Labeling Bats
I am the UIC for the Fair Oaks/Orangevale Little League (FOVLL). One idea that has been suggested to deal with the new bat restrictions is to have the league UIC, or a committee headed by the league UIC, examine bats prior to or on opening day. If the bat is legal, a label or sticker would be affixed to the flat of the knob. The label or sticker would be unique to the league, and not easily replicated or removed (without tearing).
The intent is to make the pre-game check quick and effective and, as importantly, help coaches of varying experience ensure that only legal bats are used. Coaches are concerned about 2 situations: 1) other coaches/players cheating and 2) they themselves not picking up on a kid having an illegal bat.
During pre-game, the crew would inspect bats for wear and general fitness as should occur now. Assuming the bat was in otherwise good order, a bat with the relevant sticker or label would automatically be accepted. Non-stickered (composite) bats would need to be evaluated for compliance with LL rules.
Employing such a label or sticker would also provide the UIC during the game a quick visual cue as to whether the batter was holding a pre-approved bat.
The idea has merit. I'm interested if anyone's heard of this being tried. What potential pitfalls do you see? Thanks in advance for the discussion, which will likely form my pros and cons in a presentation to the League board.
I think more bats will pass the tests as Little League does more testing so the "one time" exam may not allow bats that will be deemed legal in the future. I'm also concerned that a sticker could be carefully removed and placed on another bat ( parents that just spent $300 for a bat will try to get their moneys worth, even if it means cheating ) As the UIC for D7, I've been telling our presidents that the responsibility will rest on the managers to provide the documentation that will allow a composite bat to stay in. Every composite bat that has been tested and allowed in a game could have the paper from LL showing it. It would be a lot easier for an umpire to compare the paper with the bat that way, otherwise umpires have to go through the whole list every time they pick up a new composite bat.
I hate to disagree with Mr. Newman, but I would not abdicate my responsibility to make sure all bats are legal. I doubt that, should a player be hurt,
the courts would accept the excuse that a sticker was on the bat so my responsibilities stop. This fix is not approved by Little League Baseball and therefore puts the liability on the umpire, coach and league. Proving that a parent or anyone else removed or transferred a sticker is not something a want to hang my hat on. No, I'm checking bats and then asking the coach if all equipment is legal. If I find an illegal bat I'll remove it. If anything happens due to an illegal bat, It will sit squarely on the coach and/or league.
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