Baseball Training Bat

Abstract

A baseball bat in which the areas of the bat above and below the preferred hitting area are formed with cushioning material to train a player to hit the ball with the delineated preferred hitting area of the bat and to protect the bat from splitting when the ball is hit with the cushioned areas.

Description

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION

This invention relates to a baseball bat which is modified at the top or thicker end and in an intermediate area above the handle and below the preferred hitting area to train a player to hit the ball within the preferred hitting area and to protect the bat from splitting. One of the problems of both professional and beginning baseball players is that the player hits the ball with the wrong part of the bat. Experienced players have found that for maximum drive, a ball should be struck with a bat along an 8 to 10 -inch long area, approximately 3 to 5 inches below the upper end of the bat, depending on the length of the bat. If the ball is struck with the upper end or top of the bat or along the length just above the handle area, the ball will not travel as far and the bat is likely to split.

It is an object of this invention to provide a baseball bat which can be used to train a player to hit the ball with the correct portion of the bat and to protect the bat from splitting when it is hit at the upper end and above the handle areas. It is a further object of this invention to provide a training bat with the same taper and length and substantially the same weight as a regulation baseball bat so that a player who has used the training bat can change to a regulation bat without losing the skills developed with the training bat.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION

This invention contemplates a baseball bat of regulation or conventional shape which is modified to delineate a preferred hitting area on the bat by cutting away a portion of the surface of the top area and a portion of the surface of an intermediate area between the handle and the preferred hitting area, which areas are filled with rubber or cork layers or with other cushioning materials, leaving the preferred hitting area uncovered and clearly defined.

In a modified form of the invention, a cap and sleeve of cushioning material are disposed over the top area and along the intermediate area between the handle and preferred hitting area, respectively, of a regulation baseball bat.

The ball player is thus provided with a bat of regulation size and weight on which the preferred hitting area along the length of the bat is clearly defined. The player is trained to keep his eye on the ball and to strike the ball with the uncovered part of the bat. When the player hits the ball with a covered area of the bat, the ball will not travel the normal distance for the force of the impact because of the cushioning effect of the covering material as compared to wood. Further, the cushioned areas are protected from splitting by covering the weaker portions of the bat.

The training bat may be used for training softball and baseball players and may be used as a training device for both professional and amateur players.

These and various other objects and advantages of this invention will be more fully apparent from a detailed consideration of the following description, the appended claims and accompanying drawings showing preferred forms of this invention.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

FIG. 1 is a side elevation of a baseball bat constructed in accordance with the present invention.

FIG. 2 is a side elevation as shown in FIG. 1 with cushioning material removed.

FIG. 3 is a longitudinal sectional view along line 3--3 of FIG. 1.

FIG. 4 is a cross-sectional view along line 4--4 of FIG. 1.

FIG. 5 is a cross-sectional view along line 5--5 of FIG. 1.

FIG. 6 is a side elevation of a modified form of my invention with a cap and sleeve in longitudinal sectional view.

FIG. 7 is a perspective view of a cap as shown in sectional view in FIG. 6.

FIG. 8 is a perspective view of a sleeve as shown in sectional view in FIG. 6.

DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS

Referring now specifically to the drawings, the numeral 10 designates generally a baseball training bat embodying covered portions in accordance with the present invention. The training bat 10 has an elongated, tapered, cylindrical body formed with a handle area 11 provided with a knob 12 at the lower end, an intermediate area 13 covered with a cushioning material 14, a preferred hitting area 15, and a top area 16 having a rounded end 17 covered with a cushioning material 14. The body of the bat formed with the cushioning material increases in diameter from a narrow handle area 11 to a wider top area 16.

The bat is constructed of conventional wooden material with the handle area 11 and preferred hitting area 15 being of regulation dimensions for the length of the bat. The intermediate area 13, which is located above the handle area 11 and below the preferred hitting area 15 and which connects the handle and preferred hitting areas is formed with a smaller diameter than both the upper end of the handle area 11 and the lower end of the preferred hitting area 15 forming an annular depression between the handle and preferred hitting areas, as shown in FIG. 2. The top area of the bat 16 if formed with a smaller diameter than the upper end of the preferred hitting area 15 forming an annular depression above the preferred hitting area, as shown in FIG. 2. The depressed portions of the bat are then wrapped or wound with sheets or strips of a cushioning material 14, such as rubber or cork to form a smooth surface with the adjoining areas. A preformed cap 27 and sleeve 28 of cushioning material, conforming to the shape of the depressions, as shown in FIGS. 7 and 8, respectively, may also be used to fill in the depressions at the top area 16 and intermediate area 13 of the bat. The sheets, strips or preformed cap and sleeve are permanently affixed in the depressions by adhesives, heat sealing or other methods. The baseball training bat 10 thus formed has a substantially smooth periphery with the same taper and weight as a regulation bat of a certain length.

It has been found that a depression formed by cutting away between one-sixteenth and one-half inch from the peripheries of the intermediate area 13 and the top area 16 of a conventional baseball bat, which areas are then covered with cushioning material 14, is sufficient to markedly reduce the distance that the ball will travel on impact and will also protect the bat from splitting. The cushioning effect increases with the increase in the depths of the depressions formed on the bat.

The cushioning material may be of a contrasting color from the normal wood color of the bat so that the uncovered preferred hitting area 15 will be clearly defined. For a 34- inch long bat, the approximate lengths of the defined portions may be a handle area 11 of 13 inches, an intermediate area 13 of 10 inches, a hitting area 15 of 8 inches and a top area 16 of 3 inches. It is understood that baseball bats are made in various sizes, for use by adults and youngsters and the lengths of the aforesaid areas may be varied according.

A modified form of our invention is shown in FIG. 6. A conventional baseball bat 20 of an elongated, tapered, cylindrical form comprises a handle area 21 provided with a knob 22 at the lower end, an intermediate area 23 above the handle area 22, a hitting area 24 above the intermediate area and a top area 25 formed with a rounded end 26. A cap 27 and a sleeve 28 formed of cushioning material, such as rubber or cork, are disposed on the top area 25 and intermediate area 23 of the bat, respectively. The cap 27 and sleeve 28 may be permanently affixed to the bat by heat sealing or adhesives. Alternately, the cap 27 and sleeve 28 may be removably disposed on the bat so they may be used during practice sessions and removed during regular games, thus saving the player the expense of having two bats. The removable cap 27 and sleeve 28 may be made of a flexible material, such as rubber, which will adhere to the bat by friction and they may be made with adjusting means for use on bats of various sizes. In addition, the removable rubber cap and sleeve may be connected by a stretchable strap or straps extending between the upper edge of the sleeve member to the lower edge of the cap member, said connecting strap or straps tending to pull the cap toward the sleeve and thus preventing the cap from falling off the bat when the player swings the bat.

It will thus be seen that we have provided a new and improved bat for use as a baseball and softball training device. Modifications may of course be made in the illustrated and described embodiments of our invention without departing from the invention as set forth in the accompanying claims.

Claims

We claim:

1. A baseball training bat comprising an elongated, tapered, cylindrical body formed with

a. a handle area, having an upper end and a lower end;

b. a preferred hitting area, having an upper end and a lower end;

c. an intermediate area connecting the handle area and the preferred hitting area, the intermediate area having a smaller diameter than the upper end of the handle area and lower end of the preferred hitting area, forming an annular depression between the handle area and the preferred hitting area;

d. a top area having a rounded end formed above the preferred hitting area, the top area having a smaller diameter than the upper end of the preferred hitting area, forming an annular depression above the preferred hitting area; and

e. cushioning means disposed in the annular depressions of the intermediate area and top area and over the rounded end of the top area to fill the depressions to form a substantially smooth periphery along the entire length of the bat, the tapered body increasing in diameter from the handle area to the top area, the cushioning means protecting the covered areas of the bat from splitting and delineating the preferred hitting area which is uncovered.

2. A baseball training bat as described in claim 1 wherein the cushioning means is rubber.

3. A baseball training bat as described in claim 1 wherein the cushioning means is cork.

4. A baseball training bat as described in claim 1 wherein the cushioning means covering the top area is in the form of a cap and the cushioning means covering the intermediate area is in the form of a sleeve.

5. A baseball training bat as described in claim 1 wherein the cushioning means is of a contrasting color to the color of the body of the bat to delineate the preferred hitting area.

6. A baseball training bat comprising an elongated tapered, cylindrical body formed with

a. a handle area;

b. an intermediate area above the handle area;

c. a preferred hitting area above the intermediate area;

d. a top area having a rounded end above the preferred hitting area, the body increasing in diameter from the handle area to the top area; and

e. cushioning means covering the periphery of the intermediate area, cushioning means overlying the exterior side surface of the top area and the rounded end of the top area, the cushioning means protecting the covered areas of the bat from splitting and delineating the preferred hitting area which is uncovered.

7. A baseball training bat as described in claim 6 wherein the cushioning means covering the top area is in the form of a cap and the cushioning means covering the intermediate area is in the form of a sleeve.

8. A baseball training bat as described in claim 7 wherein cap and sleeve are removably disposed on the bat.