Little League to Adopt New USA Baseball Bat
Standard Starting with 2018 Season

Attention RCLL Families:

“With the Little League® International Board of Directors formally adopting USA Baseball’s new standard for bat performance testing, Little League International fully supports this program. For more than seventy-five years, Little League has used improvements in science, engineering, and technology to take the sport of baseball to higher levels. By utilizing the most current advancements available, manufacturers can now develop bats with a wood-like performance, which is important for the long-term success of the game. Developed by a USA Baseball committee of scientific experts, Little League Baseball® has decided to adopt the new bat standard for mandated use effective January 1, 2018. All national members of USA Baseball, including Little League, are encouraged to adopt this new standard. Little League-approved bats can be used through December 31, 2017, and our current bat regulations will be in effect until then. That includes the moratorium prohibiting the use of all 2 ¼ inch barrel baseball bats constructed with composite material in the barrel, unless approved. Visit LittleLeague.org for detailed information. Little League looks forward to working with USA Baseball, and will begin educating our local leagues, and the parents of our 2.1 million baseball players, preparing them for the important change coming in 2018.”

What this means for us:

Any bat that is currently in use will most likely NOT be legal for use starting spring 2018. We are bringing this to everyone’s attention as early as possible so you are informed of the change and anyone looking to buy a bat this season doesn’t invest a lot of money in a piece of equipment that will be obsolete in a year. Basically the new standards lower the performance of the bats just like they have done recently in High School and College baseball to more accurately simulate a traditional wood bat. Current composite bats like the popular Easton Mako will no longer be legal for use after this season. According to USA Baseball who certifies the bats, you will start seeing the first models that meet 2018 standards in the stores by September 2017.

For more information please visit:

http://www.littleleague.org/learn/equipment/baseballbatinfo.htm