batsmash.com/hitting/bbcor-bats-explained/ How to Choose the Right BBCOR Bat There’s no choice anymore; if you are a college or high school baseball player, you must use a BBCOR (or wooden) bat. So that begs the question: How do you choose the best one?

There are many factors to consider when looking to purchase a BBCOR bat. We invite you to read our in-depth article to help you choose​ the best BBCOR bat​ to have an awesome season.

Thank you for reading! – Thomas