New ASA Rules
February 7th, 2008One of the rumblings around the Coaches’ Clinic in KC this past weekend was a discussion about the new Amateur Softball Association (ASA) rules in regards to composite bats. Dan wanted me to go over how the rules have changed and why you don’t have to worry about the changes.
Essentially, as I understand it, ASA has rules that govern the speed in which a ball can be hit on from a bat. Every bat with the ASA stamp on the bat out on the market meets or is below that standard. Some composite bats have been found to progressively get better the longer they are used, so that they initially pass the test and then come off the bat with more velocity after a few months of use. The ASA has decided that they will add bats that are broken in to their testing so that some bats will not be made again.
However, if you’re looking for a new bat and enjoy composites on the market right now, you still can buy them. The rules won’t change for manufacturers until June, and all the bats that they send out through June will be “grandfathered”, which means that any bat that they ship out before July 1 will be within the governing rules of ASA and you will be free to use them as long as you own them. As Gary from Fastpitch.us said – “At this time, there is no “cease use” date for players and no “cease sell” date for dealers on these models.”
We sell several of these bats on Dannco.com, the Synergy and Stealth are both bats that will give you plenty of power. We have a limited supply of both bats now, and will be receiving a shipment in March to make the bats widely available.