Do MLB Players Buy Their Own Bats? (Solved)
Paul Hall
If you are a huge major league baseball fan you probably have some questions about your favorite players.
In particular, you might be wondering how your favorite baseball players get their bats. This can seem like a simple question, but there is actually a lot going on behind the scenes.
Especially when it comes to baseball equipment used by teams and players.
I’ll talk about where MLB players get their bats and other specific information surrounding this topic here.
This way you can know for sure do MLB players buy their own bats.
Table of Contents
Do MLB Players Buy Their Own Bats?
So, do MLB players buy their own bats?
There is not a simple answer to this question.
Some MLB players do decide to get their own bats. But this is not the norm. Typically, equipment is bought for the players by their endorsers.
In most cases, a prominent sporting company will endorse a player or their team. Then, sporting equipment, such as bats, will be bought for the player. It will be from the endorser’s company.
Still, not every player will use endorsed bats. In some cases, an MLB player might decide to get their own equipment.
This is rare but it does happen from time to time. If the player gets their bat themselves, then the bat will need to meet the requirements of the MLB.
If a player or endorser does not purchase the bat, then the player’s team might buy bats in bulk.
Really, MLB players need to have the best equipment to compete with other people in their league. So usually, a team is assigned a specific bat.
This way they have the latest and most up-to-date equipment. In most cases, bats are updated each year.
Everyone needs to keep up with bat trends. So the player’s team, endorser, or the player themself will look at the best bats and buy it.
How Much Do MLB Bats Cost?
So, how much do MLB bats cost though?
There are many different factors that will affect the price of the bat.
But this will depend on which company makes the bat, the type of bat, and the material used.
If you customize your bat, the price could also go up but this depends on what you have customized.
Still, what are the average prices of MLB bats?
On average, a MLB bat can cost anywhere from seventy-five dollars to one-hundred and eighty-five dollars.
This might seem expensive, but again, players want to have the best equipment.
Still, discounts can be applied if bats are bought in bulk. This is why many players have their bats bought by their team.
Bought in bulk, the price goes down considerably. It can go down to sixty to even forty dollars.
Still, why is the price of a single bat so much money?
Part of this has to do with the materials. A lot of bats are made from maple wood, and this is not cheap by any means.
Other woods are used for bats but they are not as high quality.
The customization of each bat also drives the price up. This is because bats need to be made with the player in mind.
In particular, bats need to be a specific width and height this way the player can use their bat to its full potential.
What Bat Do Most People in The Major Leagues Use?
You might not realize it, but baseball bats need to fit certain requirements to be used in games.
This limits the type of bats players in the MLB will end up using.
In particular, as I mentioned before, wood is often used to make baseball bats. This is the only material baseball bats are allowed to be made of.
A single piece of wood has to be used. And, in most cases, maple wood will be used to make high-quality bats.
Though Northern Ashwood is another popular option. It’s a little cheaper and not as heavy but it works well and is pretty popular.
Other woods are used too besides maple and Ashwood.
But what are the other requirements of major league bats?
Bats can’t have any colors dyed on them. Bats also need to be 18 inches in length total. Other requirements include bats without caps at the end.
And the wood of the bat cannot be laminated at all. Other materials such as metal cannot be used by professional baseball players, as this can be very dangerous.
How Many Bats Does An MLB Player Use In a Single Season?
So you know how much baseball bats cost in the MLB and what kinds of bats players typically use.
Still, how long do bats last and how many baseball bats will a player use doing a season of baseball.
This number will vary depending on the player.
Some pros break more bats in comparison to others. But what can you expect on average from a baseball player?
Typically, baseball players will go through four to six different bats each season. Some players break more bats than this and others might break fewer bats.
Again, it depends on the baseball player. Some baseball players have even been known to break hundreds of bats in a season.
Heavier players also have a tendency to break bats more easily.
This can end up costing the MLB tons of money each year. This is why many players end up getting sponsorship deals.
This way they don’t have to pay for the bats out of pocket.
Instead, the company sponsoring the player or team will pay for all the bats.
You might be wondering why so many bats get broken each year. But this isn’t hard to understand.
As the more a person weighs, the more force they can exert on their equipment. Still, small players with a powerful strike can also break a lot of bats too, but this is less likely.
This is an interesting question to think about and you could definitely look into the specific statistics of your favorite player to learn more.
What Does The MLB Do With Broken Bats?
Okay, so it seems obvious that many players break that bats every season.
But what does the MLB do with all those broken bats?
Do they just dispose of them in the trash?
Or do they do something more useful with all those broken bats?
I’ll answer this question in the final section of this post here.
There are many ways a team or player might decide to get rids of bats.So, the answer to this question will depend on a few different factors.
First, we have to consider the extent of the damage.
If the bat has been very badly damaged then most likely it will end up in a landfill.
However, if the bat is not completely damaged and still somewhat salvageable the team might end up giving the bat away to a charity or even auctioning it.
In some cases, depending on how the bat was bought, the player might even get a percent of the profits from a sold broken bat.
This can make for a lucrative business within the MLB. As fans love buying merchandise that was used by the players themselves.
Even broken bats can turn a profit.
As to where the bats are sold this can happen in a few different places. The bats can either be sold in the stadium after the game is done.
But in some cases, they will also show up in online shops to be sold to fans as well.
What happened to the bat just depends on the team selling them and what kind of profit they are looking to make.
Nowadays, the MLB is looking to construct bats in a more substantial way. Wood is carefully chosen so that it won’t splinter on impact.
Again, some players can end up using hundreds of bats each season. So it’s in the league’s best interest to make more sturdy equipment.
Conclusion
For MLB players baseball bats are an essential piece of equipment. Some players choose to purchase their own bats.
But, for the most part, many pro baseball players will have their bats bought for them. Endorsers might pay for the bats.
This way the player can promote their brand and equipment. Other times, the player’s team will buy the bat for them.
This helps to lower costs and helps make sure that every player gets a quality bat for the season.
Bats range in price, size, and feel as I went over throughout the post. Maple is particularly popular as it has a nice heavy feel that makes it easier to swing and hit hard.
But other cheaper options like Ashwood and But there is a standard that bats need to follow in order to meet MLB requirements.
Players will go through many different bats in a season.
This number varies widely and can go from the triple digits to the single digits. It all depends on what the player is capable of doing.
Do they hit more powerful and brutish strikes or are they more precision-based?
Regardless, hopefully, though we answered your question about do MLB players buy their own bats.
