Why do players cheat? Because baseball and softball are tough games that take hard work, dedication, and patience. Cheating takes little effort. It's taking the easy way.

Bats are not immune to cheating and unethical practices. For example, learning to hit for power takes time, as does the process of making contact with the ball. Unfortunately, there are a few common, unapproved, and unethical bat break-in methods that allow cheaters to gain an edge. JustBats.com outlines them here because while we don't condone illegal bat break-in methods, it's good for players, coaches, and parents to be well-informed about these practices.

Effective January 1st, 2018, USA Baseball, the national governing body for the sport of baseball in the United States, will adopt a new method for measuring bat performance in the testing of youth baseball bats.

Although there will be no immediate change to youth baseball organizations' bat rules, we understand and appreciate that many of our customers look to JustBats.com for just this type of information. We want all of our customers to be as informed as possible about anything that may affect their bat purchase decisions, so we'll break down every part of the new rule change including what changes to expect, why a change is being made, and who this new standard will affect.

Little League International just announced a change to the bat rules for the 2012 season. I wanted to take a second to explain the change to make sure all our customers know what they can swing.