High School Wood Bat Rules

[3sonmac]

Is a drop 4 bat legal in high school play? How about all wood bat tournaments?

[colesdad2]

EDIT: Upon further review...(thanks to L.J. below) I did further research. There is no weight standard imposed on wood bats, at least I think that's the right answer. So, yes, a drop 4 wood bat is legal. My confusion was due to the wording of the 2001 rule change mandating drop 3 maximum. It doesn't say "non-wood" only, but in fact applied to non-wood only.

[L.J.]

I am not up to date on the wood bat rules so just out of curiosity why wouldn't it be legal ? I don't think wood bats have a -drop listed on 32,33, and 34" bats or do they ? One of our wood bats is a cheap Rawlings big stick 700 F 32in ash bat. It is actually 31 3/4 in long but it weighs 32 ounces its a log. Besides weighing them I'm not sure if there is a way to get the - or plus drop on a wood bat.

[colesdad2]

L.J.'s correct.

[3sonmac]

I read the rule for a Perfect Game tournament from 2008 and it stated drop 3 is the lightest to be used. I could not find any rules more recent that addressed it. Some manufacturers offer a drop 4, but do not want to spend $130 to find out it is marked some way that identifies it as a drop 4 and then run into a problem.

[colesdad2]

This has been bugging me to no end. I don't want to post wrong info. Here is what I believe to be the current relevant rule:

NFHS 2011 1-3-2...
c. Each bat not made of a single piece of wood shall:
1. Have a safety grip made of cork, tape (no smooth, plastic tape) or commercially manufactured composition material. The grip must extend a minimum of 10 inches, but not more than 18 inches, from the base of the knob. Slippery tape or similar material shall be prohibited. Resin, pine tar or any drying agent to enhance the hold are permitted only on the grip. Molded grips are illegal.
2. Be 2 5/8” or less in diameter at thickest part and 36 inches or less in length.
3. Not weigh, numerically, more than three ounces less than the length of the bat (e.g., a 33-inch-long bat cannot be less than 30 ounces).

The emphasis is mine. This indicates to me that the drop 3 limitation applies only to non-wood bats.

[L.J.]

Thanks for the info I'm really up to date on the non wood bats but I really don't know much about wood bats. I know a guy that can look at a wood bat and can tell by the grain and some other ways he can tell if its good or not.