Please note that as of January 1, 2018, the new USA Baseball Bat Standard will be implemented. Little League-approved baseball bats that are approved for use for the 2017 season will no longer be acceptable for use in any Little League game or activity starting on January 1, 2018. For more information on the USABat standard and a complete list of bats approved through the USABat Standard, visit usabat.com. If your youth player plays in AABC, Babe Ruth / Cal Ripken, Dixie, Little League, or PONY, then they will need a new youth bat with the official USA Baseball stamp. USSSA will not adopt the USABat Standard. Other key points, USABat will not have a drop weight limit, and USA Baseball will allow the use of 2 5/8" big barrel bats for all age levels.

What will the USABat Standard change and why?

Similar to the NCAA and NFHS BBCOR Standard that was implemented in 2011, the new USABat Standard will create wood-like performance in youth baseball bats. Or, as USA Baseball's Executive Director / CEO Paul Seiler stated, help "take another step forward in making our game more uniform at the youth level and ensuring the long-term integrity of the game." Like the NCAA bat performance tests, the USABat Standard is based on the coefficient of restitution from a bat-ball impact. But in order to address the varying levels of play between youth and high school / collegiate players, the USABat test will use different test balls and test speeds to scale the results. The BBCOR regulation limits bats to a maximum value of .50 in the NFHS / NCAA test. Currently, the maximum value that these new youth bats will be allowed to acheive, or how that value would exactly compare to the trampoline effect achievable with a BBCOR / current youth baseball bat / wood bat, is not known. But, unlike the -3 length-to-weight ratio restriction that is required for BBCOR bats, USABat will not have a drop weight limit. Instead of requiring the use of wood bats, which are often found with a -8 length-to-weight ratio at the lightest, younger players will still be able to use bats made from light-weight, highly engineered materials. With the creation of the new standard, players within the affected organizations will also now be allowed to use bats with either a 2 1/4 inch or 2 5/8 inch barrel diameter, as long as they carry the new USABat stamp.

Little League Rule 1.10 applies to Majors and Minors

The bat must be a baseball bat which meets the USA Baseball Bat standard (USABat) as adopted by Little League. It shall be a smooth, rounded stick, and made of wood or of material and color tested and proved acceptable to the USA Baseball Bat standard (USABat). Both divisions, majors and minors, can use a 2 1/4 or 2 5/8 sized bat with the USABat stamp on it.

Tee Ball

Starting on January 1, 2018, all Tee Ball bats in the Little League Baseball® Tee Ball program must feature the USA Baseball mark and accompanying text. Tee Ball bats that were produced and/or purchased prior to the implementation of the new standard can be certified using an Approved Tee Ball Sticker (available September 1, 2017) via the USA Baseball Tee Ball Sticker Program for use with approved Tee Ball baseballs for Little League play.

For even further information please ask your coach or player agent of your division (which can be found here - Contact Info)

You can also find more official Litttle League information here -- http://www.littleleague.org/learn/equipment/baseballbatinfo.htm