Time for some wood

Time for some wood
By CHRIS RAHN
Asst. Sports Editor

The 6-foot 5-inch pitcher winds up and delivers a 90 mph fastball right down the pipe. The 6-foot-3-inch batter times the pitch and makes contact with the ball to send a line drive directly back towards the mound where the helpless pitcher stands.
No matter how good the pitcher's reaction time is, however, he has no chance of avoiding a baseball that is coming directly towards his face at speeds exceeding 105 mph.
If the pitcher's lucky he'll get a glove on the ball or he'll be struck in a spot where the pain will be somewhat tolerable. But this time, the ball hits the pitcher in the face.
Unfortunately, accidents like this happen occasionally in baseball. There is no way of preventing them from happening, but there is a way to reduce their frequency.
Welcome in the wooden bat.
With recent technologies, aluminum bats have undergone a vast transformation. Baseball's latest bats are more so weapons than pieces of sporting equipment that can take the ball yard on any given swing.
When aluminum bats were first introduced, they were considered to be a cheaper alternative for players because wood bats tended to break easily during games. From the little leagues to collegiate ball, it can be very costly for a player to replace a bat multiple times during a season.
An aluminum bat can cost a player anywhere from $100 to $400, depending on the bat's capabilities. A player should be able to get at least a couple seasons out of their aluminum bat.
Wooden bats average around $50 each. For a stronger, longer lasting wood such as maple, it'll cost upwards of $80. It makes more sense to go with aluminum because with a wood bat, players always need to have a back-up bat in case one breaks.
But is making the game less expensive for college players worth subjecting them to the dangers of aluminum bats?
Major League Baseball has never allowed their players to pack this kind of heat, but aluminum has been prevalent in college and high school level baseball since the late 1970's.
Don't get me wrong, wood bats aren't perfectly safe. The MLB still has their fair share of incidents, but they are still considerably safer than aluminum.
Players today are bigger and stronger. Putting an aluminum bat in the hands of a 6-foot-plus, 21-year-old is just as dangerous as putting a 12-year-old behind the steering wheel of a car.
College baseball players are strong enough to hit the ball far without the help of an aluminum weapon.
I've been playing in a wooden bat summer baseball league for the past couple years and even I can turn on a fastball and hit it over the fence with maple. I'm by no means at the same skill level as a college baseball player.
Most young players today have experience using wood bats. There are many summer leagues that prepare players for professional baseball.
The Cape Cod League is the most prestigious collegiate level summer baseball league and has produced a number of MLB stars. They have never let their players use aluminum.
As someone who has been around the game of baseball my entire life, America's favorite pastime feels more natural and pure with wooden bats.
Aluminum is great for younger players, but it gets to a point where the game starts to seem artificial when metal bats are used.
If safety isn't enough of a reason to make the switch, let's do it for the purity of the game.

E-mail: cdrahn@buffalo.edu