Youth Baseball Bat Questions

[Maikopmom]

My son Ben is 9, he's of slight stature, but is really learning to hit with some power - for his size, I'm amazed. He has a great batting average, but that isn't always a true representation at the level of play. His current bat is an Easton Reflex - 30 inches long, 17.5 ounces and it says -12.5. It also says 1.15BFP and 7050 Alloy, and 2 1/4 Barrel. We got a really good price on this bat - I think we only paid $50. I'm willing to spend a reasonable amount a bat if it's beneficial. By reasonable I'd like to keep it around the $150 or lower if possible. Any suggestions or thoughts on spending even that kind of money on a bat for a 9 or 10 year old? I know they get a lot more expensive, but I'm not willing to go there this year.
Which leads to my next question - how long should a bat last? And do the dimple balls at the indoor batting cages really damage a bat. I've heard everything from they are less damaging than regular baseballs, to they are horrible for bats and that we should not allow him to use a good bat at the cages.

Any thoughts or comments would be greatly appreciated.

Thank you

[Speedy42]

Here's a couple of thoughts. Check out JustBats.com and baseballespress.com for all kinds of bats in your price range. They offer free shipping on bats as well. Another thing the dimple balls are very dense and yes, could cause damage to your son's game bat. I would suggest your son have 2 bats, one for practice and one for games. You could buy him a wood bat of same length for practice. They come cheap. In fact I bought my son a customized A-Bat Youth Warrior (has team colors and is personalized) for just $50 and that included shipping. If he must use his game bat for practice use Tuff Sleeve over the barrell to protect the bat. Just Google Tuff Sleeve and you'll find it. Hope this helps.;)

[Maikopmom]

Thank you for your input - I really appreciate it. My neighbor claims it worth it to spend the extra for the better bats - she said I need to be willing to spend about $250 or $300. We spend a lot of money on baseball equipment, so I'm not opposed to spending that much on a bat, if it really does make a difference. Any thoughts on that? And if I'm going to spend that much - any suggestions on what kind of bat to get him?

Thank you.

[Speedy42]

Even if money is no object, why spend more when you don't have to. Check out justbats.com they have great deals and free shipping. I even got lucky and bought an Easton bat that's normally $229 for just $152 at coachesdiscount.com.