Louisville Slugger Ash-Composite Baseball Bat: Product Review

The Louisville Slugger Ash-Composite Baseball Bat is ideal for all aspiring baseball players. It is the ultimate off season training bat as well as the most economical. Regular maple or ash baseball bats tend to break often; especially for the inexperienced ball player who is often jammed by pitches. Those bats cost $20-$50 and usually don't last more than a month. This particular Ash-Composite bat has survived thousands of pitches and has shown limited signs of abuse.

The bat should only be used for training and never in games. Most wood bat leagues do not allow composite bats, and even if they did, the bat has very little "pop" and won't drive many home runs.

For training, however, it is the best on the market and has many advantages over other bats.

First off, Ash-Composite bats tend to be heavier. The bat comes in 3 sizes; 32 inches, 33 inches, and 34 inches. The drop on the bat is not as great as other bats; my guess would be a 1 ounce drop. This would mean the 32 inch bat is 31 ounces, the 33 inch is 32 ounces, and so on. Earlier on the bat will feel heavy, and you will have trouble catching up with pitches. From my personal experiences, I have found that this goes away after a few weeks of swinging, and after going back to regular bats, have seen a very noticeable increase in bat speed. This results in more power, and gives you an easier time catching up to fastballs.

Second, the bat will last ages. I have had mine for a year and the bat is still holding strong. Before buying this bat, I had gone through 3 maple bats in 2 months of batting practice sessions. I was fed up with having to leave in the middle of my practice sessions to go out and get a replacement. A replacement, that by the way, would cost $30.

Third, the bat will save you money! I mentioned above that I had gone through 3 bats in 2 months; including tax, those 2 months cost me about $100. I then ordered this Ash-Composite bat online for $120 and it has lasted me a year. Who knows what I would have had to spend in maple bats over that time? $400? $500? Luckily, I never had to find out.

There is, however, one con for this product. The grip is extremely rough. My first time using it, I had gone without batting gloves. It was a big mistake; I had blistered both of my hands up within 30 swings and had to stop swinging. Make sure to get yourself a sturdy pair of batting gloves before using this bat unless you want your hands butchered.

Overall, the pros severely outweigh the cons. My rating of this product is a 4/5 and would highly recommend it for all aspiring baseball players.