Not wanting to beat this to death but the Baden ball is very hard to see even after just a few innings. Once again I am not complaining about performance but the clover just sucks. Something should be done especially for the older class divisions
It’s dangerous period

Agreed. It's unsafe at any age. If they want to stay under contact with Baden they should tell them to modify the contract to use their other senior ball model Spfiresenc-00 instead. It performs well in the heat and does not hold the dirt like the current ball.

Field 3 at Shadow Rock had a big issue with a dark ball being similar in color as the hills behind the field. Field 1 was a crap shoot with late afternoon games and the setting sun. The team who had the power to hit mostly line drives and fly balls to left easly one those games.

At Vegas Worlds my shortstop got hit in the face on a line drive. He was blinded in that eye and just recently had to have his eye removed. That Baden ball is horrible after a few innings to see. Please do something about changing balls!

They are not going to switch balls mid season for any reason . Balls are a major expense for them . They do a deal with Baden before season ever starts . It is decent most of the time . But if they were concerned with our playing experience .They would use the Short Porch Mortar or the Onyx ball . Both are designed to hit in the hot summers up to 100 degrees . Hopefully they take this approach next year . But as long as we fill up their tournaments . They have no incentive to change . It is a business . This is my opinion anyway .

Foothills ... Factual update: There are two (2) more Seasons (through October 2028) remaining in the contract by and between SSUSA and Baden Sports ...

I work / host a number of tournaments in the eastern states using the exact same ball. I've been to FL, TX, VA, TN, PA & MD. For whatever reason, the dirty cover didn't seem to be an issue. Maybe the cover isn't the issue so much as the dirt compounds used in the east / west?

Tim, its 100% the cover. In Nor Cal they have been using a different Baden Ball for years and they have never held the dirt like this model ball. After half a game they look like they have been used for bp for years. No other balls hold the dirt like these. It is an issue at dusk and definitely under the lights.

AJC,

You're wasting you're time, these balls have been being used since I think Covid year now. It was talked about on here many times about the cover being bad from the very beginning and the contract was supposed to I think only for a couple years and we heard multiple times from the people that monitor this message board that Baden was made aware of the issue and it was being addressed. I believe(could be wrong) they came back at one point and said the cover had been fixed but those of us who actually play have witnessed no improvement in the cover since that was stated. They also told us a while back that the contract with Baden was expiring a couple years ago but apparently they renewed it. From some videos I saw posted by more than one ball company they were asked to give pricing on supplying balls to SSUSA and guessing since Baden is still the official ball they didn't get a new contract with anyone else.

Tim,

Not doubting what you're saying but, every time this topic is brought up time and time again member after member chime in and talk about how bad the covers are and how hard it is to see them in a short amount of time especially in Vegas. The players never come on here and agree with what you're saying or whoever is answering from SSUSA that day. Just seems that no players EVER take the side of the cover is good, it's always brought up as a safety concern.

Do the balls fly well even when the temps and humidity rise, yeah. Do the covers hold up against tearing, for the most part yes. Do the covers remain clean and highly visible like every other cover out there, absolutely not.

Why not just clean the balls? Either the tournament folks or the teams?

Get a damp rag an give to the umpire to wipe down the balls as
requested, works for us.

Don't let the pitcher have the damp rag he'll be accused of altering
the ball LOL LOL

Good job Double Dee you hit the nail on the head. I didn't see your post till after I sent mine.

It is not as simple as a wet rag to clean the ball. For those that do clean them it takes an agent like Dawn detergent to remove the dirt. I just have a hard time understanding why Baden/SSUSA wouldn’t want to solve this issue.

Most likely because there isn't really an issue big enough to change it.

How many more people have been hurt because of the ball? Have you done a study or is one person's experience all that it takes to influence corporate policy?

I think the balls are perfect myself. Some people would complain if it was raining $100 bills.

Watdah and half a magic sponge works well.

In NV and no complaints on ball. Infielders can wear facemasks.

I do clean our balls after the games and rotate the clean balls in. It is the right thing to do to help the fielder see the ball and reduce the chance of injury. However, this is an advantage to the opposition in seeing the ball more clearly when hit. Our batter gets minimal advantage for the clean ball. Both teams would need to abide by the cleaning rule until the end of 2028 when the Baden contract ends.