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By Bat Digest | Last Updated November 17, 2022
Our hitters like the big barrel, light swing, and stiff feel of the 2022 Combat Maxum Ultra. The Maxum is in USSSA and USA only this year—those who want BBCOR should look to the 2021, which is the same. The bat hits the ball great, has a huge barrel, and a decent feel for a single piece. Those in the market for as much barrel per swing weight are looking in the right place.
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If you’re looking for a single-piece composite bat with a big barrel, you don’t have a lot of options. The Easton Maxum line leads the pack. But, a disowned stepsister in the Just Bats Combat Maxum also exists for 2022. You can also look at the Dirty South Bats line as they make a bunch of single-piece composites in all types of sizes and colors that compete well with the Maxum even if they do swing a bit heavier.
Covid pushed this bat line into a weird cycle, but the 2021 Easton Maxum Ultra was only a BBCOR bat. However, the 2020 version, called the Easton Maxum 360, exists in fine form. There are no significant changes to the bat from the 2020 to 2022, although Easton claims to have made some changes to the composite—we couldn’t tell the difference.
The 2022 Easton Maxum Ultra is a single-piece composite with a big barrel and light swing. Here is the market write up on the construction of the USSSA and USA bats:
Easton has the biggest barrels in the game yet again! Introducing the Maxum Ultra, a 1-piece composite construction with a XXL sweet spot, generating the perfect combination of speed and power. The Maxum Ultra has been optimized by integrated player-driven insight, leading to more mass in the barrel for an advantage you can feel. Engineered with Seamless Carbon Construction to give you the stiff feel of a 1-piece bat, with the massive sweet spot and smooth-feeling of a composite bat. Flow-Tack™ Grip is Easton’s most-premium grip, providing ultimate cushion and tack. Easton USSSA bats are used by top travel ball programs across the country. It is approved for play in USSSA and associations that follow the 1.15BPF standard.
The overall rating uses seven different weighted metrics to determine our overall score. Half of total rating comes from the player and our exit speed tests (Player Rating: 25%, Performance: 25%).The other categories are Relevance (20%), Demand (10%), Durability (10%), Resell Score (5%), and Tech Specs (5%).
*: When a bat is denoted by a star (*) it is a preliminary rating. Expect it to be updated as we learn more about the bat and gather more data.
(PlaRa) Player Rating: We measure player rating from user reviews. Those users include our own hitters that we test at the lab as well as reviews we find online.
(ExVe) Performance: Performance measures the exit speeds and distances we capture in our hitting lab with HitTrax using these bats.
(Relv) Relevance: We measure the number of sizes and the MOI of the bat. Bats with a wider range of options get a better score.
(Dmnd) Demand: Demand is measured by consumer sentiment and the buzz around the bat.
(Drb) Durability: A bat’s durability is measured by user reviews as well as feedback from manufacturers.
(ReSl) Resell Score: Based on the price the bats go for used. Higher prices mean greater user demand which means, generally, a better bat. A resell value closer to its original price means a higher score.
(Tech) Tech Specs: We rate the bat on its technological advancements from previous years and compared to the industry at large. This is our chance to reward companies who are trying to innovate.
MOI
MOI or Mass Moment of Inertia is a measurement of bat swing weight. This quantifies how difficult it is to swing a bat. The industry often refers to this as things like End Load or Balanced but those words have been overused to the point of meaninglessness. We measure the actual swing weights of each bat we test using the industry-standard pendulum period, balance point, and scale weight. You can read more about that here.
Price
The price is the original MSRP price of the bat.
Type
The types of bats are single-piece alloy (SPA), two-piece composite (TPC), single-piece composite (SPC), hybrid (Hyb.), and wood (Wood). Hybrid bats are made of composite handles and alloy barrles.
Date
The estimated date the bat began distribution.
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