Beginning January 1, 2018, several youth baseball organizations adopted a new USA Baseball Bat Standard. The objective of this rule change is to make the game more uniform and to ensure the long-term integrity of the game. This new bat standard is now in place in organizations such as Little League, Babe Ruth, PONY, American Amateur Baseball Congress, Cal Ripken, and Dixie Youth. T-Ball bats are also affected by this new rule change. The new USA baseball bats can range in barrel size from 2 1/4” to 2 5/8”. The weight drops can vary from -13.5 all the way to -5. Let the following guide help you select from the several options on the shelf and internet.
BAT SIZING BY HEIGHT AND WEIGHT - recommended measurement
YOUTH BASEBALL BAT SIZING BY AGE
Below is a chart that breaks down youth baseball bat sizes by league and age. These are meant to be general guidelines to follow when sizing youth baseball bats. Your child’s actual measurements will dictate the specific size youth bat your kid needs.
2 5/8" Baseball Bats
| Age | Under 7 | 8-9 | 10-11 | 12-13 | 14 and Over |
| Length | 24"-26" | 26"-29" | 28"-30" | 29"-32" | 31"-34" |
| Drop | (-12)-(-10) | (-12)-(-10) | (-10)-(-8) | (-9)-(-5) | (-3) |
2 1/4" Baseball Bats
| Age | Under 7 | 8-9 | 10-11 | 12-13 |
| Length | 24"-26" | 26"-29" | 28"-30" | 29"-32" |
| Drop | (-13.5)-(-12) | (-13.5)-(-10) | (-13)-(-10) | (-10)-(-9) |
FASTPITCH SOFTBALL BAT SIZING BY AGE
As players get older, the bats get longer and heavier, with a lower bat drop (the difference between length and weight).
Fastpitch 2 1/4" Softball Bats
| Age | Under 7 | 8-9 | 10-11 | 12-13 | 14 and Over |
| Length | 24"-26" | 26"-29" | 28"-31" | 29"-33" | 31"-34" |
| Drop | (-13.5)-(-10) | (-13.5)-(-10) | (-13)-(-8) | (-12)-(-8) | (-10)-(-8) |
WHAT IS BAT DROP?
Bat weight is measured by the minus or drop weight. Drop weight is the difference between the length and weight of the bat, so a bat that is 30 inches long and has a drop weight of -10 will weigh 20 ounces. The bigger the drop weight is, the lighter the bat will weigh.
Remember that only high school baseball bats and college baseball bats are regulated and must have a drop of no more than -3.
If you are a strong player, you may assume you want a heavier bat. This is not necessarily the case. You’ll want to swing a bat that still allows you to generate the ideal amount of bat speed through the zone. Finding this balance could be difficult at first, but once you do, you’ll be hitting the ball farther and harder than you could have imagined.
After finding a baseline for the length of the bat, it’s important to incorporate the length of the bat into deciding on the weight. For youth baseball and softball, the taller the child, the longer the bat should be. They may not be strong enough to use a heavier bat, so they would have a bat with a larger weight drop.
It’s important to choose the right balance between length and weight because it makes a difference in the physics of the swing. For instance, consider the following:
- If you have a long, light bat, you can swing it very fast, but it will not have much inertia behind it.
- If you swing a short, heavy bat, you will not have the fastest bat speed, but will have plenty of inertia.
Deciding on the length and weight of the bat you swing is a personal choice - you should try combining what is comfortable with what style of player you want to be. If you envision yourself being a contact player like Ichiro Suzuki, you won’t worry as much about losing inertia with your swing, but if you want to be a power hitter like Nelson Cruz and swing for the fences, you’ll want the inertia you would get from the shorter, heavier bat. You should refer to the charts above to give you a ballpark idea of what bat drop you should be using.