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Online now: 3 members: Andy215, Donna McGuire, TABLE SETTER 11; 80 anonymousDiscussion: Sad state of affirs at Huntsman.
| Posted | Discussion |
| Oct. 12, 2013 Big Mike 84 posts | Sad state of affirs at Huntsman. sad state of affairs at Huntsman this year. Especially in mens softball. sandbagging to the extreme and a Director named Dan at Canyons who showed no interest in problems that arose. said"I don't have time for this". A team got ranked AA because the manager knew the Director. They had a retired professional BB player. First 2 at bats..he didn't hit 300 ft...he hit it 400 ft!...7 over the fence in one game in a class where they aren't supposed to hit it that far. This team is an open major in their own league. I feel sorry for the teams who had to play them. Illegal bats, sandbagging teams, poor directorship, and REALLY poor seating choices. Myself, my team and the 7 other teams and countless players who came with us will not be coming back next year. Not money well spent if you play by the rules and others are allowed not to. |
| Oct. 12, 2013 HJ Men's 70 481 posts | Mike, please further explain the illegal bats and how you know this. It might help others keep their league clean. Are there any obvious clues. I see some guys swing in warmup and then generate distance which doesn't seem possible with their swing. I don't want to falsely accuse anyone but I have my suspicions. Thanks. |
| Oct. 12, 2013 Fabe Men's 65 455 posts | No way to officially evaluate an illegal bat....but I have been playing for a while and train all year round...to see someone with average bat speed hit the ball 350 to 400 ft. Is an interesting subject to discuss. Aloha, Fabe |
| Oct. 12, 2013 Big Mike 84 posts | There are really several ways to check a bat. A compression tester is the best but after playing for a long time, and talking to a lot of bat mechanics, it's not as hard as you think. 1 is a visual inspection. When someone hits the ball over 400 ft and he's just an average guy with an average swing, look at the end cap. If it is not tight against the body of the bat, something is wrong. You would be surprised at how many guys put a different end cap on. Sometimes, the wrong color, wrong brand, and many other things. Another way is the sound. Most doctored bats just have a diff sound. Can't explain it, but you know. Ask your catcher, they usually are the first ones to know. Another is the weight. Especially the ones that did theirs themselves. Almost always the weight is WAY off. If a 30EL weithgs 27 or 28 and feels balanced now, sometings wrong. Thats only a few things to look for. They aren't hard to spot and are becoming more prevalent nowadays. Just check the internet. See how many guys are doing it. They wouldn't be there if they weren't making money at it. |
| Oct. 13, 2013 JT9 Men's 55 36 posts | Average guy with an average swing.......watching a guys warm up swings...I hope you are kidding! |
| Oct. 13, 2013 surf88 Men's 65 1000 posts | I just returned from Huntsman and our team recognized what could be sandbagging. On the topic of end caps, I used my new GSC P-413 throughout the Games and it did a great job for me. The P-413 does not have an end cap so it can not be taken off and shaved. The P-413 will be available fairly soon. My guess (and only a guess), is 2-3 months but I can say with confidence that if the bats are like the one I used in Worlds and Huntsman, they will be awesome. Want/Need to know more or how to get one? Call me and I'll let you know. Ed Andrews (970) 729-3145 Cell batman@andrewsdev.com Enviro-Vac AZ Rangers |
| Oct. 13, 2013 Bighurt3535 25 posts | Why would anyone shave a senior bat |
| Oct. 14, 2013 flydub 15 posts | A shaved and rolled bat will add good velocity and distance to the ball. Shaving and rolling a bat is like steroids...it works! If you save it for the special moment and make good contact your team will go home a winner. Unfortunately this is the world we live in. |
| Oct. 14, 2013 Dbax Men's 65 2100 posts | I think Bighurt was trying to make the point that senior bats are already ridiculously hot. |
| Oct. 14, 2013 softball4b Men's 70 1248 posts | Illegal PEDS and altering bats is cheating, plain and simple. If you need to do that to win, then you have bigger issues. The few who do it or are thought to do it, at any level, but especially at the senior level, lack the courage, honesty or ethics to compete fairly. Don't bother anyone coming back with, everyone else is doing it. I DO NOT CARE. I compete fairly and pray for those who do not. You work hard, put in the time, know the rules, and compete. Take pride and live with honor. I don't cheat on my wife and I not going to cheat my friends and fellow competitors. Mike Adair |
| Oct. 14, 2013 Rainmans 42 posts | Mike, well stated! |
| Oct. 14, 2013 JT9 Men's 55 36 posts | With all due respect......why cheat at anything? |
| Oct. 14, 2013 taits Men's 65 4548 posts | I know very well of and have seen 'Dan' do as you said, but have also seen him take bats away as well as remove players. Not all is jut as you may want it to happen as in 'right NOW', but perhaps later on. They do listen though it seems to fall on deaf ears at the time. |
| Oct. 14, 2013 Bighurt3535 25 posts | I break enough bats the.way it is.I can't see shaving a senior bat and it breaking within a hundred hits |
| Oct. 15, 2013 Wayne 37 Men's 65 773 posts | I wouldn't call rolling that big of an advantage. People that do it just want their bat broken in from what I've seen. The only minor advantage I see is that it will or possibly make the sweet part bigger. Shaved bats are a different story. They can add about 50 feet to an average hitter. I'm just relaying info from conversations. |
| Oct. 15, 2013 Omar Khayyam 1357 posts | softball4B well said and amen. |
| Oct. 15, 2013 gott2play Men's 60 212 posts | Mike, Very well stated. As senior players, we get to use the hottest bat/ball combination so it boggles the mind that one would consider shaving a senior bat. Hell, shorten the life of your bat for more distance, a poor trade and even more worse decision, in my opinion. Also, I think the original post alluded more to teams sandbagging at the Huntsman Games than altering bats. I've never played in the Huntsman (hope to next year) but have heard rumblings about sandbagging. I think everyone gets reclassified after the seeding games into two levels (Gold and Silver). Certainly no way to police possible sandbagging. Tony Baltazar So Cal 55's - Major |
| Oct. 15, 2013 gott2play Men's 60 212 posts | My reply to Mike, I'm referring to softball4b |
| Oct. 15, 2013 Fabe Men's 65 455 posts | Great post Mike! I have always wanted to compete against the best throughout my entire competitive life, so sandbagging just to win or cheating to win just don't taste right for me! I totally respect the guys that train hard and play hard...that's the right way to do it!! Aloha, Fabe |
| Oct. 15, 2013 HJ Men's 70 481 posts | Thank you Mike for actually answering my question. I too realized this is a major problem when I did a little research and saw how many bat doctors are advertising out there and how they actually not only make to order but have inventoried them for immediate shipment. Can anyone else add to Mike's comments on how to spot a doctored bat? Wayne, rolling is illegal, end of discussion. |
| Oct. 16, 2013 stick8 1991 posts | HJ, as a USSSA umpire I have had plenty of experience in dealing with shaved or doctored bats. What Big Mike elludes to above is generally true but those are instances that one would SUSPECT a bat has been shaved. That being said the only true way that one can tell if a bat has been shaved or doctored is to cut the bat open and look in the inside. |
| Oct. 17, 2013 Wayne 37 Men's 65 773 posts | HJ, I didn't say rolling a bat wasn't illegal. Altering a bat is illegal. I just don't believe it really adds that much of an advantage. |
