What? what why? That's crazy. Are we talking aluminum or wood? That's a hell of a financial burden on parents. I'd be livid if my son was still playing. That's just not right. Many parents aren't in a position to replace bats. Buying a bat is more than some can handle. Rec leagues often furnish an assortment of bats to each coach just for the kids without a personal bat or two. That's one heck of a burden on a rec center to replace bats too. Stupid.. IGNORANT!
I still have my first mitt. It's pretty broke in lol. Just sixty years old or so. A good old JC Higgin's six finger glove sold through Sears, Roebuck and Co.
Bob Buhl autographed.
I've coached for about 5 years and yes, each coaches bag normally has a big and small bat for the boys that don't have the means to have their own. So yeah, our little town league has had to buy 2 bats per team, which takes away from scholarships, field maintenance, uniforms, and anything else we do with the dues and fundraisers.
If it was for safety, then I get it. But this is for performance. They even say it in the explanation. My best understanding is that they are trying to make aluminum / composite bats react like wood bats, some coefficient of bouncy or something like that.
It is sad to say that there will be a lot of boys using a bat that is a bit to short / light or long / heavy this year. I'm happy I have the means to get Evan a properly sized bat for him. But fear not, Rawlings, Louisville Slugger, etc. will be having a great year. And some suits in Little League, Babe Ruth, Cal Ripken, and whoever else was involved can pat themselves on the back for accomplishing whatever it is they think the accomplished.
As far as the glove, youth gloves aren't made with the quality they were when we were kids, but are better fitted to small hands, and are made with materials that don't take as long to break in. My son wore a hole in the palm, which only comes from use. I can't really complain about that. This glove I just bought will probably be outgrown in a year or two, at which point I'll buy the lifetime glove (yes they still make those, but they cost about $250). Even though my baseball days are behind me, I still enjoy a game of catch in the back yard.