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By Bat Digest | Last Updated November 17, 2022
Every new Marucci bat we see seems to leaves us weak in the knees. And, if our count is right, this is five in a row: (1) the CAT 6 is poetic; (2) the OPS is now hanging over the fire place mantle; (3) the Marucci Hex Composite may be the best looking Senior League bat of the year; (4) the Elite Limited looks like it came out of a Sears Fall Special catalog.
Now, (5) the limited release Marucci Hex Alloy may be the most mesmerizing of them all. The pictures don’t quite do it justice, just wait until you hold one. Looking directly at the knob, it looks like they used a Skittle as the template and design. Its shiny gloss lime green finish is brilliant and well proportioned. Around JBR HQ we refer to this bat as the Skittle bat.
On a more practical note, the bat is the answer for those who wish they had a CAT 6 in the drop 10 big barrel or drop 12 youth barrel. Can I get a Hallelujah!? Like the CAT 6, the Marucci Alloy is a full alloy one piece bat. It has, like the CAT 6, the sting free alloy design.
One other engineering feat of which Marucci should be proud is the gigantic barrel. This barrel is large even by composite barrel standards. Compared to the Marucci Hex Composite, which has one of the largest barrels in the business, we found the Alloy’s barrel size nearly identical in diameter from the cap through the “M” on Marucci. It does taper faster than the composite version and by the time it gets to the line the barrel is about 15% skinnier.
The other noteworthy thing on the 2015 Marucci Hex Alloy is the ping sound. We don’t think we’ve heard a louder bat. The clear ring from each hit adds another element of satisfaction to each connection with the ball. Every time it’s hit I think of the church bells at Notre Dame—as if the loud ring is in commemoration of jaw dropping jack.
The alloy bats we weighed and measured were heavier than their composite counterparts in both swing weight and total weight. The 31 ounce composite weighed in at 30.35 ounces. The alloy weighed in at 32.25 ounces. This is not uncommon among any bat manufacturers’ standards. But do note that dropping an inch in transition from composite to alloy versions would be appropriate for comparison purposes.
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.