Pete's Corked Bat

[DanGarion]

So there is a story on Deadspin about Pete Rose.

This Is Pete Rose's Corked Bat

From the article.

Bill Schubert wasn't sure what he was expecting. Sure, he had heard the rumors about Pete corking. He didn't necessarily believe them; he didn't disbelieve them either. But he certainly didn't expect to see what he saw.

"I thought that I'd have to send the X-rays off to an expert to tell me if they saw anything funny," Schubert says. "But as soon as we saw it, there it was, right in front of our eyes. I said, ‘That's cork in there.' I was blown away."

It is, indisputably, cork. And with an unbroken chain of ownership, no one but Rose could have put the cork there.

The bat's previous owners were flummoxed.

"We never thought to look," says Adam Wolter. "Usually you cork it for power. Pete didn't need that or want that. But I guarantee a lot of people are going to be checking their own Pete Rose bats now."

They have been. John Taube has a PR4192 with white paint on the head, concealing what appears to be a drill hole. Same goes for Chuck Long, an Ohio collector. And Steve Mears, a Southern California collector, also went and got his X-rayed:

[JediKooter]

It's not like it's going to keep him out of the Hall of Fame or anything...

[bulletsponge]

a baseball player cheating! whats next? a politician lying?!

[lungs]

If only corking a bat helped.

[rowech]

Originally Posted by lungs

If only corking a bat helped.

Yeah...bat speed means nothing in baseball.

[Scoobz0202]

Isn't there already a large debate on this very forum about corking?

[Draft Dodger]

do they pay their writers by the word? that seemed like it was about 10x longer than it needed to be

[lungs]

Originally Posted by rowech

Yeah...bat speed means nothing in baseball.

Yeah.... reducing the mass of a bat for a negligible increase in bat speed really helps.

[lungs]

Dola

Mythbusters tested this:


A baseball bat filled with cork can hit a baseball farther than a normal bat.

busted

This myth operates under the assumption that cork-filled bats can be swung faster because of their lighter weight, and that the springiness of the cork could propel the ball farther. To eliminate the human factor of the myth, Adam and Jamie constructed a special batting rig and used a pressurized air cannon to launch the baseball at it. Tests showed that the cannon could launch the ball 80 miles per hour, which is the average speed of most MLB pitches. Regulation bats could propel the ball away at 80mph while corked bats could only propel the ball 40mph, half the speed of regulation bats. The reason was because cork bats have less mass to transfer force into the ball, and the cork actually absorbs some of the ball’s impact. The Mythbusters concluded that using a cork filled bat will not improve your performance (it will in fact hurt it), and the major league batters who were caught using cork-filled bats risked their careers for nothing.

[Danny]

Originally Posted by lungs

Dola

Mythbusters tested this:


A baseball bat filled with cork can hit a baseball farther than a normal bat.

busted

This myth operates under the assumption that cork-filled bats can be swung faster because of their lighter weight, and that the springiness of the cork could propel the ball farther. To eliminate the human factor of the myth, Adam and Jamie constructed a special batting rig and used a pressurized air cannon to launch the baseball at it. Tests showed that the cannon could launch the ball 80 miles per hour, which is the average speed of most MLB pitches. Regulation bats could propel the ball away at 80mph while corked bats could only propel the ball 40mph, half the speed of regulation bats. The reason was because cork bats have less mass to transfer force into the ball, and the cork actually absorbs some of the ball’s impact. The Mythbusters concluded that using a cork filled bat will not improve your performance (it will in fact hurt it), and the major league batters who were caught using cork-filled bats risked their careers for nothing.

If only he didn't cork his bat, he may have had 6000 hits!!!!

[rowech]

Originally Posted by lungs

Dola

Mythbusters tested this:


A baseball bat filled with cork can hit a baseball farther than a normal bat.

busted

This myth operates under the assumption that cork-filled bats can be swung faster because of their lighter weight, and that the springiness of the cork could propel the ball farther. To eliminate the human factor of the myth, Adam and Jamie constructed a special batting rig and used a pressurized air cannon to launch the baseball at it. Tests showed that the cannon could launch the ball 80 miles per hour, which is the average speed of most MLB pitches. Regulation bats could propel the ball away at 80mph while corked bats could only propel the ball 40mph, half the speed of regulation bats. The reason was because cork bats have less mass to transfer force into the ball, and the cork actually absorbs some of the ball’s impact. The Mythbusters concluded that using a cork filled bat will not improve your performance (it will in fact hurt it), and the major league batters who were caught using cork-filled bats risked their careers for nothing.

Not about distance generated...it's about bat control.

[lungs]

Originally Posted by rowech

Not about distance generated...it's about bat control.

Why not use a lighter bat then?

[rowech]

Originally Posted by lungs

Why not use a lighter bat then?

Typically shorter then as well. This way you can use a longer bat with less weight.

[lungs]

Originally Posted by rowech

Typically shorter then as well. This way you can use a longer bat with less weight.

Typically does not mean always. Corking a bat is absolutely pointless.

[Dr. Sak]

It's because he played in that trash city Philadelphia.

[JediKooter]

I thought it was to keep his booze from spilling out.

[MikeVic]

Originally Posted by Dr. Sak

It's because he played in that trash city Philadelphia.

You're catching on!

[Schmidty]

What a compulsive liar that guy is. Can't stand him.

[Sun Tzu]

Lies make baby Jesus cry.

[Greyroofoo]

I like this image from the comments in the story linked above.

[Ksyrup]

Makes sense. I always thought he was a farging corksucker.

[Rizon]

Originally Posted by Draft Dodger

do they pay their writers by the word? that seemed like it was about 10x longer than it needed to be

Are you saying the article is corked?

[MikeVic]

Originally Posted by Ksyrup

Makes sense. I always thought he was a farging corksucker.

[Ksyrup]

RIckey's gonna let Pete finish, but Rickey's always considered Rickey to be the greatest farging corksucker of all time.

[Ksyrup]

I wonder if anyone thought to x-ray this one?


Rose's final hit bat up for auction
Associated Press


CINCINNATI -- The black Mizuno bat that Pete Rose used for his final, record hit -- No. 4,256 -- is being auctioned by a New York firm that expects it to become one of the most expensive bats ever sold.

The 34-inch, 32-ounce bat is the featured item in a collection being sold through Lelands.com. Rose has authenticated the bat, saying he used it for his single off San Francisco's Greg Minton on Aug. 14, 1986. Rose is baseball's all-time hits leader.

Leylands.com president Mike Heffner says the highest auction price for a bat was $1.3 million, paid for the one that Babe Ruth used to hit his first homer at Yankee Stadium. Heffner thinks Rose's bat could go for something close to that amount.