2016 Combat Vigor Review

Name: 2016 Combat Vigor
Brand: Combat

By Bat Digest | Last Updated November 17, 2022

Our 2016 Combat Vigor Review comes after 4 hours of use and about 600 hacks. The bat is true to its Combat roots as it is a single-piece composite bat with a little bit of hand ring when hit on the wrong spot—but when hit well on the sweet spot, the bat performs admirably. The Vigor is a balanced bat with a slim feeling handle and a stock Lizard Skin Grip.

Price Check

2016 Vigor Video

2016 Vigor Video

2016 Vigor Models

You definitely lose some barrel size on the Vigor when compared to some of the more top-shelf bats—the Combat MAXUM being one of them. But the price difference in something like the Combat Vigor (compared to the MAXUM, DeMarini CF8, or Easton MAKO) may give plenty of reason to give up a couple of inches of the barrel for a more affordable option.

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General Recomendations

The bat lacks the barrel size many have come to expect from the Combat line of performance bats—specifically the MAXUM and Portent lines.

Model Recommendations

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Comparable Bats

We’d recommend the Combat Vigor to at least a few different groups. In particular, those who really appreciate the feel of a one-piece bat but also need a light swing and are somewhat of a budget. Many in this group of players lean towards a single piece aluminum bat like the 2016 Easton S3. Still, we would be adamant that a single piece bat in the light swinging space is more effective with a composite construction due to its larger barrel and lighter feel. Hence the reason we’d recommend a bat like the Vigor over the S3 if you were okay with a little more price and little less durability.

Construction

Single piece composite bats also tend to be the most prone to cracking than hybrid and single-piece alloy bats. But, if you buy it new, the bat comes with a one year (one-time replacement) warranty.

Overall Ratings

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.